Heater Problems Again

[Venus4NU]

Ok guys, this gal needs some help. Searched the forum and couldn't find a problem similar to mine.

Actually I think I have two problems maybe three problems.

First: My car is making a horrible sound. Not the engine cooling fan but the blower fan. Maybe a bearing going out? Sounds like a loud whirring sound. Seems like maybe I don't have the air force that I should have - but I notice from other post that BMW's are not known for their heat output. Where is this fan located and how difficult is it to pull? Does it sound like bearing to anyone?

Second: My front dash board vents most of the time don't produce heat although my defrost always produces heat. On the few occasions I do get heat it doesn't last very long before it switches over to luke warm air.

Third: I have no air movement on the floor. I can tell from the slider (thing that you turn the vents on for defroster/dash vents/floor heat) that there is no tensions. Could something just come loose? When I bought the car a year ago it had the problem. Now that we are in the mist of temps not reaching freezing my toes are getting mighty cold.

Any help or advice to keep this chick warm is much appreciated.

Thanks!

K~

[shogun]

loud noise fan: past pic I have seen was a dead mouse inside, that made the noise. You have to check it.

Heat: first of all switch microfilter, then test the temperature sensors for the IHKA.
On my website on the link to Johan and Sean the IHKA system is explained and shows where all the temp sensors sit.

Third question: might be a broken stepper motor or a broken flap. Also see Johan's website under heater, he changed the parts. But that is a lot of work, IHKA unit has to come out.
Or do a search for fix of broken stepper motor, I have posted that here several times with pics, how to fix a broken stepper motor again with some bracket.

[Venus4NU]

How do I gain access to the heater blower? From other post I have seen it is on the firewall. Someone posted a picture from the Bentley manual but it looks nothing like my car.

Anyone? It is getting mighty cold here in Nebraska and I need to turn on my heat but am a bit afraid that I might ruin something with all the noise coming from the dash.

[vince]

On my /90 525i, the heater blower didn't work. I checked the electricals, seemed okay. I noticed that sometimes it made some noise, so I went into it from under the hood. The original blower motor was so worn out that the bearings were shot, allowing the armature to hit the magnets and not turn. Not the easiest to replace, but patience helps.

Don't forget to close the rear console vent to keep the cold air from blowing in.

vince

[Venus4NU]

I keep all the vents closed. I took out the center of the dash board yesterday thinking I might see something to no avail. Interesting! I don't have any floor heat. The slider doesn't have any tension. Anyways, that was my primary reason for tearing out that part. What I found is that there are clips for the top sliders (defroster and dash vents) but not the floor vent. It just had a cluster of wires going through it that eventually led to the three push buttons (rear defroster, a/c and recirculation). So I put it back together.

From what I can tell I need to take out the coolant reservoir in order to get to the blower motor. Am I correct on this one?

[nirvana19]

You need to get it out of the way. I need to do this job also, I have a new blower motor. I moved the coolant tank and such two weeks ago before realizing I didn't have time to finish it that day, so I just put it back together and haven't gotten back to it. This weekend maybe, its getting pretty cold in DC.

[Venus4NU]

It is suppose to be 38 degrees Tuesday and Wednesday. Warmest it has been in a month. I have to teach all day Tuesday so I guess on Wednesday I will be tearing it apart. I am really really really hoping it is just some foreign object in the blower that I can remove and close the baby back up. Something more labor involved will require waiting until the husband is home from work to help. More snow in the forecast for this weekend so I would like to have it in good running condition.

On to the floor vents not working. How difficult is this to fix? Something we can tackle or better off going to the BMW mechanic? My toes are getting frostbite ever time I drive her.