1996 BMW 328 HELP! I DONT WANT TO LOSE MY CAR

BMWFREEQ

MEMBER
1996 BMW 328
6 CYL
2WD
AUTOMATIC
135,064 MILES

Hello Pros.
couple night ago I had a strang issue that my axuliry fan wont shut down even after I turn off the car and take out the ke. So I had to unplug the Fuse because it was sucking all my battery. Yesterday I was driving to NY and relaized that my car is over heated the tempeture gauge is way to the red side.
i managed to cool it down for a while.
but I had to go home or get close to my house so I drove about good 15 min. At the en I heard the engin is making a sound, so I pulled on a side and called a towing truck that cost alot of $$$$$$$ for 5 min drive home.
my question is: did I mess up the engin? Would I lose my car for that? What could went wrong?
please help me, I realy dont want to lose this car.

Thanks to all

7 Replies

DOCHAGERTY

MECHANIC
9,601 POSTS

Damage could have been done. Get the cooling system working to see if that helps.

Was this

answer

helpful?

Yes

Saturday, December 6th, 2008 AT 2:24 PM

BMWFREEQ

MEMBER
4 POSTS

I did some testing today and I was able to run the car idle for about 30 min without any problems. I took it for a small ride and the temp gauge was way up there.
I think I might have the thermostat bad. But I realized that ther was an oil leaking from under the car.
I would need to do more work on this thing.
Thanks for the replay and I hop I hear from you soon.

Thanks

SPONSORED LINKS

Was this

answer

helpful?

Yes

Saturday, December 6th, 2008 AT 9:58 PM

DOCHAGERTY

MECHANIC
9,601 POSTS

Where is the oil coming from?

Was this

answer

helpful?

Yes

Sunday, December 7th, 2008 AT 9:36 AM

BMWFREEQ

MEMBER
4 POSTS

I have no idea. All I see is that the oil is leaking from somewhere. Everytime I change the oil I put about 6qtr and take out about 3qtr - 3.5qtr.
But im still having the isse with the car beening overheated I was told to replace the thermostat, the water pump, the radiator, but I have no idea where to start and what to do.
Any advice would be helpful
thanks

Was this

answer

helpful?

Yes

Monday, December 8th, 2008 AT 3:50 PM

DOCHAGERTY

MECHANIC
9,601 POSTS

I understand, the best idea for me to share with you is to get a Robert Bentley repair manual from Amazon. Com so that you can have it for reference, it is the best publication out there. If any other advice is needed, let us know. If you do not possess the tools and the skills to perform this repair, I recommend seeking out a local BMW trained professional to perform the repairs as this is not work for a beginner.

SPONSORED LINKS

Was this

answer

helpful?

Yes

Monday, December 8th, 2008 AT 5:52 PM

BMWFREEQ

MEMBER
4 POSTS

OK, I wnt ahead and got my self the book.
Here is the job that was preformed on the car.
1- Change Radiator.(It had a crack on the side)
2- Change Thermostate. ( Needed to be replaced)
3- Change Thermostate Housing.( Dameged because of the "Hot Water")

While I was in the process. I wanted to put regular water in the engine, then bled it out, then put the 50/50 Antifreez. But! I had to stop working because it started to snow and I had to leave the car.
So, when I came back to the car after 3 Days. I reached out to the hoses, and GUESS WHAT? YES, they were hard as a rock. I relized that the water had frozzzzzzen in the engin.

I dont know what to do know. I tried to start the car for a minute or two. But thank GOD it didnt since it needed a jump to start.

My question is, how can I defrezzzzzze the ice fom inside the engine? Did the frozen water damaged any thing inside the engine.
Any recomendation would be highly apreciated.

Thanks

Was this

answer

helpful?

Yes

Thursday, December 25th, 2008 AT 9:32 AM

DOCHAGERTY

MECHANIC
9,601 POSTS

Frozen engines can be trouble. Water expands when frozen and can destroy the aluminum castings within the engine. You will have to warm the car to see if it has survived this episode.

Was this