Anyone here good with older BMWs?

[Slateman]

Or know a good mechanic in the NoVA area that doesn't charge an arm and a leg

I have a 95 M3 that keeps overheating. It shows no signs of a head gasket issue, but I'm starting to wonder if thats the case. So far I have:

Replaced the thermostat (just did this and got an overheat while attempting to bleed)

Replaced the radiator (had a small crack in the plastic housing)

Replaced the fan clutch

I've checked the water pump and its good.

I've checked the auxiliary fan and its running when the AC is on

What now?

Symptoms:

There is no heat coming from the heat vents

When I open the bleed screw, I get steam after the car sits for a while.

Don't know if it matters:

I can easily squeeze the lower and upper radiator hoses.

[Gibbs Hog Heaven]

I just did a double take on the title as I quick glanced read it as "Anyone here good with older BBW's?"; which lead to an eye popping "WTF?"

*Shaking head laughing at my quick reading dumb ass. Ignore me and carry on.

Hail.

[Springfield]

When you open the bleed screw, does coolant come out? It should.

It sounds to me like you have a large air pocket in the cooling system. The heater core is usually the highest point in the cooling system meaning that any air pockets will travel straight there. They can be extremely difficult to get out of the cooling system.

[HOF44]

Sounds like a head gasket, or maybe a cracked head. Have you checked the oil for anti-freeze?

[Springfield]

Sounds like a head gasket, or maybe a cracked head. Have you checked the oil for anti-freeze?

How does that sound like a head gasket to you? I'm just wondering because it doesn't sound like one to me.

[HOF44]

How does that sound like a head gasket to you? I'm just wondering because it doesn't sound like one to me.

Just had a car with a cracked head that overheated, ended up trading it in. The coolant and the oil were intermixing.

[Springfield]

Another question. Does it overheat when at idle? When driving down the road? Both?

Especially after replacing something like a radiator, you could have a large air pocket. One of my techs at the shop says that the BMWs can be a "pain in the ass" to get air pockets out of them.

[DCsportsfan53]

I agree with the thought that there's probably an air pocket in the cooling system somewhere, especially since you're only getting steam and not coolant out of the bleed screw. Two things you can try, first starting with a cold engine leave the cap off the coolant bottle and let it run, give it some rpms and try and "burp" the air out of the system. If the system is closed, obviously, there's nowhere for the air to escape. Secondly, you can try and get a vacuum filler which will suck all the air and coolant out of the system and then fill it under vacuum. Outside of that, my next thought would be a blockage somewhere in the cooling system. I'm a VW tech and I own an old e30 BMW but don't really do side work, if you need professional help one of my best friends is a tech who works at an independent shop in Silver Spring that has very reasonable rates and I will personally vouch for his skill and integrity and can refer you to him. He has plenty of BMW experience, too, and also owns a 95 M3. Drop me a pm if you have any questions or if you'd like me to put you in touch with him.

---------- Post added June-30th-2011 at 03:43 PM ----------

Sounds like a head gasket, or maybe a cracked head. Have you checked the oil for anti-freeze?

doubt if from the symptoms described. Head gasket would likely give signs by way of coolant in the oil, oil in the coolant, "smokey" residue in the coolant or white smoke out the exhaust. If bad enough you could possibly also have running problems such as low compression and misfires.

[Slateman]

Yup.Gave it a real good bleed. Let it run for a good long while (like 25 minutes). Rev'd it, bled it, rev'd some more. Test drove for a good 15 minutes and the temp gauge is good. Popped the hood and no coolant leaking anywhere. I'm going to let it sit for a while and refill with coolant. Then run it a little, refill and leave it for the night.

*crosses fingers*

BTW, its not a HG because

1. No milkshake in the oil

2. No blue/white smoke pouring out the tail pipe

3. No coolant leaking out of the engine

[twa]

Letting it run on a steep incline(or raising the frt 45 degrees) usually gets the air out....pain in the ass.

[Goskinz0721]

I'm a VW tech and I own an old e30 BMW but don't really do side work, if you need professional help one of my best friends is a tech who works at an independent shop in Silver Spring that has very reasonable rates and I will personally vouch for his skill and integrity and can refer you to him. He has plenty of BMW experience, too, and also owns a 95 M3. Drop me a pm if you have any questions or if you'd like me to put you in touch with him.

---------- Post added June-30th-2011 at 03:43 PM ----------

Now that the OP solved his problem, got a question for you: I have a 1990 5 series with about 135k miles. When I go over a bump at 50+mph my front end starts to shake really, really bad. Not all of the time. But sometimes it shakes up through the steering wheel. I thought it was the tie rods, but I had those replaced and the front end aligned about 1000-2000 miles ago. It seemed to help for a bit, but the problem is back. Is it the ball joints?

[DCsportsfan53]

Now that the OP solved his problem, got a question for you: I have a 1990 5 series with about 135k miles. When I go over a bump at 50+mph my front end starts to shake really, really bad. Not all of the time. But sometimes it shakes up through the steering wheel. I thought it was the tie rods, but I had those replaced and the front end aligned about 1000-2000 miles ago. It seemed to help for a bit, but the problem is back. Is it the ball joints?

If I'm not mistaken that 5 series will have ball joints that are integrated into the lower control arms. The best way to check for play in suspension is to lift the front, both sides supporting the vehicle with jack stands. They call the jack in your trunk a widow maker for a reason. Grab the wheel on either side at 3 and 9 o'clock and slowly turn the wheels in either direction, sweeping back and forth. Make sure to leave the key in the ignition after turning the car off to keep the steering column unlocked. You should be able to feel a dead spot of play in the movement of the wheel if there's an issue. If you do, continue moving the wheel back and forth with 1 hand and use the other to feel around different suspension components. Most of the time, you can feel the clunk or play in the component. Lightly grab the tie rod while doing this, grab the control arm under the different ball joint attachment points. Check for any loose bolts and check for visible play in joints as you're doing all this. A car like a BMW shouldn't really have any play in these components. Also, grab the wheels at 12 and 6 and try to wiggle it back and forth. See if there's play in the hub or wheel bearing, this will help check the strut mount up top where the strut attaches to the body.

All that said and it's definitely a good idea to check all components, not to mention poke around your own car and get a little dirty never hurts, too me what you've described sounds like weak struts. Does it just get bouncy and shimmy a lot at speed when you hit bumps? To me the first thing I think is the struts are not doing their job and are allowing the springs to take over and compress/decompress multiple times rather than dampening that effect and allowing the car to absorb the bump.

[Slateman]

Letting it run on a steep incline(or raising the frt 45 degrees) usually gets the air out....pain in the ass.

I jacked the front up on mine. Did another test drive. Warmed and reved for twenty five minutes and drove for twenty. Needle was steady at twelve o'clock and I have lots of hot air blowing out of the heater

[aszumilo]

If I'm not mistaken that 5 series will have ball joints that are integrated into the lower control arms. The best way to check for play in suspension is to lift the front, both sides supporting the vehicle with jack stands. They call the jack in your trunk a widow maker for a reason. Grab the wheel on either side at 3 and 9 o'clock and slowly turn the wheels in either direction, sweeping back and forth. Make sure to leave the key in the ignition after turning the car off to keep the steering column unlocked. You should be able to feel a dead spot of play in the movement of the wheel if there's an issue. If you do, continue moving the wheel back and forth with 1 hand and use the other to feel around different suspension components. Most of the time, you can feel the clunk or play in the component. Lightly grab the tie rod while doing this, grab the control arm under the different ball joint attachment points. Check for any loose bolts and check for visible play in joints as you're doing all this. A car like a BMW shouldn't really have any play in these components. Also, grab the wheels at 12 and 6 and try to wiggle it back and forth. See if there's play in the hub or wheel bearing, this will help check the strut mount up top where the strut attaches to the body.

All that said and it's definitely a good idea to check all components, not to mention poke around your own car and get a little dirty never hurts, too me what you've described sounds like weak struts. Does it just get bouncy and shimmy a lot at speed when you hit bumps? To me the first thing I think is the struts are not doing their job and are allowing the springs to take over and compress/decompress multiple times rather than dampening that effect and allowing the car to absorb the bump.

Also, check your control arm bushings. That could cause those symptoms.

[DCsportsfan53]

Also, check your control arm bushings. That could cause those symptoms.

Yep, forgot to mention those.

[Goskinz0721]

Does it just get bouncy and shimmy a lot at speed when you hit bumps? If I'm not mistaken that 5 series will have ball joints that are integrated into the lower control arms. Also, check your control arm bushings. That could cause those symptoms.

It's more than bouncy. I had the struts replaced a while ago (maybe at 80-90k). THe whole front end shakes hard up through the steering wheel. Not all of the time, but mostly after I hit a small pothole or go over a bump in the road at 50+.

Yes, the ball joints are integrated with the control arms.

Thanks for the help guys. I'll keep you posted on what I find.