E46 320D Wont Warm Up (prob not thermostat)

[Boxwerx]

Hi All,

New user here but got a E36 M3 and E46 320D daily. Just picked up the 46 and the car won't warm up at all, on the magic computer will barely get above 65 degrees. However all rad hoses are warm / hot so I suspect the thermostat is OK as it's not got the classic signs of one cold and one warm hose.

The other red herring is that the coolant light comes on after a few mins of running but I have a good coolant level. I've tried bleeding it but doesn't seem to have made a difference. I've either done it wrong or the fact that the engine won't warm up to anywhere near the 88 degrees recommended is probably something to do with it.

Any advise?

Thanks,

James

[MarcoZandrini]

The thermostat is the likely cause of your problem. It’s the only cooling system component that is designed to restrict coolant flow to get the engine up to temperature. What brand is the thermostat? Gasoline engines use a Whaler thermostat so I’m thinking your’s should be a Whaler also.

The coolant level light is activated when the float in the expansion tank surrounds the reed switch in the bottom of the expansion tank. The switch could be faulty. If your car’s cooling system is similar to that if the gasoline engine cars the switch is very easy to change as it doesn’t require that you drain any coolant. Go to www.realoem.com and enter the last 7 characters of the car’s vehicle identification number. Hit enter and bookmark the page. Scroll down to the radiator section for a breakdown diagram.

[Boxwerx]

Thanks. I’ve picked up a thermostat and will have a crack at it today.

[MarcoZandrini]

What brand is the new thermostat?