There seems to be some BMW cars that suffer from an overheating problem. You will find this overheating problem happens on the 3 series E36 models. The model hit seems to be the 4 cylinder made between 1996 and 1999. This three series BMW cars For Sale model at this time period had problems with dodgy water pumps and head gaskets that weren’t made of the same material as some of the other gaskets made by BMW.
A few drivers of these cars experienced their water pumps beginning to sound quite noisy. This was due to the plastic impeller inside the water pump failing causing the car to overheat. This meant that whilst the pump was turning, the water was not going round. As soon as you hear the water pump sound a little noisy, get it checked before the temperature gauge moves into the red. The modified water pumps are made of metal instead of plastic.
If your car heater is blowing out cold air and the car seems to be overheating, the next item to establish is that the thermostat is working aright. As it could be jammed shut. Occasionally fluid seems to disappear from the system without any signs where.
Some garages might tell you it is the head gasket that is at fault or maybe the head is gone. People have in fact gone to great expense to change the head gasket, only to identify that it is not the defect at all. One remedy can be that the thermostat housing itself can be faulty. A slight warping of the housing can cause a slight air leak allowing air to seep past. An airlock can then occur, causing the water to stop flowing around the engine. This fault is not easily detected even when the engine is pressure tested for leaks.
The advice is to swap the thermostat housing first if there is any doubt, so no cash is wasted on changing unnecessary head gaskets. Change any rubber hoses that might seem doubtful at the same time as this could lead to other leaks in the system. Later 3 Series and BMW 5 Series rarely suffered from these faults.
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