N52 low coolant temperature

e621 · 01-05-2022, 03:30 PM

Hi,

So I've bought a 2009 E91 328xi with LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) and I'm fighting with one problem since I've bought it. My car's temperature won't rise above 75C (167F) in cold weather. It's my first BMW, which I wanted for a long time, but now it's making me crazy.

I've changed the main thermostat - didn't help. The last owner has changed the water pump a year ago. The automatic transmission oil cooler thermostat is working perfectly. The radiator has been changed a few months ago. What else could be wrong?

It's getting colder in my country and when the temperature is less than 0C (32F) it takes a decade for the interior to warm up. I've seen the temperature get to 96C (204F) only once when I was running the car for an hour - a bit of driving, a bit of standing on idle and repeat...

The last owner said that during the last winter it was warming up perfectly (or maybe he's lying).

Do you have any ideas about what else could be wrong? Maybe it's because it has LPG (longer coolant circuit)? What else could you suggest me to check?

Paulius328 · 01-06-2022, 04:24 AM

Hi, did you put new or used radiator? Check radiator while car is heating up, it should be cold till engine reaches ~97c. If radiator getting hot before engine reaches 97c when you need replace radiator. I had same problem.

e621 · 01-06-2022, 02:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paulius328

Hi, did you put new or used radiator? Check radiator while car is heating up, it should be cold till engine reaches ~97c. If radiator getting hot before engine reaches 97c when you need replace radiator. I had same problem.

Thanks for the reply. It's a new one (at least the last owner said it and he changed it when the weather was still warm), I've checked it on a couple drives today and it seems like it's getting hot.. 60-70C coolant temperature and the top of the radiator was hot, the bottom was colder.

I'll probably need to search for a new one. By the way, have you also tried to change thermostats, and that didn't help?

rjahl · 01-06-2022, 07:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paulius328

Hi, did you put new or used radiator? Check radiator while car is heating up, it should be cold till engine reaches ~97c. If radiator getting hot before engine reaches 97c when you need replace radiator. I had same problem.

I hope you meant replace thermostat and not radiator .

Paulius328 · 01-07-2022, 09:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by e621

Thanks for the reply. It's a new one (at least the last owner said it and he changed it when the weather was still warm), I've checked it on a couple drives today and it seems like it's getting hot.. 60-70C coolant temperature and the top of the radiator was hot, the bottom was colder.

I'll probably need to search for a new one. By the way, have you also tried to change thermostats, and that didn't help?

I had same problem and first thing that I changed was thermostat, but didn't helped. Then in YouTube found this video https://youtu.be/nSTgvlxfSJI
In the end of video it shows where exactly is problem.

e621 · 01-08-2022, 11:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paulius328

I had same problem and first thing that I changed was thermostat, but didn't helped. Then in YouTube found this video

In the end of video it shows where exactly is problem.

Thanks for the help Paulius, I will try to pinch that hose to test it. For now I've just put a cardboard in front of the radiator, for the car to warm up faster

With the cardboard it's at least reaching 90C now.

ValveslapAdjustment · 01-08-2022, 01:36 PM

Personally I would do the coolant bleeding procedure a handful of times to be close to 100% sure there are no air bubbles in the system interfering with proper operation of the cooling system. It's an automatic process so it's a blessing.

e621 · 01-10-2022, 03:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ValveslapAdjustment

Personally I would do the coolant bleeding procedure a handful of times to be close to 100% sure there are no air bubbles in the system interfering with proper operation of the cooling system. It's an automatic process so it's a blessing.

That was the first thing I've tried, but it didn't help.

F31B48 · 02-08-2022, 02:20 AM

Does your car have the radiator/grille shutter? Maybe it is jammed open. I was under the impression all European spec cars had the shutters installed on them to help the car get to operating temp.

hassmaschine · 02-08-2022, 09:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ValveslapAdjustment

Personally I would do the coolant bleeding procedure a handful of times to be close to 100% sure there are no air bubbles in the system interfering with proper operation of the cooling system. It's an automatic process so it's a blessing.

What is the proof for this conjecture? Your post is completely unfounded by any evidence.

Paulius328 · 02-11-2022, 11:08 AM

Did you solve your issue?

feuer · 02-20-2022, 11:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paulius328

I had same problem and first thing that I changed was thermostat, but didn't helped. Then in YouTube found this video

In the end of video it shows where exactly is problem.

All good until you have manual transmission and experiencing same issues? What then?

01-05-2022, 03:30 PM	#1
e621 Registered 2 Rep 4 Posts Drives: BMW 328xi Join Date: Jan 2022 Location: Lithuania iTrader: (0)	N52 low coolant temperature Hi, So I've bought a 2009 E91 328xi with LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) and I'm fighting with one problem since I've bought it. My car's temperature won't rise above 75C (167F) in cold weather. It's my first BMW, which I wanted for a long time, but now it's making me crazy. I've changed the main thermostat - didn't help. The last owner has changed the water pump a year ago. The automatic transmission oil cooler thermostat is working perfectly. The radiator has been changed a few months ago. What else could be wrong? It's getting colder in my country and when the temperature is less than 0C (32F) it takes a decade for the interior to warm up. I've seen the temperature get to 96C (204F) only once when I was running the car for an hour - a bit of driving, a bit of standing on idle and repeat... The last owner said that during the last winter it was warming up perfectly (or maybe he's lying). Do you have any ideas about what else could be wrong? Maybe it's because it has LPG (longer coolant circuit)? What else could you suggest me to check?
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01-06-2022, 04:24 AM	#2
Paulius328 Registered 0 Rep 3 Posts Drives: BMW E90 328i Join Date: Sep 2021 Location: Lithuania iTrader: (0)	Hi, did you put new or used radiator? Check radiator while car is heating up, it should be cold till engine reaches ~97c. If radiator getting hot before engine reaches 97c when you need replace radiator. I had same problem.
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01-08-2022, 01:36 PM	#7
ValveslapAdjustment New Member 5 Rep 25 Posts Drives: 2008 E92 328xi, 1989 E30 325iC Join Date: Jun 2021 Location: New Brunswick, Canada iTrader: (0)	Personally I would do the coolant bleeding procedure a handful of times to be close to 100% sure there are no air bubbles in the system interfering with proper operation of the cooling system. It's an automatic process so it's a blessing.
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02-08-2022, 02:20 AM	#9
F31B48 Captain 278 Rep 657 Posts Drives: BMW G21 E61 LCI Join Date: Feb 2019 Location: Australia iTrader: (0)	Does your car have the radiator/grille shutter? Maybe it is jammed open. I was under the impression all European spec cars had the shutters installed on them to help the car get to operating temp.
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02-11-2022, 11:08 AM	#11
Paulius328 Registered 0 Rep 3 Posts Drives: BMW E90 328i Join Date: Sep 2021 Location: Lithuania iTrader: (0)	Did you solve your issue?
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