Heater Blower Problem on 328

[christopher salata]

Hi all, I am new to the forum but need some help with my 1997 328 convertible. The temp outside is 3 degrees today and my heater blower is not working. The climate control on the dash shows the fan is on but there is no air blowing out. Any ideas? I am desperate. All fuses are fine.

[ironman502]

Try a new blower motor resistor- they're only about $20 new. My '85 325 blower fan only worked on high, so I plugged a new one in and it fixed the problem. I don't know where your resistor is located, on mine it was mounted under the blower motor which is behind a panel at the rear of the engine bay. You could even check Ebay for a used one- I bought mine there for 5 bucks.

[christopher salata]

Thanks for the tip. That sounds pretty simple. What exactly does the resistor do to make the blower work? I'm just curious because I thought that it was something much more serious that was related to the blower or the fan itself. My climate control is showing that the fan is on but nothing comes out except for incremental heat when I am driving at fairly high speeds.

[ironman502]

I don't really know how the resistor works, maybe someone else can help you out there. Mine had three spring-like wires of different thickness, so I'm guessing that by routing the power through different gauge wires, the blower motor can blow at higher or lower speeds (unless the resistor is blown, in which case the fan gets no power). By the way, you will not be able to visibly tell if your old resistor is bad. A blown one looks just like a good one.

[pimp_squeak]

a resistor is an electronic component that has a set resistance of X ohms. basically it limits the speed of the motor.

[Jarody]

I am going through the same story; mine is the 316iA with 65Kilo on the clock ('97);
I've noticed one peculiar thing, I mean, the problem occurs when there dump weather conditions (hmm,what an irony). Tell me if you managed to fix your problem
king regards and greetings form Poland

[Jarody]

I am going through the same story; mine is the 316iA with 65Kilo on the clock ('97);
I've noticed one peculiar thing, I mean, the problem occurs when there dump weather conditions (hmm,what an irony). Tell me if you managed to fix your problem
king regards and greetings form Poland
Jarody

[RaceRocket]

that sucks

[andeeeee]

I have a 94 325i and the same thing happend to me. Unfortunately I had to buy a whole new blower and replace it myself. The blower costed me $40 on the internet and it took all of 2 hours to install (I'm a repair novice). Everything now works fine.

[boomer0499]

Where is the blower located? I have a 1996 328i and I would like to see if this would be the fix for mine too. Mine barely blows anything. Low and Hi give out the same amount, and in the summer...it is a sizzler!

[malcolm brumley]

The blower motor is a series motor whose speed is directly proportional to the voltage supplied to it. A resistor has a set resistance to current which serves as a voltage drop in a closed circuit. Each speed is routed through a different resistance tap of the resistor. Therefore the motor is supplied with different voltages for each speed setting.

[ironman502]

Originally Posted by boomer0499

Where is the blower located? I have a 1996 328i and I would like to see if this would be the fix for mine too. Mine barely blows anything. Low and Hi give out the same amount, and in the summer...it is a sizzler!

I'm not sure where it is on the e36. On the e30, it's behind a panel at the rear of the engine compartment, under the cowl and just in front of the firewall. I'm sure any repair manual will tell you how to find the blower motor on your car, though.