Quirks

[powaz]

Hey guys, a noob here as you can see.

This will be my first post here, so don't go too hard on me!

I've had my '90 IS for about 6mo now, and I'm just trying to figure out what might be E30 idiosyncrasies and what might be actual problems. I realize there's also a pretty big grey area there too. Also, I might just reuse this thread whenever I run into something and I can't find it anywhere else. Or not. Anyway..

I thought I didn't have heat. Until yesterday. It blows super-duper hot if I sit for a couple minutes, but once I get going down the road the incoming air cools it down to whatever the outside temp is. Is this normal? Side note: blower gauge only works on hi.

All the turn indicators work, but sometimes they blink normal, sometimes they blink really fast. I checked all the bulbs, connections & fuses and all seem fine. A relay?

Seems like there were a couple other things, but it's late so I'll post them later.

[my1stE30]

I thought I didn't have heat. Until yesterday. It blows super-duper hot if I sit for a couple minutes, but once I get going down the road the incoming air cools it down to whatever the outside temp is. Is this normal? Side note: blower gauge only works on hi.


your loss of heat is likely caused by an air lock in the heater circulation lines ... let's hope the air lock is not caused by a head gasket leaking exhaust gas into your cooling system ... bleed the air out of your system and see if this fixes the heat loss ... you may also need a new thermostat

your blower motor only working on high is likely caused by the blower resistor gone bad... it is located by the blower motor accessible from the engine compartment

[Carguyix]

As to your blower temp...
The button above/below the a/c button Is the recycled air button. Push it in and it glows orange and cuts off air from the outside. That might be why it gets colder once you start moving.

Mine wont get hot until the car warms up. Pretty sure that's normal.

[Tom D]

i'm thinking that he needs a new thermostat (although bleeding the cooling system is cheap and should be tried first)

the blower only working on hi is because the safety switch for the blower resistors has been tripped, probably because the resistors are bad and overheating. time to get a new resistor board for your heater.

[powaz]

Wow, thanks guys, that gives me plenty to start on. Yeek. A leaking head would BLOW. Are there any other symptoms that would be indicative of that I could be keeping an eye, ear and nostril out for?





Mine wont get hot until the car warms up. Pretty sure that's normal.

Well, yeah!

[powaz]

Also, I'm about to replace the exhaust (catback?), but I can't figure out which seal rings and gaskets I need.

[powaz]

i'm thinking that he needs a new thermostat

But would the thermostat explain why it blows hot while I'm not moving? And are you talking about the switch or the regulator? One's $25 and one's $90! Is the board different than both of those? I havn't been able to find that on any of the big four.

[Tom D]

my guess is that the car has a failed thermo. when sitting still the hot water is circulating (thermo opened)and making it's way to the heater, but when moving the air across the radiator drops the water temp too low, the thermo does not close and the heater only see cold water.

also concerning the blower motor. in position 1 the voltage to the blower has to go through 3 resistors and that drops the voltage, speed 2 travels through 2 resistors and speed 3 through 1. speed 4 or high is wired directly to the fan and is not subjected to the safety trip switch protecting the resistors. understand?

you can find one at a junkyard easy enough if money is tight.

[powaz]

Sweet. Thanks for the suggestions.

[richardodn]

Also, I'm about to replace the exhaust (catback?), but I can't figure out which seal rings and gaskets I need.

Look up part numbers here. http://realoem.com/bmw/partgrp.do?model=1113&mospid=47309&hg=18

Once you have the PN, you can use that to purchase.

[powaz]

Nice resource. Thanks!