Aux Heating query

[MSPORTBMW]

Hi there.....I just got my BMW scanner 1.4 and had a play with it last night.  The main thing i wanted to enable was Aux Heating.
When id finished i went into the screens main options to find TV,Computer,etc etc and Aux Heating/Vent !!
Where previously it only said aux vent.

So i decided to try it and set timer 1 to come on at 08.10 this morning.  I presumed it was set as i got the little red fan symbol lit up next to the volume control of my nav screen.

Anyway this morning i go outside at around 08.35 but could hear no sound and indeed no heat in the car !!
But i then put it on "direct" and it started.....I could feel the car getting warmer and i could hear a buzzing noise coming from under the bonnet.

But my question is....Will it only come on at the set time if the outside temp is below a certain degrees??
As i seem to remember reading it someplace else but cant remember where.

Also, is it right that when you set timer 1, it will come on at that time and stay on for 30 mins then go off....and timer 2 is NOT the time you want it to go off....but a second start time??

Thanks in advance

[LincsX5]

According to the handbook it should work as an Aux-heater at any temp if set on the timer!? It will check you have enough fuel i.e. not on reserve and that the battery voltage is sufficient first though. Was it operating properly as a pre-heater before? If not then there is a huge thread on here telling you everything you need to know about the Webasto and how to test it. Good luck!

Forgot to say, the timers are for 2 separate start times of 30min.

[MSPORTBMW]

Thanks for the reply Lincs......but excuse my ignorance.....how do i know if it was working as a pre-heater before???

[LincsX5]

It uses the Webasto to help heat up the engine on cold mornings. Unless you're looking for the tell tale signs you would probably never know it was happening. After starting the engine, as long the pre-start criteria have been met (temp,fuel,batt), looking under the near side of the car aft of the front wheel you will see exhaust fumes from the Webasto exhaust. Looking under the bonnet you can hear and feel it running and it will get hot. I can't remember the min temp off hand but a frosty morning like we've been having here should do it.
There are quite a few people with issues with these, hence the huge thread on here.

[MSPORTBMW]

ok thanks Lincs......to be honest, the outside temp was prob about 7 degrees this morning so i wouldnt normally want it on in those conditions, but just wanted to test it.  Thats why i wondered if it had to be below a certain temp for it to come on via the on-screen timer.......as like i said, it worked when i selected "direct Mode"

Cheers

[jaynana]

it will automatically come ON to heat up the engine on a cold start, when the outside temp is around 5c or less.

if you enable with the timer or directly it will come on regardless of outside temp; said that, if the outside temp is over 15c or so it goes through teh start up sequence, figures there's nothing much else for it to do.. , then goes through shut down sequence. ie dones't stay ON for half an hr..

[MSPORTBMW]

Hmmm......any idea why mine didnt come on with the timer then?  The little red fan symbol near the volume button came on like it was set but it didnt come on. But it worked when i put it on direct!!

All i done was tick the aux heating option on the scanner.....and it now says Aux heating/vent on the OBC instead of just aux vent.

[jaynana]

So the little red fan light came up at the scheduled time?

This means the process kicked in. It does take a couple of minutes to fully come on incl the blower to start, upto 3 minutes. The blower starting up is in the tail end of the startup sequence, once the coolant reaches a decent temp.

Can u give it a couple of mins to see if it comes up? Btw the first thing u should notice as the red light comes up is a whirring noise from the webo - this would be the airfan circulating air.

[CondorX5]

I may be wrong, but my understanding is that even if the red light is on and the heater set to start, if the battery is below a certain level, the heater will not kick in even though the timer is correctly set. Some sort of circuit protection against running the battery down too low, even though the battery may seem to function ok.

[MSPORTBMW]

Hey Jayanna..... The little red fan symbol was lit up when I set it......but I wasn't sitting in the car when it was supposed to turn on at 8.10........and when I did get in the car at about 8.30 I didn't notice if the little red fan symbol was on or off......should it be on when the system is running????

Or maybe as condor says......maybe my battery is a little weak.....although I'd never know it.....it always turns over fast and 1st time.

I'm gonna give it another trial run in the morning.

[jaynana]

Yes you're right on voltage.

But I'm not sure if the little red fan light comes up if the voltage is low.

Webo wouldn't run when voltage is even slightly low, even though the car would start as normal. This is because its cutoff voltage is set higher, to ensure it doesn't leave u with a warm but dead car!

Try running the car so that battery is fresh after a charge, and then setting the timer about half hour later?

Again, webo would go to sleep when it realises that the water temp is high, as it has no value add to give. But ud know that the timer works.

[CondorX5]

The little red fan light does come on and set, even if voltage is insufficient to actually run the Webasto - I know as I once set the Webasto to come on at two separate intervals on the same day, a freezing winters day 2 years ago at around -10C temps, so it was nice and warm to go to work and then the same before leaving in the evening - the evening setting did light up on the little red light, but the Webby did not start - the battery was just a tad too low for it to run twice in a few hours in those temps. So the timer worked - and the little light went out, but the Webby didn't kick in, just as its meant to, so it doesn't kill the fading battery.......

[MSPORTBMW]

***UPDATE***

Tried it again this morning and it was working. !!!

A dumb question.....Does the heat that comes out from the aux heating make any difference to what temp you have set on the digital climate control??    In other words.....will it be warmer if i set the climate at the max 32 rather than the min of 16 degrees?? 

[jaynana]

so its probably your battery

not sure about the direct switch on or the timed switch on, when i switch on with the remote (which is an additional installation)  settings have no  impact. it just keeps blowing away on a preset blower config of its own..

[CondorX5]

Climate control settings have no influence on the webasto, it has its on settings in the unit and runs for a 30 minute period during which time the heated air is circulated in the cabin as well as engine for diesel models- temp of the air is regulated by the Webasto itself.