3-Series (E36)Chat relating to the BMW 3-Series from 1992-1999. Autodoodad
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Ok, so the "check Engine" light comes on when I'm on my way to work today. As I am walking away from my car (at work) I can hear the blower (what I thought was the fan)...unusual so I remembered it...
I get in my car to leave...the car is completely dead...I jump it and come home...in my driveway I take a closer look and see that the radiator is blowing air (sounds like a blower) and the fan is just barely moving (like struggling to move)..
Can anyone help me out as to what the F**K is going on here...???
and why would the fan come on when you tried to start it up?......the engine was cold right?
edit: sorry i didn't see that you drove it home
well i guess if the battery is almost dead its possible, check the year/month of the battery on the side. then check the warranty. 95% of batteries will die about a month or two after their warranty expires (used to work at Advance Auto for a while)
the radiator blowing air though? where is the air coming from? sometimes the fan will stay on after shutoff to cool the engine b/c it can actually heat up after shutoff due to the lack of circulating air/coolant. if it was struggling it could be cause you have a bad battery. i dunno
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AMG can't build an NA engine that can compete with M engines, so they stick in a supercharger and say their cars are faster. BMW could simply do the same, but they don't out of principle.</span>
ok buddy i was just tryin to help. if you were that smart though you would know that a radiator CAN"T BLOW AIR! it has no fan, blades, etc. the only thing it can do is leak air, which you didn't say it had a leak..
you need to be more specific genius
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AMG can't build an NA engine that can compete with M engines, so they stick in a supercharger and say their cars are faster. BMW could simply do the same, but they don't out of principle.</span>
Originally posted by RIBEMR26@Apr 27 2005, 10:04 PM Does anyone think this could be a fualty thermostat getting stuck "open"???
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There is an auxiliary fan in front of the radiator. You can see it through the grill. Could it have been on and blowing air through the radiator? I can't think of anything that could cause the radiator itself to blow air.
The fan is there to help with hot days, the a/c on, etc. As someone said, when you turn the engine off, there is nothing circulating to dissipate heat. So the fan might come on to help cool the silent engine.
__________________ 1995 325I, window tint, K&N, debaffled airbox, BMW #104 wheels, Nighthawk low beams, smoked side markers, smoked corners, smoked taillights, M3 stlye heated mirrors, various interior bits, Bosal cat-back.
The air was coming from the auxilary fan in front of the radiator (which consequently I didn't realize was there, as it was almost dark when I got home)
Something is causing the auxilary fan to NOT shut off and it is killing the battery...the car started this morning but...I dont trust it....
Any ideas what could be causing the fan to continue to run with the car off...could it be a stuck thermostat "telling" the car that the radiator needs cooling?
In general the electric fan runs when a temperature sensor which is usually screwed into the bottom of the radiator reaches a certain temperature. The fan will run even when the car is turned off until the temp falls below a set temp. It sounds like your car may have overheated because the regular fan wasn't working properly. As a result the aux. electric fan ran for a longer time than normal when the car was turned off in order to bring the temp dowm. This combined with a weak battery caused the battery to go dead.
If the car is overheating check the regular fan, waterpump, and thermostat. Also check for a weak battery. If the car is at normal operating temp, the aux fan should run for two or three minutes after the car is shut off. If it runs for a substantially longer time check the fan temp sensor.
Originally posted by RIBEMR26@Apr 29 2005, 02:27 PM Thanks Gator...good lookin out
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The sensor for the fan should be found on the passenger's side of the radiator. If you go to www.understeer.com and read about the "fan delete" mod, they show a picture of the sensor.
__________________ 1995 325I, window tint, K&N, debaffled airbox, BMW #104 wheels, Nighthawk low beams, smoked side markers, smoked corners, smoked taillights, M3 stlye heated mirrors, various interior bits, Bosal cat-back.
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