The normal operating temp for the N52 is rougly 95-110°, towards the higher end when under light load and towards the lower end when the engine is asked to do more. However, it shouldn't really go to 118°. The AKI of the fuel will affect this (engine runs a tad cooler with lower AKI such as regular or midgrade versus premium).

The coolant temp on the E83 and prior BMWs is buffered and really just an idiot light. There is no "middle ground" between normal and overheat- it generally stays at middle right up to the point where it swings to "overheat".

 

Sometimes the failure is caused by the thermostat. When the thermostat valve gets stuck or aged, it doesn't open properly. I normally test out this by removing the thermostat when the engine is cold, put the housing back and seal it, run the engine till it's warm and see if it will still get overheating. If not, change the thermostat.

If you have changed the coolant yourself, if the new coolant is not diluted enough, say more than 50%, the engine may also run hotter.

 

Would you mind outlining the process you used to access the "hidden dashboard menu?"

 

Thanks for all of the replies everyone. I have now driven it about 500 miles since changing the fan. It appears that the normal operating temp for my X3 is between 97* - 105* C with occasional peaks up to 108*. This seems in line with the responses.

oldskool3: To access the hidden menu. On the gauge cluster you have two button. Hold down the left button (S/R) for about 10 seconds. You will see the word test on the cluster LCD. Hit the (S/R) button 19 times, you will see a number on the right side of the LCD that corrseponds to the number of clicks. Once you get to 19, hold down the right button (oil) for about a second or so. The screen will alternate between off and on. When it shows off, quickly let go of the right button and push the S/R button. The number will change to 0. Push the S/R button seven times until it shows 7.0 on the screen.

It will then show the coolant temp in C.

Here is a copy and paste description of each of the various menus. Please note, that I have only had information show up on items 3-19. I've never been able to access items in the 1.0 range.

Good Luck!


1 Car Engine and cluster data
1.0 46nnn Chassis nr/VIN serial number (last 5 digits)
1.1 4nnn K-number
1.2 690236 Cluster Part #
1.3 045210 Coding (04)/diagnosis (52)/bus index (10)
1.4 1200 Week (12)/year of manufacture (2000)
1.5 09_160 Hardware (09) and software # (16.0) of cluster
1.6 Not used
1.7 04__44 CAN-version (04) KI-revision index (44)
2 (test) Cluster System Test - Activates the gauge drivers,
indicators and LEDs to confirm function
3 SI Data
3.0 1098 Used fuel in liters since last SI (Service Inspection)
3.1 0231 Periodic inspection days; elapsed days (since last SI)
4 Momentary Consumption
4.0 0145+ Instant fuel consumption - 0145=14.5 liters/100km
4.1 0018 Instant fuel consumption - 0018=1.8 l/Hour
5 Distance Gone Consumption
5.0 082 Average mileage; 082=8.2 liters/100km
5.1 0536 Calc. km to refuel (momentary distance to go)
6 Fuel Level sensor inputs in liters
6.0 109330+ Fuel level averaged; Left half sensor input=10.9 liters; Right sensor input=33.0 liters
6.1 0439+ Total tank level averaged; vlgs 6.0: 10.9+33.0=43.9 liters
6.2 0442+ Indicated value (44.2) and tank phase
7 Temperature and Speed
7.0 021+ Coolant/Engine temperature (2.1C)
7.1 130 Ambient/Outside temperature - chg met 5 pts. 125/130/135
7.2 + Engine speed / Current RPMs 1/min
7.3 + Vehicle speed / Current Speed in km/hour
8 Input value in HEX form
8.0 1d0+ System voltage ADC-Value Hex code
8.1 26C33C+ ADC Values HG left/HG right
8.2 0000 ADC Value brake degradation sensor (000=o.k.)
8.3 18C ADC Value outside temperature
9 Battery
9.0 140 Battery Voltage - 140 = UB 14.0v
9.1 242013+?
9.2 074_78+?
9.3 0011+?
10 Not used
11 Not used
12 Not used
13 GonG Gong Test
14 Not used
15 Status cluster I/O-ports (bit codes) 0=low; 1=high
1st-belt contact, seat belt fastened=0; 2) ignition lock contact, key inserted=0; 3) door contact, door open=0; 4) clock button pressed=0; 5) SI reset=0, for reset=0; 6) EGS transmission failure=0
Status Digital Outputs (bits) 0=inactive, 1=active
1) Gong output; 2) Brake warning lamp; 3) Low fuel warning lamp; 4) EGA lamp; 5) seat belt lamp; 6) manipulation dot
16 Not used
17 Not used
18 Not used
19 Lock Status; unlocks functions in range 3-18
19.0 L-On/L-Off Unlock: press button when "L-Off"
20 Not used
21 Software Reset; reset OBC settings
00 End of test

 

Or you can buy a $25 wifi or Bluetooth OBDII reader off amazon, with a free app for you smartphone, and it will let you see live data, such as coolant temp and system voltage, (and much more) and do a nice graph.

 

I bought one a couple of weeks ago on Amazon for around $9 including shipping to Arizona. Works like a charm and with a free app like Torque I can see a lot of real-time data related to the engine

 

When you unlock the hidden menu, does it stay unlocked after turning off the car?

 

even temps

this cleaning can have a significant impact on temps