I have noticed that on most cars, the gages read right in the middle. On my S54 M coupe the oil temp has never really been right in the middle... after the car warms up my oil temp is somewhere near the 260 line. Is that normal??? Seems a little bit hot to me especially since I’m not really taking the car over 3000rpm on the freeway. Thanks in advance for your input.
-Russ
That seems quite hot to be running normally, you said at highway speeds it does this? Check oil cooler operation? Mine is usually on the low side, I've only seen it get that hot after long spouts of hard driving
Mine is usually closer to 210/220 fwiw
Last edited by BimmerBreaker; 01-14-2018 at 01:03 PM.
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if it was an S52, I'd guarantee you have an air pocket in the cooling system. Easy check.
Way too high. Mine has never gone over 220 and that was driving in 112 heat. Typically it is 190 to 210.
Awesome. Thanks for the feedback. Could this be an oil thermostat issue?
Cars with no oil cooler don't run that hot in low load conditions, so I would say it's not a thermostat or cooler problem.
/.randy
It's been a long time since I've had a normal cooling system. As I remember, 230ish. With an S54 filter and oversized radiators, I see 205. Never waivers.
My S52 sees 230ish as well on stock system.
-Abel
- E36 328is ~210-220whp: Lots of Mods.
- 2000 Z3: Many Mods.
- 2003 VW Jetta TDI Manual 47-50mpg
- 1999 S52 Estoril M Coupe
- 2014 328d Wagon, self-tuned, 270hp/430ft-lbs
- 2019 M2 Competition, self-tuned, 504whp
- 2016 Mini Cooper S
No. First off the coolant temp gauge is useless. Second, if there is an air pocket in part of the head, how would it transfer heat to the coolant?
I was thinking overheated oil might affect the coolant enough move the coolant gauge a bit.
I didn't know where the air pocket driving the oil temperature would be. If the air pocket is in the head, and if the head is where the coolant temperature sensor is located, then the sensor would have no coolant to read.
And I see, as you indicate, that the sensor is indeed in the head:
"Engine coolant temperature (ECT) sensor detects coolant temperature at the cylinder head."
https://www.pelicanparts.com/BMW/tec...nd_Testing.htm
That makes me wonder how overheating from loss of coolant can be seen from the temperature gauge. The head goes dry first, and people do report the temperature gauge moving to the red zone.
Last edited by Vintage42; 01-15-2018 at 10:09 AM.
BMW MOA 696, BMW CCA 1405
The thing is I can't imagine an air pocket getting stuck in the S54 style cooling system with the remote expansion tank setup and then only presenting itself as an issue on highway drives?
Also curious what oil temps S54 with no oil coolers run at then, since they are apparently not needed? I thought they were fairly important to cooling the S54 in these cars given the limited radiator area exposed to fresh moving air and the higher thermal needs of the S54
Assuming its *not* an air pocket in the system, what do you think it could be?
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Another data point...
S52 supercharged with S54 OC/RAD... I run around 230 normally but maybe hit 250 after a long spirited mountain drive. I've never hit 260.
Nathan in Denver
1999 M Roadster, VFE V3 S/C, Randy Forbes Reinforced, Hardtop, H&R/Bilstein, Apex PS-7, Supersprint
1999 Z3 2.8 Coupe, Headers, 3.46, Manual Swap, H&R/Koni, M Geometry/Brakes, M54B30 Manifold, Style 42
Have you ever done an oil analysis? I'd be curious to learn what the condition of the rod bearings are that coule either A) be a result FROM high temperatures, or B) contributing TO the high readings.
With a sample pump, the oil can be extracted without requiring it to be drained; you just pull about 4oz. up through the dipstick. Follow instructions on obtaining the best sample; engine hot, sample pulled as soon as engine shut down, etc.
The only time I ever got close to 260 was on the track. With highway driving it stays around 180.
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Well, at this point it’s safe to say that my car runs too hot! I’m thinking that this is something that will be beyond my scope of work. I just had knee surgery so when I get up and moving I’ll be taking the car in... will advise what my mechanic finds. Thanks again everyone.
-Russ
BMW MOA 696, BMW CCA 1405
You can also use the "secret" gauge cluster test to tell you coolant temp in real time... No $$$ or tools required
Coolant gauge has always warmed to dead center. Never waivers. Not sure of the exact temperature, but like I said, it never fluctuates
Dead center means 65C-105C.
/.randy
According to default coding values for E36 equipped with S54, the cluster middle point is 85 to 95 on this, so not nearly as big of a buffer as the other engines.
- - - Updated - - -
But I haven't read out an actual cluster to see if it truly is programmed to those values.
(They can be changed, yes)
-Abel
- E36 328is ~210-220whp: Lots of Mods.
- 2000 Z3: Many Mods.
- 2003 VW Jetta TDI Manual 47-50mpg
- 1999 S52 Estoril M Coupe
- 2014 328d Wagon, self-tuned, 270hp/430ft-lbs
- 2019 M2 Competition, self-tuned, 504whp
- 2016 Mini Cooper S
Errr, according to BMW, the S54 uses an 80C thermostat....
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Once the temperature reaches the beginning of the operating range, the needle stays vertical throughout the range. The gauge is programmed or "buffered" to not worry you with movement. But as the needle remains steady, the temperature is varying, from 170F until overheating begins, maybe around 220F. I enjoy watching it on a ScanGauge mounted on my console, which shows 206F most all the time.
http://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/sh...9#post29496679
BMW MOA 696, BMW CCA 1405
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