radiator - United Bimmer Community

**B3M2W5i** · 05-24-2005, 08:36 PM

my obc has been displaying check coolant level and i did and i topped it off<kinda> and my obc still reads that do i need to reset something? btw my car is obd1

**Rooz** · 05-24-2005, 11:23 PM

about a week or two after I got my car I had a problem like that, obc would say check coolant, I did, was kidna low, I added, then it said it again, I checked was good, and when off within a few days

**B3M2W5i** · 05-24-2005, 11:42 PM

alright cool.. ill see what happends i just put in the coolant today

witeshark · 05-24-2005, 11:58 PM

Adding coolant: Always mix water (never more than half) (distilled is good) to help heat transfer Yo science class is good for something

**Dudesky** · 05-25-2005, 05:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by B3M2W5i

my obc has been displaying check coolant level and i did and i topped it off<kinda> and my obc still reads that do i need to reset something? btw my car is obd1

Most likely just your coolant level sensor (some call it coolant level sender). Either you need to clean it, or replace it. It's located at the bottom of your expansion tank, just unplug and unscrew the sensor. You'll need to siphon out the coolant from the expansion tank first, and possibly bleed the system afterwards. Mine's doing the same thing, but I'm too lazy to do it just yet.

**tomctx** · 05-25-2005, 07:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by B3M2W5i

my obc has been displaying check coolant level and i did and i topped it off<kinda> and my obc still reads that do i need to reset something? btw my car is obd1

If the coolant level is above the mark on the expansion tank, the light should go out. If it doesn't, then, as Dudesky says, your sensor is probably bad.

**B3M2W5i** · 05-25-2005, 08:31 PM

its weird cuz when i run the car the check controls are ok but then when i turn off the car it says sheck coolant level

**Dudesky** · 05-26-2005, 04:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by B3M2W5i

its weird cuz when i run the car the check controls are ok but then when i turn off the car it says sheck coolant level

Yea, that's exactly what mine does: CHECK COOLANT LEVEL, SEE OWNERS MANUAL. I'm 99% sure it's the sensor. I'll be working on my car today and will get to the bottom of this, and I'll post what happens, my fellow brother (I'm Filipino too).

**bimmerdame** · 05-26-2005, 07:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dudesky_E36

Yea, that's exactly what mine does: CHECK COOLANT LEVEL, SEE OWNERS MANUAL. I'm 99% sure it's the sensor. I'll be working on my car today and will get to the bottom of this, and I'll post what happens, my fellow brother (I'm Filipino too).

just want to say hi to my brothers too. flip pride@!!!!

**B3M2W5i** · 05-26-2005, 09:10 AM

filipinos RULE!! lol yeah i wish i could work on mine today but its foggy AGAIN here

**Dudesky** · 05-26-2005, 06:57 PM

He he, Asians represent! Eat rice, don't drive it

Anyhoo, here we go . . I pulled the wiring plug off the coolant level sensor and cleaned out the contacts. Plugged it back in snug, and wallah- no more OBC message!

In the photo, the unit is shown in the red circle. There is a tab under the nut pointed out by the green arrow (the tab is part of the plug). Push it down toward the ground, and pull the plug in the direction of the blue arrow. It's a bit tough to wiggle off, but you'll get it. If cleaning it doesn't solve your problem, then you need to replace the sensor by draining and removing the reserve tank and unscrewing the nut. This nut is actually a collar that locks the sensor in place. The sensor itself is about 3" long, and there's no clearance to pull it out, that's why either the tank has to come out, or you could disconnect the lower radiator hose to get more room down there. Either way you'll have to refill and bleed the cooling system afterwards. Some people have had luck just cleaning the sensor itself, but since they're only like 20 bucks and you gotta pull it out anyway, you may as well change it.

**B3M2W5i** · 05-26-2005, 07:02 PM

cool i will do this when the weather clears up

**Bigal** · 11-05-2005, 08:52 AM

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

1992 525i sport auto, M50 engine (with over 225,000mls still a dream)

I had a intermittent overheating prob(once or twice every couple of months) but as soon as I put the heating controls on it went straight down to normal temp also the display often came on 'coolant level'; eventually the rad burst, so I replaced the rad, thermostat & coolant sensor but 'coolant level' keeps coming up on the display, any ideas?

**Dudesky** · 11-05-2005, 09:18 AM

Probably the same issue as above. Unplug the sensor wire harness, clean the contacts, and plug it back in. See if that does it