Whose E39 survived the lowest temperature

[BMW540san]

We've reached 5 F here in Chattanooga, TN area which is nothing compared to some. My 540 is sleeping in garage and 528 is seeing outside temperatures just for 5 hours daily before it's back in garage. How about the rest of you guys?

[AHay5]

Hopefully mine has. My E39 has been sitting in the parking garage for the last 3 days, last night being in below freezing temperatures. I usually take the bus to campus. I need to find an excuse to drive it besides the grocery store..

[neun]

I saw -12 on my way in to work this morning. It's warmed up to 0 now. :(

[AnotherGeezer]

Mine's seen single digits on quite a few occasions this winter. Even lower if you factor in the wind chill. Clutch is a little sluggish until you cycle it a few time but she starts and runs every single time.

[mech9t8]

-27 degrees C (or -17 degrees F) where I am at. Car starts fine but it's tough to shift into 2nd gear at first.

[e39hamann]

Mine started right up after sitting in 0 degree weather today, definitely the coldest temp it's seen in awhile

[jdauria]

Left work at 2am last night, and the beast fired right up. Slight hesitation but overall did really well! Same thing this morning at 630am when I went back into work, but with no hesitation.

[tintedinfluence]

My has seen -10 to -16 the last two days. Took a few for it to start but she started. Just warmed it up. I have summer tires on her so can't really go anywhere ha.

[philly98540]

Wow that wind is biting cold out there today. Anyway, the ole 540 has been taking it in stride. Garaged at night, but in outdoor garage in the day at work. No issues to report. Running like a champ.

Since I changed out my struts, I no longer have that front end squeek/groan when turning the steering in very cold weather. Nice!

[Fuddy]

mine is still overheating in this weather :o parts should come in today for install on saturday

[Sigil750il]

My 540s been sitting outside in 5-8F weather for the past day and a half (don't have the luxury of a garage where I live :( ). Coldest temp I ever started it in was -5F, according to my phone and the car's temp display. That was roughly 2 weeks ago. Started with no issues.

[bmwahba46]

Took it for a drive the day before things got extremely cold, around 8F... started with some slight hesitation. Been kept garaged though during this -11F weather :)

[JimLev]

It was -5F here a few days ago, the 540 is in the garage (+50 to 55F) until the end of March.
The Tribeca is outside and starts up after a few revs with the remote start button.

[16valex]

Time to move South. Really sick of this cold.

[freethrowdunk]

Definitely mine. The cold has been unforgiving all week:

http://i.imgur.com/jOARVkd.png

lol

[tmvE39E53Z32TT]

Same 5F here in the ATL area this morning. Commute as usual for my 540i, and my wife drove the E53 4.8iS today too.

[BioGuy]

I've seen -30 on my commute this winter (Celsius). There is a low spot before the mountain pass I traverse on a daily basis, these low spots are known as 'sinks' and trap cold air that moves down off the mountains at night. It was in one of those sinks that I got the -30. The rest of the commute was closer to -20.

[MalikSaab]

We were in 10 degree weather here and my 98 540i/6 sounds great out here with no issues.

[bartelbe]

Both of my 528i fired right up and they are parked outside all night. I would park them in my heated garge but the fuel pump went out on my 03 dodge ram so I am dropping a full 34 gallon tank to replace. It was -30 f yesterday morning . 489159

[ALynch1032]

-22 saturday night on my drive home. upstate ny

[champaign777]

it was -15F this weekend here
shifter stucks in parking

[JimLev]

Definitely mine. The cold has been unforgiving all week:

lol

Freethrow...the earthquakes, mudslides, forest fires, and drought is coming!

[gardenmaster]

My 2000 540iA is not faring well, with the wickedly cold weather this year. Yesterday was a NIGHTMARE @-20C!
- Car needs daily boost to get it cranked (barely), only after a booster pack is connected for over 30 minutes
- drivers door won't close, just bounces
- The worst is when I hit the highway the salt spray covered the windshield and the windshield sprayers didn't work, almost caused a collision as I couldn't see, just frozen white goo on the windshield.
- pulled over and piled snow on the windshield with defrost on high to melt it
- opened the hood and found the windshield washer hoses seemed frozen or backed up and it was spraying all over the engine and steamed up. From where I can't find the leak - seems due to backed pressure when the pump is on.
- with the defroster + defogger + lights + wipers going the dash went into an exorcist state and the ABS, DTC, and DSC lights were on and off pulsing in rotating order... is this normal with overloading the electrical system @idle speed?
Or is this a short resulting from windshield washer fluid spraying over the back of the engine and near the passenger side air filter?
- power side mirrors froze up with chunks of ice and wouldn't move, had to drive with misaligned mirrors

Never seen anything like this over the years - cold is killing this car.

[RuskiE39]

Lowest ive seen is like 27 degrees lol.

[BlkzhpWoG]

9 deg and both the 330 and 540 fired right up. Second gear was definitely tricky in the 330 though. They took forever to warm up, but at least they weren't frozen closed and blowing seals like the first airplane I walked on today.

[OnTheFence]

I parked my car on Sunday in the 30 degree temps.
Monday morning it was like 50+ degrees, so I decided to drive the E39 to work.
The garage was still freezing, and as soon as I pulled out of the garage,
the entire car condensed over. B/c the car was still freezing cold.
Even my entire dashboard cluster was totally fogged over.
Very weird, and probably not good for the car to get moisture into EVERY nook and cranny.

[Cowborg]

Still stuck in it's usual half assembled state. I guess it survived in -11 F. I just have to dig it out. :P

[bfp9]

Sister is seeing -81* with windchill in northern Minnesota with her little Jetta. Coldest my car has ever seen is about -50* with windchill, or about -35* without. Never had any problem starting.

[bschmidt25]

It was -18F here yesterday morning. I ended up driving my E60 instead of the E39 because of the power demands of all of the extra electronics. Didn't want it sitting a few days in the cold without charging the battery. Never had a problem with the E39 not starting - even after sitting a few weeks. Not anticipating any tomorrow. But I do worry about a frozen CCV in this weather. Never got around to replacing mine...

[fullthrottle540]

i jumped in my swimming pool today ha ha ha

[AK_5eries]

Definitely mine. The cold has been unforgiving all week:

http://i.imgur.com/jOARVkd.png

lol

Amen.

[bcain79]

15 degees, so far so good. Except I get the airbag light now on intial start whe it's really cold - but it goes out once the car is warmed up. The temp has to be above 35 for the light not to come on on cold start.

[NTB]

My son's car on his way home after work on 1-5-2014
http://i285.photobucket.com/albums/ll61/RAWNTB/1483721_10202136346224016_970991922_o_zpsad3c468b. jpg (http://s285.photobucket.com/user/RAWNTB/media/1483721_10202136346224016_970991922_o_zpsad3c468b. jpg.html)
Was within a degree of what weather.com was reporting

[auaq]

Well, I've been seeing around -246 F during daytime and around -342 F during night time.

Sent from pluto crash site while typing this farewell message.

[9secdeuce]

mine is still overheating in this weather :o parts should come in today for install on saturday
I'm having similar issues. What are you replacing?
thanks

[manticore33]

I had -12f (air temp, not windchill which was down in the -35f) on my car. It started with no issues and is at 231k. My only complaint was the power steering was a bit stiff for a couple of turns.

[Fuddy]

I'm having similar issues. What are you replacing?
thanks

pretty much everything

http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?2068062-M54-issue-Aux-fan-cooling-etc

[cnn]

Minus 30C (yes Celsius) absolute temp, with wind chill -50C.
Started it in one shot.

[andyg215]

My car saw -16 on Monday. It took 2 tries to start it. One crank to get some fuel in and let it evaporate, 2nd to fire. Car has a new starter and battery and I was thankful for that. My temp sensor bit the dust and constantly reads -40 now lol.

I hate he unhappy noises cars make when it is that cold. I felt bad for the thing.

[FlipredE36]

Mine started at -3F but the crank speed was very very slow. Battery is well over 4 years old.

[kuwacs]

My 2000 540iA is not faring well, with the wickedly cold weather this year. Yesterday was a NIGHTMARE @-20C!
- Car needs daily boost to get it cranked (barely), only after a booster pack is connected for over 30 minutes
- drivers door won't close, just bounces
- The worst is when I hit the highway the salt spray covered the windshield and the windshield sprayers didn't work, almost caused a collision as I couldn't see, just frozen white goo on the windshield.
- pulled over and piled snow on the windshield with defrost on high to melt it
- opened the hood and found the windshield washer hoses seemed frozen or backed up and it was spraying all over the engine and steamed up. From where I can't find the leak - seems due to backed pressure when the pump is on.
- with the defroster + defogger + lights + wipers going the dash went into an exorcist state and the ABS, DTC, and DSC lights were on and off pulsing in rotating order... is this normal with overloading the electrical system @idle speed?
Or is this a short resulting from windshield washer fluid spraying over the back of the engine and near the passenger side air filter?
- power side mirrors froze up with chunks of ice and wouldn't move, had to drive with misaligned mirrors

Never seen anything like this over the years - cold is killing this car.

I've heard over and over how a bad battery in these cars is like the devil. Certainly start there, as it could be an overload issue. Test the alternator too.

The same happened to my doors, but it was from going through a car wash the week before. A few warm days later to melt it, WD-40 to dry it, and then I sprayed grease in the door cabling. The temps dropped to around -5 here, and I haven't had an issue since.

[Cyrix2k]

My 540 is not happy when it's 0 degrees out. It fires up on the first crank, but then struggles to run & stalls. I had to give a little gas and once it was able to stay running for a few seconds on the second go, it settled down & ran fine. Maybe the ICV needs cleaning... 217k miles and I don't think it's ever been cleaned.

[griffmcg54]

Saw -20F last weekend. Took 2 tries to start it in the morning.

[Bandem]

You guys who live in Florida or SoCal are ******** LOL.

[freethrowdunk]

You guys who live in Florida or SoCal are ******** LOL.

******** LOL indeed my friend.

[bkgreene39]

Last morning was 4F, starts right up.

[pizzaman09]

My 02 M5 survived -13 F for about two days. Upon starting at those cold temps one of the pulleys seems to not spin as is squeals terribly for a second or two.
The shift from first to second the first few times is also accompanied by some grinding.

Today in +15 degree weather the M5 was able to jump start a Pontiac Sunfire that had left it's lights on all day.

[jp5Touring]

-12 with a wind chill of -31

[scottdodge]

Lowest was -28 air temp, -50 wind chill. Don't have a garage so it sat outside for two days straight. Cold killed my old battery, so I threw a new one in and it's starting / running like a champ.

Thankfully I have a heated spot at work.

[Tulio]

Mine started fine, but ended up turning a slow leaking radiator into a fast-leaking one due to temperature differentials in the plastic/aluminum seam. :(

[av8r4aa]

My wagon cranked right up at 12 degrees.
Airbag light stayed on so about 10 minutes later I
Restarted the engine and the light stayed out.

Love those bun warmers !!!!,

[16valex]

I don't dare to start the 530 in this weather but have no hesitation to fire the 528 M52 engine right up.

I have Purple Synchromesh in the manual tranny, and I really can tell the difference between it and Redline MT-90, much easier to change gear even in this cold.

[auaq]

Why's that may I ask?

[16valex]

Why's that may I ask?

Don't trust the CCV system in M54 engine when it's -10F outside with windchill, had the car been the garage then I would start it right up.

[auaq]

:rolleyesOh, c'mon. Your 530i is lonely and left outside in the cold. Shame on you! Just saying ......

[16valex]

:rolleyesOh, c'mon. Your 530i is lonely and left outside in the cold. Shame on you! Just saying ......

In the cold is where them cars belong. Except BMW is to wimpy. Ha ha.

[champaign777]

Don't trust the CCV system in M54 engine when it's -10F outside with windchill, had the car been the garage then I would start it right up.

I will be the second one on this
no garage no cold start on -10F or you are on your own

[16valex]

I will be the second one for this
no garage no cold start on -10F or you are on your own

I hear ya brotha!

[pegcity]

-52 celcius home from work, what do i win?

[auaq]

-52 celcius home from work, what do i win?
Ice cream. Curious to see your tongue getting iced up when you lick it at -52 C.

[pegcity]

Winnipeg was the coldest place on earth besides the south pole last week.

[manticore33]

Interesting. I do not have a cold weather CCV and my car sits outside and it has never been a problem. Now, the Porsche gets the garage and I won't start in the cold because it is filled with 20w50 oil.

[HoZy]

Can today be opposite day?

It's not cold... But it is an Australian summer.

Equivalent to 115f

http://i.imgur.com/6tvdNSl.jpg

[Thejhova4sho]

1 more

[auaq]

Can today be opposite day?

It's not cold... But it is an Australian summer.

Equivalent to 115f

http://i.imgur.com/6tvdNSl.jpg

Interdasting!

[pizzaman09]

I did find at the cold temperatures oddly, all of the pixels on my dash worked. They have never all worked before.

[BavarianE39]

Unfortunately had to drive my 540 in the coldest day that we've had so far, I left the house with the temps at around -15 and after about 6 hours the temp was around -30, I felt like crying for starting it at those temperatures. It fired up normally, lcd displays were barely illuminated, blower motor was making a squealing noise for about 30 seconds, speakers sounded monotone until the temp went up.

Thankfully I use 0w40 so the engine ran like a champ, but the clutch was almost solid, even with the royal purple fluid. Felt horrible for starting the engine at those temperatures.

[bagman]

It was -15 in Indy with a wind chill of -34. The e39 fired right up, nothing on the dash worked at first. no gauges, no lights, nothing. i let it run for a little while, then turned it off and re-started it. Everything worked fine. Thank God for cold weather package. heated seats and steering wheel are wonderful in those temps.

[supra94tt]

Yea what's up with those air bag lights on in cold weather, lol, recent cold front(last Sat. driving to work 0F) brought me an SRS light on for couple of cold days, now it's gone after it warmed up :) .

[thedude60126]

Just fired her up outside cold in -45 with windchill besides some stiff power steering ran like a champ

[laeltaba]

-17F on January 6th in Chicago. My e39 528it was parked outside. Took two cranks and fired up. Left the car running about 15 mins to warm up. when i got back in the car, the cabin smelled like gasoline and noticed that the my rear suspension was on "low rider" stance. SLS light was on and SLS pump could not get the airbag suspension back to its normal stance. Tried the car 4 days later when temps were no longer in the negatives and everything went back to normal. Checked fuel rail to see any signs of leaks from injectors or orings but everything was dry. Wondering if anyone else had the gas smell issue in the cabin during extreme cold weather?

[auaq]

Our E39's were built in mysterious ways I suppose.

[sleuth255]

-15F in Milwaukee with my M54 powered 530i with no issues. Problem came after it went from -7 to +35 on the same day. Water condensed all over the cold engine and when I started it later that afternoon, it ran on (what felt like) 4 cylinders for 30 seconds or so before everything else kicked in. My wife had the same issue with her Nissan. When I looked at it, there was condensation everywhere.

[PhonyMcRingRing]

I mean i've seen -40 on mine……but that might be for other reasons…:shifty

[JB2mnytys]

Mine started fine last Monday before and after work, but on the way home it started to get warmer than usual. Had her towed to a heated garage and tested the coolant. Apparently the $2.69 tester is damned accurate, as the coolant only tested to -10°F. Flushed and filled and everything is back to normal.

[Dirtee39]

-15 with -40 wind chill at 530am fired right up!

[auaq]

Bravo.

[Joshp99208]

489891clutch was a little sticky but she fired right up and gets me from "a" to "b" with a smile everytime!

[Trini335i]

-45 here in South Dakota a few weeks ago...im surprised my car even started after that

[gregger59]

-15 with -40 wind chill at 530am fired right up!

Ditto that. Car starts and runs with a few weird chatters/squeals from the dash, but then runs like a champ.

My only issue has been a bottle of washer fluid from Jewel/Osco that was supposedly good to -20F but has frozen up on me in even single-digit temps, leaving me blinded by white salt film. Last Sunday, it did fine after sitting in a parking garage for a while and thawing. But today, it never did thaw, and i think I overworked the pump by checking every few minutes to see if it had. So now, the pump is not firing at all. Will check the fuses and see if I blew one. If not, maybe a bad pump.

[RyansBMW]

My car needed a jump yesterday after the cold weather. :( First time I've ever needed one. I need to get the battery checked to see if its time for replacement.

[kopaczjm]

yea -35F with a -50+ wind chill. slight hesitation then fired and whined for a moment then A-team GO! i hate wisconsin. no garage. no hope. haven't been stranded yet. unless you count the six inches of snow i got stuck in. thats what you get for slamming a winter commuter in wi!

[theWalkinator]

-10 with wind chill yesterday, door lock was frozen, cannot turn the key, used a heat gun to heat up around key hole and lock for while, then I can turn the key and unlocked the car, fired up fine, little hesitation while idling, moving out of spot on shovled driveway was challenging with all season tires.

[Cyrix2k]

It was 2*f when I arrived at the office this morning and likely colder when I left home. The clutch actually feels better when it's cold (it's been on the fritz for a while now... I think the DMF is shot because while the clutch doesn't slip at all, the engagement is seriously messed up at times). The first few shifts are always interesting when it's dead cold -- going into second is near impossible 30 seconds after startup in 0* weather.

[gregger59]

...So now, the pump is not firing at all. Will check the fuses and see if I blew one. If not, maybe a bad pump.

Fortunately, after sitting in the garage overnight (Wifey's car got bumped from its slot), the pump recovered and was back to normal. Pumped out the rest of the lousy Jewel washer fluid and dumped in a gallon of the Walmart stuff I have always used. I can see again! Still only 8 deg. F. out today, at noon.

[Doru]

Don't trust the CCV system in M54 engine when it's -10F outside with windchill, had the car been the garage then I would start it right up.


I will be the second one on this
no garage no cold start on -10F or you are on your own

The coldest she was driven was in -55°C (-67°F) from Calgary to Edmonton (Jan 2008). The temp needle was between 10-11 o'clock all the time. At the first red light in Edmonton, the CCV froze. Left me stranded.
Driving between -20°C and -30°C (-4°F to -22°F) is common, no issues. Year after year, after year. This is balmy......Not sure why you guys complain?
I learned my lesson - when it's lower than -30°C I place a cardboard in front of the rad. If it's colder than -15°C, I turn the heat off until I see the KTMP above 85°C-90°C.
I still have that CCV from 2008 using my above method. No mayo, no gunk 1 oil change/year. Runs like a champ.

[16valex]

I learned my lesson - when it's lower than -30°C I place a cardboard in front of the rad. If it's colder than -15°C, I turn the heat off until I see the KTMP above 85°C-90°C.
I still have that CCV from 2008 using my above method. No mayo, no gunk 1 oil change/year. Runs like a champ.

I used to do the cardboard thing on my Toyota truck, but too lazy for that nowadays. If I'm going to use the cardboard thing on my bimmer, I might as well design a metal louver with a motor and switch to open/close :)

But good to hear your method has been working for you.

[av8r4aa]

Damn cold this morning here in Dallas.
15 on the Fahrenheit scale. New battery so she started right up.
For what ever reason I get an airbag warning light. I usually stop about
10 minutes down the road for Java. Restarted the car and no lights.
Loving the cold weather bun warmers. I have also gave up on chasing the HVAC panel.
For winter I set 75 both sides and run on automatic. Interestingly the blower is very low on initial
start. When the engine temps start to rise the blower will pick up speed.

My other BMW is a 1987 M6. Not as fancy climate control...

[Aryana]

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/01/27/ypy3aquz.jpg

[Oakenhorse]

Mine started up in -20 degree (with windchill) weather about 2 weeks ago. It's sitting right now and will probably sit with the occasional start up through this next polar blast.

[mxracer41]

Been trying not to drive mine lately because of snow/salt and freezing temps but gotta do what you gotta do... but even after sitting for a week straight started up on the first crank in 15 degree weather :redspot

[JB2mnytys]

Mine did the same at 12.20a Saturday when I arrived back in Milwaukee; 5.5 days in temps nowhere above 20°F.

[auaq]

Welp, finally we got touched down with snow last evening. About 3-4 inches.