# 1989 BMW 320 - Temp issue

**URL:** <https://community.cartalk.com/t/1989-bmw-320-temp-issue/142626>\
**Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\
**Tags:** bmw\
**Created:** [June 20, 2019, 3:44am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/1989-bmw-320-temp-issue/142626 "2019-06-20T03:44:02Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![FredParas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7ea924/32.png) [@FredParas](https://community.cartalk.com/u/FredParas)\
**Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 3:44am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/1989-bmw-320-temp-issue/142626/1 "2019-06-20T03:44:02Z")

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I experienced of having worn out belts that causes the alternator not to charge the battery. So i replaced all the belts and addressed the charging problem, after which, engine overheat takes place. So I replaced the hoses where it has leaks and removed the thermostat assuming that there is blocking the coolant’s flow. I also checked the fan rotation if the air flows consistently it is flowing. Right now the engine’s temp is still having beyond 3/4 of the gauge in idle. But when I rev the engine to 1,500 rpm the temp goes down to 1/2 of the gauge. I don’t know if the removal of the thermostat caused the overheating of the engine in idle or am I going to replace also the water pump?

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**Author:** ![Purebred](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/purebred/32/46796_2.png) [@Purebred](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Purebred)\
**Post date:** [June 20, 2019, 10:33am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/1989-bmw-320-temp-issue/142626/2 "2019-06-20T10:33:11Z")

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On a car this old you probably need a new radiator, you can pull the old radiator and have it flow tested or use an infrared thermometer to check for hot/cold areas. You need a thermostat to correctly control the engine temperature. Water pump may need replacing.