In message , Bimmer Owner
writes
It's easy enough to test the resistance of the blower motor though,
and those results have come out at about 0.4 to 0.6 ohms.
Motors are not just a resistive load though.
--
Clive

On Mar 20, 11:08*pm, Bimmer Owner wrote:
Does anyone have insight into what is the root cause (and repair) of the
FSU failure that plagues almost every 1997 to 2003 BMW?
*http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/att...entid=126060&d...

Also, does anyone have an idea HOW TO TEST a "repaired" FSU?

The "blower motor resistor", which also goes by FSR (Final Stage Resistor)
or by FSU (Final Stage Unit), is known to fry itself in almost every single
E46 (3-series), E39 (5-series), and E38 (7-series) BMW.
*http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=143393

The problem with replacing this ~$100 part is that the new replacement FSU
fries itself just as often as the old one did, so you end up repeatedly
replacing your fried FSU every few years or so.
*http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=528566

That's fine for most people (although the DIY is a PITA) - but I ask
this newsgroup whether anyone has any insight into WHAT is actually
breaking - and - why?
*http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=309399

Here is the best (admittedly sketchy) wiring diagram we have so far:
*http://www1.picturepush.com/photo/a/...g/12467819.png

I had a dodge caravan that fried its heater AC motor speed control
resistor repeatedly....

the connector to the wiring harness detoriates from the high current
and the voltage drop causes the connector to heat up and the entire
assembly fails.

Oddly enough I repair roll laminators that apply plastic film to paper
think menus

laminators experience similiar failures so I did the following.

Purchased a new resistor block, soldered wires on all the connectors
putting a heavy wire on each one.... Put a pigtail on each one.
Installed resistor block. Its screwerd to the fire wall.

Cut the plug assembly off the harness, stripped all wires, twisted
them together and installed wire nuts on each one.

had the van for years with zero problems for this part

Have you got a link to these "common problems" you keep posting about?


"Bimmer Owner" wrote in message
...
Does anyone have insight into what is the root cause (and repair) of the
FSU failure that plagues almost every 1997 to 2003 BMW?
http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/att...0&d=1194115994

=========

Almost every BMW E39 (5-series) and E38 (7-series) and E46 (3-series)
has shorts that develop in the trunk wiring loom - all in the same spot!

On Mar 22, 7:42*pm, "R. Mark Clayton"
wrote:
Have you got a link to these "common problems" you keep posting about?

"Bimmer Owner" wrote in message

...

Does anyone have insight into what is the root cause (and repair) of the
FSU failure that plagues almost every 1997 to 2003 BMW?
http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/att...entid=126060&d....

=========



Almost every BMW E39 (5-series) and E38 (7-series) and E46 (3-series)
has shorts that develop in the trunk wiring loom - all in the same spot!- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

I don't have a link, but we had the blower resistor widget
go on an X5 here. And the aux cooling fan motor has gone
twice. There are plenty of threads online about many people having
those problems. Oh, and don't forget the
nice X5 feature where the cable that they use to hold up the
windows snaps, sending the window crashing down inside
the door, breaking it into a million pieces. Had that happen
twice too, once while the car was just sitting in the driveway.
Other time was driving down the highway.

Then there are their defective rubber parts. Like the boot on
the intake manifold that cracks in just a few years. Or the
CV joint boots. I've had lots of cars with CV boots and
only on the X5 do they fail every 20K miles. I've seen Honda CRVs
that went 200K miles with no failure.

On 03/23/2013 04:33 AM, wrote:
On Mar 22, 7:42�pm, "R. Mark Clayton"
wrote:
Have you got a link to these "common problems" you keep posting about?

"Bimmer Owner" wrote in message

...

Does anyone have insight into what is the root cause (and repair) of the
FSU failure that plagues almost every 1997 to 2003 BMW?
http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/att...entid=126060&d...

=========



Almost every BMW E39 (5-series) and E38 (7-series) and E46 (3-series)
has shorts that develop in the trunk wiring loom - all in the same spot!- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

I don't have a link, but we had the blower resistor widget
go on an X5 here. And the aux cooling fan motor has gone
twice. There are plenty of threads online about many people having
those problems. Oh, and don't forget the
nice X5 feature where the cable that they use to hold up the
windows snaps, sending the window crashing down inside
the door, breaking it into a million pieces. Had that happen
twice too, once while the car was just sitting in the driveway.
Other time was driving down the highway.

Then there are their defective rubber parts. Like the boot on
the intake manifold that cracks in just a few years. Or the
CV joint boots. I've had lots of cars with CV boots and
only on the X5 do they fail every 20K miles. I've seen Honda CRVs
that went 200K miles with no failure.


serious question - why did you buy it?


--
fact check required

On Sat, 23 Mar 2013 07:20:44 -0700, jim beam wrote:

serious question - why did you buy it?

As for me, I fell sway to all the people saying how great the bimmer was.

It was only after I owned it, that I realized that BMW engineers knew
how to design a suspension and a drive train, but they had no idea
how to build a machine.

To their credit, some people say it's not the engineers fault as
they probably know by now that every single Bosch 5.7 ABS control
module fried in every one of the vehicles it was placed in, and that
the final stage unit cooked itself to death in every single BMW it
was ever placed in, and that the 2-bar plastic cooling system
sprang a leak on almost every single BMW ever built, etc.

In fact, there's absolutely NO WAY BMW can't know about these
egregious engineering flaws. So, the common conclusion is that
their customers don't care - so why should they.

To me, it smacks of 3rd-grade engineering from BMW, so, that's why
I, for one, am amazed (being an owner myself), how sophomoric BMW
engineering really is.

Disclaimer: Yet, the drive train is phenomenal!

On Mon, 25 Mar 2013 16:54:13 +0000 (UTC), Bimmer Owner
wrote:

On Sat, 23 Mar 2013 07:20:44 -0700, jim beam wrote:

serious question - why did you buy it?

As for me, I fell sway to all the people saying how great the bimmer was.

It was only after I owned it, that I realized that BMW engineers knew
how to design a suspension and a drive train, but they had no idea
how to build a machine.

To their credit, some people say it's not the engineers fault as
they probably know by now that every single Bosch 5.7 ABS control
module fried in every one of the vehicles it was placed in, and that
the final stage unit cooked itself to death in every single BMW it
was ever placed in, and that the 2-bar plastic cooling system
sprang a leak on almost every single BMW ever built, etc.

In fact, there's absolutely NO WAY BMW can't know about these
egregious engineering flaws. So, the common conclusion is that
their customers don't care - so why should they.

To me, it smacks of 3rd-grade engineering from BMW, so, that's why
I, for one, am amazed (being an owner myself), how sophomoric BMW
engineering really is.

Disclaimer: Yet, the drive train is phenomenal!
If the engine desnt burn to the ground due to oil leaks, or overheat
or run out of oil, because of all the problems with "ancilliary
systems"

On 03/25/2013 09:54 AM, Bimmer Owner wrote:
On Sat, 23 Mar 2013 07:20:44 -0700, jim beam wrote:

serious question - why did you buy it?

As for me, I fell sway to all the people saying how great the bimmer was.

It was only after I owned it, that I realized that BMW engineers knew
how to design a suspension and a drive train, but they had no idea
how to build a machine.

To their credit, some people say it's not the engineers fault as
they probably know by now that every single Bosch 5.7 ABS control
module fried in every one of the vehicles it was placed in, and that
the final stage unit cooked itself to death in every single BMW it
was ever placed in, and that the 2-bar plastic cooling system
sprang a leak on almost every single BMW ever built, etc.

honda use a "plastic cooling system". it's not infallible, but you can
get 15+ years out of the first one. there's no reason bmw couldn't
achieve the same - if they wanted to.



In fact, there's absolutely NO WAY BMW can't know about these
egregious engineering flaws. So, the common conclusion is that
their customers don't care - so why should they.

that is the catch - bmw target a certain type of buyer that typically
won't keep a car more than 3 years. after that, they don't care and bmw
can safely switch to "maximize parts sales/write off the old cars and
sell new ones" mode.

in europe, bmw have been aggressive leaders in "recycling" and spend a
lot of money advertising the fact. in practice however, it means that
they buy used cars back and have them scrapped, thereby keeping used
parts off the market - the mba's have done their math.



To me, it smacks of 3rd-grade engineering from BMW, so, that's why
I, for one, am amazed (being an owner myself), how sophomoric BMW
engineering really is.

it depends on perspective. i agree that some appear to be extremely
rudimentary, but that is contradicted by the fact that they spend a huge
amount of money on r&d, and have boatloads of phd's on staff. they were
also rescued by a bunch of mba's in the 70's and have had a root and
branch focus on design life ever since.



Disclaimer: Yet, the drive train is phenomenal!

call me when you have 100k miles on it...


--
fact check required