08 x3 no heat issue -

[WaffleMan]

2008 x3 no heat issue
Here's what's been done

I started with the heater control valve, no dice. Took it to a shop and they replaced the heater control valve again. No heat. They flushed the heater core and said there is no blockage there.
I took it home and did the water pump and thermostat for good measure, system seems bled well. Still nothing.
While all of this was happening the blower resistor went out, so I replaced that.

Now my last thought could be the hvac actuator. When I did the blower resistor, the actuator there was only held in by one screw, and the resistor had obviously been replaced by a no name Chinese model. Can someone tell me which actuator this is and what combinations of buttons will allow me to test it? It's the one on the left of the passenger side right next to the FSU.
Thanks

[WaffleMan]

I'm starting to wonder if it's the heater core and the shop lied/ did a bad job flushing it. I know the inlet is the hose that comes out if the HCV but which hose is the outlet? Where does it connect to coming out?
I'm also swapping in a new thermostat just in case I got a bad one

[bmwdirtracer]

The very first step is going to be connecting the car to a good BMW specific diagnostic scan tool , and reading the codes in the IHKA and the other computers. You've already thrown a whole bunch of expensive parts at the issue (hopefully they were OEM, not Autozone crap); now it's time to diagnose the problem. Asking the computers is step 1.

After the engine is fully warm, put the heater on for five minutes, and feel all 3 hoses that go through the firewall. How many are hot?

Also, you really need to exactly describe the vehicle, or no one's going to bother trying to look up wring diagrams to help. What engine? What is the designation on the side of the car? Manual or automatic heater controls?

When you bled the system, did you follow the factory procedure ? This consists of filling the reservoir, hooking up a battery charger, turning on the ignition, setting the heater to full hot, the blower to low, no a/c, no recirculate, then hold the gas pedal to the floor for fifteen seconds. Then check that water pump is running, coolant flowing in the fill neck....then wait twelve minutes.

[WaffleMan]

It's a 3.0si model. Heater controls are manual I believe, has the red/blue dial that's all the way red. I didn't know these had automatic controls beyond the little auto button (that always seems to turn on the AC)
The cars right at 90k miles so I knew the thermostat and water pump needed done anyway.

Yes the bleed procedure was done as you described minus checking the flow in the fill neck, it said to replace the bleed screw and cap.

As for the hoses I will check them this weekend, as far as I saw it only has two hoses going into the firewall that are very tight back there.

[bmwdirtracer]

It's very important to check that the bleed procedure is actually working.. Sometimes, the simplest omission can cause the procedure to fail to start. Did you hear the water pump running for 12 minutes at various speeds?

If you have a single-zone, manual a/c - heat, you may indeed only have two hoses. I don't think I've ever seen this in an '08 BMW, but it should make diagnosis simpler.

When you turn the temperature control dial from cold to hot, does it feel like it's actually connected to a cable that's moving a flap? If it turns TOO easily, you probably need the control unit, because the dial has an arm, which moves a cable, and the arms often break. You can get one of these control units pretty cheaply, used, from somewhere like Car-parts.com

[WaffleMan]

Turning the dial It feels looser than other BMWs I've had but I can feel the change in the temperature and the airflow when I do it, I would assume if I can feel the difference the arm is still intact?
I will bleed again, apparently doing the thermostat the first time one of the orings swelled up and is causing the hose to leak so now I'm waiting on more parts. But the pump was definitely running and I heard and felt the water flowing through the system. I will say I didn't have it on a battery pack so I'm hoping it wouldn't have an issue opening the HCV with just the battery
I do appreciate the help!

[WaffleMan]

So I installed a second thermostat because the first one was not oem and the push click hose would not fit over it.
More coolant, bled again with the cap off, no bubbles after two cycles. Drove it around to get warm.
Lower rad hose was much cooler than the rest of the hoses for awhile so I believe the thermostat works.

Does the out hose from the heater core have a plastic shroud on it? I could only feel around back there. The right hose was very warm, the other did not feel warm at all.
Besides a clog, is there anything that would keep coolant from flowing through the heater core?

[bmwdirtracer]

Sigh.

You still haven't identified the car, as I asked in my first response. So you made me guess, so the information may not be correct.

But, it looks like you only have 2 heater hoses; one in, one out. If one's hot, and the other's cold, when the controls are set for heat, then coolant isn't flowing through the heater core.

Your description of the lower radiator hose temp is not sufficient to diagnose what's going on with the flow of coolant. You need a good BMW specific scan tool, hooked up to the car, not only to check for codes in the IHKA or IHKR, but also to read the temperature of the coolant at the engine, and at the "radiator outlet". OR, you can use an infrared temp gun to determine whether coolant is flowing properly.

Throwing multiple parts , repeatedly, at a problem that isn't yet diagnosed, is a complete waste of time, effort and money.

The "push click hose" likely didn't fit because the o-ring was knocked out of place, or the plastic ring which holds the o-ring in place is missing.

There has been way too much guessing already, on your car; you can't fix it without knowing what's wrong.

Yes, I have a guess, but it's a twelve hundred dollar guess, so you need to diagnose the problem correctly first,

[WaffleMan]

I replied with the engine type right after you asked. It's the 3.0si and the year is in the title and first post.

Yes the old hose the plastic that retains the orings was toast so I replaced the hose itself and even the new one would not fit. I decided it best to swap in the oem thermostat for peace of mind and because the new hose would not fit over the aftermarket one.

Ive got the airbag recall going to get done hopefully the week and will ask bmw to check for the appropriate codes when they have it

[WaffleMan]

So first call from bmw and they claim it's the heater control valve...which is stuck because it's aftermarket (Bosch).
I asked them how the water flowing through it was hot if it was stuck. Lots of stuttering and now they are going to look at it again. They didn't run any software diagnostics obviously.

[MarcoZandrini]

Find a reputable indie shop that specializes in bimmers at www.bimrs.org. Hopefully the shop will have a couple of “seasoned” techs who use all the BMW-specific software to augment their years of experience to find the cause of your problem. This isn’t rocket science, really.

[WaffleMan]

If BMW themselves cannot fix it I found a shop with the link you sent, we'll try there next. BMW has now had it for over a week for an airbag recall and to find the heat issue...

[dworthy]

Not all dealership are equal. You have to remember that most tech's stay for roughly 5 years, then move on, so the base knowledge is only with the newest cars. Typically the Meister would be the only one with extended knowledge, and they tend to be rather busy, so most of the older cars gets passed off to the newer guys.

So if you are wondering about the rant, that is why Marc is given you a website to find an outside Independent shop. Of course always ask for recommendations from your local BMW CCA chapter too.

[WaffleMan]

I spoke with them again today. They said again it's the after market HCV that won't move. Stated they ran the IHKa, so $160 something for the diagnostic so let's hope they give me the diagnostic printout.
$670 to do that again with a 'genuine' part.
Am I wrong in thinking that Bosch is the OEM part? I thought all of them are branded Bosch on the top.

[dworthy]

BMW sources from different companies, and Bosch tends to be one of them. They also use Siemens, Hella, and a few others.

Now anything that doesn't have a roundel on it will be considered "aftermarket" even if Bosch built that part.

[WaffleMan]

Grumble. Well they said they would order the HCV and see if a replacement works. If they are right, and it is that, then something keeps shorting them out or I got very unlucky twice in a row.

[WaffleMan]

So after putting in a new HCV, and then testing our old one again magically it started working...they said the heater core is plugged. Now I'm going to take it to a shop off of Marcos list.

[dworthy]

Has there been anything but BMW coolant in that car that you know of? A heater core just doesn't get plugged up for no reason, but one of them tends to be the wrong coolant. Typically when that happens, it will clog up more than just the heater core.

I am worried they are trying to nickel and dime you, so get a second opinion.

[WaffleMan]

Not sure about the coolant, we bout it with about 89k miles on it. I know the plastic bit that retian the orings in one of the hoses disintegrated so I'm wondering if that could have done it

[dworthy]

A non Phosphate free coolant will likely eat the aluminum, but I am sure it isn't kind on the plastic either. BMW Blue or Xerox G-05 should be the coolant to use inside that car.

[WaffleMan]

I've got the g05 in it after I did the water pump and thermostat. There was a very thin white film on the inside of the hose and thermostat when it was replaced. I know the car had been sitting for awhile too

[MarcoZandrini]

It’s time for a cooling system refresh and flush. Modern engines are made of aluminum and do not tolerate overheating at all. Unfortunately BMW uses a lot of plastic in its cooling systems. It high quality (mostly) German plastic but it’s plastic nonetheless. Plastic ages when subjected to heating/cooling cycles. Most folks in this and other forums recommend a cooling system overhaul at 100k miles. Since you bought the X used you likely didn’t get much in the way of maintenance records. So, I think it’s time. Please remember that buying aftermarket cooling system parts is strictly verboten. Aftermarket parts will fail and leave you stranded miles from nowhere or worse. I’d also flush the cooling system several times:
- first flush: distilled water
- second flush: vinegar only
- third flush: distilled water.

Yeah, I’m a bit over the top when it comes to cooling systems.

[Frozen toes]

Hi I'm new here and read many bloggers with no luck fixing my no heat problem. Until I found this post from Waffle mans post. Here's my problem. I have the same x3si 08 105,000. Miles. I did every think he did. Wasted a lot of money at the stealership. To fix but $3000.00 later and no heat unless I don't drive the car, if I let the car sit I the driveway for 15 min. I'll have heat but the as soon as I drive the some where the engine temp gauge starts to run cold after 5 miles. If I turn the heat off the engine temp starts to climb to normal in no time. Any ideas? Please help. FYI I have changed all heater related parts, water pump thermostat HVC... ect ( buy the dealership)

[White94RX]

Blocked heater core.

[Frozen toes]

Blocked heater core.

the car has heat as long as I don't drive it on the road. The engine cools while driving the temp gauge drops to the blue mark. If I turn the heat of on the dash the temp goes back up to normal