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E36General discussion and technical help for (E36) 1992-1999 3 series cars. 318, 323, 325, 328.
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Your Ride: 1997 BMW 318i
Quote:
Originally Posted by c1apton
Heads? excuse me, psssssst it's only has 1 head, 4 cylinders - maybe he meant "it leaks at the 3rd cylinder" - if he doesn't mean that - RUN from that guy----------------------------> FAR
I didn't directly quote him. It's me making the mistake, not him.
Quote:
Originally Posted by xsperf
just a question, when you turn on the heater, doyou get hot air or not?
Nope, I get cold air. Please tell me this means my head isn't cracked?
getting cold air is usually thermostat. (could also be heater control valve) but my bet is thermostat. If it was a head gasket you'ld have white smoke or steam from the exhaust.
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Your Ride: 1997 BMW 318i
Well, it's hard for it to be the thermostat, as it's been removed. We took out the housing and it was simply gone. As best I can tell the old owner removed it for some reason. One guy told me that it's fine to take it out here because it's always over 80°F outside. I will be putting one in as I get this fixed.
Oh, and.. from my original post: "Also, the last time I saw the guy drive around the block with the car I saw white smoke coming out the back. Which leads me to believe that I now have a blown head gasket."
if you are getting cold air when the engine is really hot it means something is wrong with your heater core, either its leaking mad from there or its not bled, thats exactly what happens to it when its not bled
__________________
Quote:
Originally Posted by c1apton
I keep forgetting that - I have a great memory but it doesn't last long
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Your Ride: 1997 BMW 318i
Well the mechanic came back again tonight and did another test. This time he took out each spark plug looking for water. The second spark plug hole had water inside, he then sprayed something in the hole of the spark plug and had me crank the car a few times. After that he let me see that there was water inside the hole. Yep, you guessed it.. cracked cylinder head.
So now I have to replace:
The Water Pump™ - (BMW OEM here costs $138)
The cylinder head - (The best price I've found for a used one is $1,050 if I trade them my old busted one. It's a little over $2,000 for a brand new one.)
Thermostat & housing - ($43)
Head Gasket Set - ($156)
So now I'm looking at spending $1,387 just on parts. The mechanic is going to charge $250 for the labor. That brings the total up to $1,637.
My advice to anyone out there with an E36. As soon as it overheats. DO NOT drive it! Have it towed wherever you need it to be and then diagnose the problem from there. What started out for me as needing to simply replace the water pump has now ended up with me having a cracked cylinder head and still having to replace the water pump.
Does anyone out there know of any good places to find a cylinder head? Any help is appreciated very much.
01-05-2007, 10:01 PM
I keep forgetting that - I have a great memory but it doesn't last long
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