[snawaz10]

I recently bought this 2013 335i M-Sport w/ sport automatic ZF8 (61K miles), I'm new to this Form so I apologize if I'm not in the right thread etc.

This car had been running super strong (without any issues) until last night coming back from work when the oil temp dropped to around 180 F from ~245 F and cooling fan was blowing like there's no tomorrow and the performance dropped off as well...So I turned it off and then restarted it about 20 mins later, the car ran okay but I feel like it's running a bit sluggish, perhaps more like 90-95% of what it was before. It feels as if the engine is a bit draggy, there is no CEL or any drivetrain malfunction message in the car...please advise!

[bimmer456]

Thermostat may be bad.

[Logicoeur]

This is common for the early PWG. I've encountered it on mine on occasion. A quick start and stop always solves it.

Is yours accompanied by really really really really bad turbo lag? I have experienced this, but never noticed the fan problem as I was usually on the road with the windows up. The most recent, about a month ago, happened as I was pulling into the pk garage at work and I could hear the fan. It was the first time I noticed they happened together.

From my own research people have replaced the electric radiator fan. It's about ~$800 just doe the part. Really easy install though. It's relay is embedded in the fan controller so no replacing just that.

The only other thing I could see affecting this is the coolant temperature sensor, as the oil temp never really goes crazy and has never exceeded the halfway point. No coolant leaks either. On my old alAudi a faulty coolant temp sensor would send the ecu into a frenzy because it would think the car is overheating, and thus the radiator fan would hit, and stay on max.

I have ordered the sensor but have not installed yet. It is near the front of the engine head very close to the oil cooler. Cost for the part is $30 or less. Install is also pretty easy according to newtis.info docs

Luckily I have not encountered the drivetrain error nor the cooling fan behavior.

[snawaz10]

Originally Posted by bimmer456

Thermostat may be bad.

Would bad thermostat cause this...? I drove 80 miles already today and the temperature is back to normal without any fluctuations and I can't hear the fan kicking in really loud (perhaps it didn't too..).

[bimmer456]

As the other poster said it could be this. May be an intermittent failure. I would get the Bentley repair manual. You can get the part on FCP Euro.

[Buckeyes]

I have a 2013 m sport and what I have deduced with my car is this: I never get a limp mode if the A/C is on regardless of mode. If the AC is off and I put the car into sport + I will get a limp mode. The code I get is —1A2108 -electric fan self diagnosis interval stage 1 : minor fan fault —

A simple off and on clears the issue.

[snawaz10]

Originally Posted by Logicoeur

This is common for the early PWG. I've encountered it on mine on occasion. A quick start and stop always solves it.

Is yours accompanied by really really really really bad turbo lag? I have experienced this, but never noticed the fan problem as I was usually on the road with the windows up. The most recent, about a month ago, happened as I was pulling into the pk garage at work and I could hear the fan. It was the first time I noticed they happened together.

From my own research people have replaced the electric radiator fan. It's about ~$800 just doe the part. Really easy install though. It's relay is embedded in the fan controller so no replacing just that.

The only other thing I could see affecting this is the coolant temperature sensor, as the oil temp never really goes crazy and has never exceeded the halfway point. No coolant leaks either. On my old alAudi a faulty coolant temp sensor would send the ecu into a frenzy because it would think the car is overheating, and thus the radiator fan would hit, and stay on max.

I have ordered the sensor but have not installed yet. It is near the front of the engine head very close to the oil cooler. Cost for the part is $30 or less. Install is also pretty easy according to newtis.info docs

Luckily I have not encountered the drivetrain error nor the cooling fan behavior.

I wouldn't say really bad turbo lag but a little bit is present. I'm going to continue to monitor it for a few days, if I still feel like it's not 100% (like how it drove before) then I'll take to BMW dealer for diagnostic. However, there is no CEL so...

[BMWinAZ]

Personally, I wouldn't take it to the dealer for this type of problem. A reputable Indy specializing in BMWs is much more likely to accurately and cost effectively diagnose an intermittent problem on an „older" car.

[CT7]

Hey,

This happens to me at times too! The car will stop going over a certain rpm and ill hear the loud ass fan. (2013 335i) I usually pull over, turn the car off and let the crazy fan noise slowly lower to silent. Then ill start her up again and everything is ok. I feel as if there is no power loss after turning it back on however. I also noticed the oil temps dropping at around 180 when this occurs.

Always wondered what it could be.

[flyt100]

Originally Posted by CT7

Hey,

This happens to me at times too! The car will stop going over a certain rpm and ill hear the loud ass fan. (2013 335i) I usually pull over, turn the car off and let the crazy fan noise slowly lower to silent. Then ill start her up again and everything is ok. I feel as if there is no power loss after turning it back on however. I also noticed the oil temps dropping at around 180 when this occurs.

Always wondered what it could be.

I had these same symptoms on my 2013 335xi a few years ago. Fan part number 17-42-7-640-513 was replaced under warranty, and that took care of it...

[Buzzo]

Bad fan, bad thermostat, could also be a bad coolant temp sensor. Had this on my V70R a few weeks ago. It was intermittent, but when it happened the ECU was tricked into reading the engine as overheating, kicking in the fan full time, leading to actual engine temps dropping and engine running rich. I suppose the F30 could go into limp mode as well. Anyway, it was easy to diagnose with a scan tool.

[Wolfram23]

I just wanted to sign up and post what I've observed on this. All my searching has led to it being an m-sport specific issue.

I have a 2013 335i xdrive m-sport 6mt, it's the Canadian F30 model, purchased used in 2018. I've put around 190,000 km on it.

Weather here ranges from +30C in the summer to -30C in the winter and this issue is only present when the weather is warm.

My oil temp is regularly 116-118C.

This problem started the first summer, when weather was over +20C I would sometimes see the oil temp needle drop. Since I'm on the highway, there was no other symptoms until I got to stop in the city, and had absolutely zero power from a stop. With our first +18C day yesterday, it happened again.

Symptoms: oil temperature drops to the 90's. Fans running on high (hard to notice if moving or have music on). About as much power as a 60's VW bug. Occasionally has thrown a code "1A2108: Electric fan, self-diagnosis level 1: slight fan fault" (read from Bimmerlink).

As I highway drive so much, this has caused a couple panic moments when I try to cross the highway and merge with no power. The turbo does seem to kick in at higher speed and rpm (like over 4k rpm and not in 1st). Performance returns to normal with a restart every time.

I also noticed my car cools the oil down to the same temperature when the ambient temp is +28C or higher. That doesn't happen often here but last summer we had a heat wave and I was shocked when the car operated normally when I was at the same low oil temp, and it happened every day it was over 28. I've seen some threads on "normal temp" and it seems that is a normal feature of the n55 in hot climates.

A local shop said I have to replace the whole front fan and it's like $550 just for the part, and other than the occasional disappointment when pushing the gas pedal it hasn't really been justified to fix. But I have to wonder if it's not just a thermostat or something like that. If I ever get it fixed I'll update.

[thejeremyman9]

Originally Posted by Wolfram23

I just wanted to sign up and post what I've observed on this. All my searching has led to it being an m-sport specific issue.

I have a 2013 335i xdrive m-sport 6mt, it's the Canadian F30 model, purchased used in 2018. I've put around 190,000 km on it.

Weather here ranges from +30C in the summer to -30C in the winter and this issue is only present when the weather is warm.

My oil temp is regularly 116-118C.

This problem started the first summer, when weather was over +20C I would sometimes see the oil temp needle drop. Since I'm on the highway, there was no other symptoms until I got to stop in the city, and had absolutely zero power from a stop. With our first +18C day yesterday, it happened again.

Symptoms: oil temperature drops to the 90's. Fans running on high (hard to notice if moving or have music on). About as much power as a 60's VW bug. Occasionally has thrown a code "1A2108: Electric fan, self-diagnosis level 1: slight fan fault" (read from Bimmerlink).

As I highway drive so much, this has caused a couple panic moments when I try to cross the highway and merge with no power. The turbo does seem to kick in at higher speed and rpm (like over 4k rpm and not in 1st). Performance returns to normal with a restart every time.

I also noticed my car cools the oil down to the same temperature when the ambient temp is +28C or higher. That doesn't happen often here but last summer we had a heat wave and I was shocked when the car operated normally when I was at the same low oil temp, and it happened every day it was over 28. I've seen some threads on "normal temp" and it seems that is a normal feature of the n55 in hot climates.

A local shop said I have to replace the whole front fan and it's like $550 just for the part, and other than the occasional disappointment when pushing the gas pedal it hasn't really been justified to fix. But I have to wonder if it's not just a thermostat or something like that. If I ever get it fixed I'll update.

What you mentioned the in latter part of your post is normal. The car adjusts the coolant temp target based on a variety of factors, including ambient temp. For example normal coolant temp is around 225F, however if ambient temps increase, it can drop as low as 185F. This will in turn bring the oil temp down. It might seem counter intuitive, but the car will run hotter when its cooler outside (fuel economy), but will run cooler when its hotter outside. I watched this happen as i was driving and ambient temps went up to 117F - monitored and datalogged using MHD.

This shouldn't be throwing you into limp mode however, unless the car can't keep up. There are thresholds for oil and coolant temp (cant remember off the top of my head the values), above which the car will start to limit power.

The best thing you can do is monitor coolant temp when you experience the issue to confirm that is actually the problem. If coolant temp isnt exceeding limp mode threshold and you have no power, there's another problem.