Re: E30 M3 overheating

[Penny/Brandon Wood <woody@xxxxxxxxx>]

Alex,
	I experience similar quirks with my 88 M3 (61k miles), although not 
as drastic.  Last week I noticed the temp rise when stopped at a light for 20 
seconds.  As soon as I began moving again it went back to the straight up 
position.  I figured it was just a matter of not enough air moving past the 
radiator.  The three lights on my dash do the same as yours--stay lit until I rev 
to about 1000 rpm.  I've had the car for about 3 yrs and didn't notice if it 
always was that way or if it recently began (I do remember seeing it 9 months 
ago).  
	The third problem you mentioned I don't experience.  I would guess 
it's either the alternator or battery going south.  The battery on mine is <1 yr 
old (the car's had at least 4) but I'm not really qualified to give any advice.
	Caveat:  My M3 is currently being checked by the dealer for a strange 
cold start phenomenon.  It hesitates and sputters for about 2 minutes when I 
drive off.  It also blows black soot out the exhaust (not smoke but droplets that 
fall and blacken the concrete behind the car) and I average 20 MPG (spirited, 
chipped city driving).  My guess is that my Idle Control Unit is bad but we'll 
see what the dealer says.  (Anyone out there with ideas??)

Brandon Wood
88 M3, CCA #127523

P.S. Alex, can you post to the digest or my address the replies you get.  I'm definitely interested.

You wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
I am writing to ask for your help on a few items my 1991 E30 M3 has.  First,
as the subject line states, my M3 is running a little warm.  or so the
engine temperature gauge on the right side of the dash says.  When the car
is in motion, the temperature gage is on the half mark, but as soon as the
start and stop traffic starts, it creeps up to the 3/4 mark, and sometimes
all the way to the red mark.  This was the case every time I drove the car
up until a week and a half ago when the temperature here started to drop.
Now it seems as if the engine is running a little cooler (it rarely passes
the half mark).

But there is something that still seems funny about the temperature gauge in
general....as soon as I start the car, and step on the gas a little, the
temperature gage jumps to the right just past the blue mark.  This happens
even when the car is dead cold (sitting over-night).  This seems a little
funny.

Now the reason I do this when I start the car is because there are 3 lights
on the dash that stay lit.  The lights are the break ware indicator, the ABS
indicator, and the battery indicator.  As soon as I rev the engine a little
(a few hundred rpm above idle) the lights go out.  But not before I do this.
This worries me as the ca has started doing this in the last month.

Also, I notice that there is a general electrical power drop in my car when
the rpm's are low.  For instance, the headlights seem to dim, and the fan
(when operating) will slow down when the engine s running at lower revs.  As
soon as I step on the gas/start accelerating, the fan will work faster, and
the headlights get brighter.  The OBC display seems to work a little funny
too.  Whenever I step on the breaks the OBC display dims a little, and when
I use the turn signals, the OBC display dims and brightens to the beat of
the turn signals.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

------------------------------

End of bmw-digest V9 #601
*************************