BMW E36/M3 temp gage running without the "buffer" circuit. Road Test.

I installed the cluster with the modified temperature gage control circuit back into the M3 and, took it out for a spin to see what the temperature behavior REALLY looked like. Every condition that you see in this video would have been shown as "straight up" on the gage, when the buffer circuit was active. This is all done with the stock sensor and gage. You can see why BMW added the buffering zone. The average driver would probably be alarmed to see what you see in this video. There is about 90 degrees Fahrenheit worth of buffer zone. Form about 140F to about 230F. And there seems to be a delay built in, also. If you don't understand how the cooling system is laid out on these cars, these readings can look pretty scary. Especially before the thermostat opens for the 1st time. You can see 230F on the gage and wonder why the aux fan is not coming on !