More problems -- hot engine

[azzkikr]

According to my temp gauge my engine is running very hot. It runs just under the red mark, like 90%. I was wondering if the E30 temp guage is set to read at a lower level than the M30 runs at. I replaced the temp guage sender on my engine with the E30 one. I bled the coolant a couple of times to be sure that was not the problem.

The car heats up pretty quickly and sits just under the red mark while driving or while idleing. I ran it for about 10 minutes at 40mph and it never got hotter but it never got cooler either. The temp here was a cool 50 degrees when I drove it. Where do the rest of you M30 guys have your temp gauge when running? Any suggestion on what to try next. My neighbor has an infared temp gauge so I can see if the T-stat is opening for sure but all the hoses are very hot.

[bumpstop335i]

my one sits 1/2 way driving around town and 1/4 on the open road.

have you given the dash abit of a tap?
Hows you water pump?
How long has it been doing this?
Have you checked your themostat? If it is, it will be only opening only alittle.

[rs4pro3]

ya that's not normal, with my e30 temp sender, it read around half all the time. The m30's are hard to get all the air out off, sounds like to me it's not fully bled, or your thermostat is not open.

[Garageaholic]

This weekend roy, I am installing my radiator and filling up the system with coolant... I will let you know when I get results...

[azzkikr]

Well still no luck. I parked the car on a steep hill with the front of the car facing upward. Then I bled the system again and it was only coolant coming out of the bleeder valve. I ran the car for a while and its still running very hot. The radiator was cool to the touch this time. Last time I ran it the radiator was hot to the touch so I dont think I gave it enough time to really heat up the radiator.

The T-stat and the water pump are both new. Unless I got a defective one they should be alright.

Any other suggestions to try? I did find a little coolant leak in my system so maybe that is causing bad circulation. Any other ideas?

[Garageaholic]

what about hooking up an aftermarket temp gauge and comparing the two.. could be your gauge that's wrong or broken somehow....

use the new one for a day for testing, keep it in tact and just return it when you figure it out.. right?

[Garageaholic]

alright roy, here it is.. i filled up the coolant tank as much as i could, then started it hoping that it will suck it in the engine and then i can keep adding, but that didnt happen.. in fact it didnt' suck anything in there.. i'm like "do i have a clog or something?"
i didn't

i took the reservior and unhooked it..(kept the hoses on obviously)... .and raised it above the engine... and then through gravity and something else pretty disgusting, it fed into the system.... I put my mouth over the fill hole and pushed air into it and that pushed the coolant through.. i guess it needed a little "push' to get it started.... i kept the bleeder screw off until the thermostat opened and it worked fine... my gauge is always less than half....

that is without a shroud and without any fans... then again , i only drove it for like 10 minutes and then idle for another 10.. outside temp was 55 deg. I bought a brand new radiator if that helps....

just keep the reservior the highest part of the system while you fill, and you have to put pressure into the coolant reservior (i did it with my mouth. lol) and just keep refilling it... tha'ts all.... i wanna get an exhaust put on before i get in trouble for noise....

[azzkikr]

What temp is a good operating temp for the M30? What should I expect to see it run at?

[bumpstop335i]

Between 1/4 and 1/2, is the norm in my books.

TIM

[azzkikr]

Just wondering if you knew what actual temp that is. I am going to be using a different temp gauge and I just want to know what temp I should expect to see the M30 run at. 200 degress farenheit, roughly?

[azzkikr]

Okay Im back. I was sick for about 4 days so I have not done anything in a while. I tried everything I could to get the car to run cool. I had a new thermostat new water pump. I drained and refilled the coolant system. I bled and bled it. I even bled it on a hill with the engine pointing upward. Nothing I did would keep the engine cool. Finally I got a new T-stat at checker and that did the trick. I dont know now often new t-stats fail but the one I got would never open. I used an infared temp sensor and watched the engine heat up to 220 degress on one side and the other side sat at like 85 degress. Once I replaced the thermostat I refiiled with coolant and it ran perfectly in the middle. If I turned my fan on it actually ran between 1/4 and 1/2. All that trouble for a defective T-stat. The one I got over at Checker works like a charm. I even took it out for a spirited drive and it stayed under 1/2 the whole time. Finally I can drive again!! :-)