exterior temp guage

[john_18]

Im not sure what the correct pronunciation of the word is but, its the guage that is under your front bumper that runs to a display in the cabin telling you what the temp. outside is.

I guess mine is gone or broken b/c the cabin always reads -37 C. which is deathly cold.

So the question now becomes what is the real name of this little part, where can i find replacements, hopw much do the cost, and can I install them myself?

Sorry if this is stupid but i have googled it to no avail. Thanks

-John

[preyash]

ambient temperature sensor, check bavarian motorsport, they run for about 30 bucks. good luck.

[drz]

When the external air temperature sensor (Part # : 65 81 1 383 204)fails, the on-board computer displays -37 degrees. You can find them on just about any online BMW parts store. I know that bavauto. com carries them for $23. The install is easy as pie: just pull off the faulty one (if it hasn't already fallen off) and put in the new one.

If you are shopping around for prices, you may also want to visit pelicanparts. com

[john_18]

Wow. Thanks for the speedy reply guys, I honestly wasnt expecting to hear anything for a day or so. Im going to Bav auto right now to order one b/c the -37 is really annoying. Thanks so much again.



-John

[john_18]

Well since we are still on the subject of the OBC and temperature sensors. I have another problem related to this. I dont have an owners manual either so please bear with me.

the damn clock is always on militarty time, which has sucked but i can now read military time easily. How the hell do i get it back to the regular 12 hour clock: ? Thanks for the great help and patience.


-John

[Cruzin 323is]

u should be able to hit the c/f button, and it should switch it to the 12hour US time...

also, u should download the Bently manual, thats on the sticky... and that should help you with TONS of stuff you need to know about your car

[Chaosbunny]

yep just get the ambient sensor i had the same problem and it fixed it instantly

[WarNox]

haha military time, first time i've heard it called that. mine is always in that 'military time' then, actually called 24hour time lol

i dont have my manual here but im sure u need to hold down the 'set' button then press c/f to change between 24hr and 12hr time.

[john_18]

Ok...

First of all Thanks to everyone who helped me out while im undertaking this project.

Second I have another problem.

When I bought this car I had been w/o transportation for a few months and taking the bus was getting aggrivating. So when I first saw the car I bit hard, and I also noticed the right front bumper was cracked, probably from hitting a curb or something. Anyway I used this as a bargaining point to get the vehicle cheaper.

Having said that...When my temp sensor arrived today I went out to put it in, (where the bumper had been damaged.) Its the typical two prong receptor that should have a port to plug into. So I look around and no port. : The only thing is a dangling wire that has been taped over with electrical tape. So I strip it and was hoping that this was the right connection. BINGO.....sort of. When I connect the wire to the two prongs and then check the temp in my car instead of -37 like it usually displays I started getting different #'s like -18, -10 and so on whenever i turn on the battery.

So the question now becomes am I SOL or can i get a receptor to connect to the bare wire where I can plug the temp sensor into or is my system totally shit. Im sort of pissed but if it doesnt work I only dropped $25

[daki77]

After -37°C freezing cold, the car needs some time to adapt! lol joke...kinda... Really, it takes some time for it to adapt...it may take a few hours, and I even read that it had taken the whole day for some people before it started to read the temperature correctly. So, just check your temp from time to time...you should be sol very soon...