BMW 2 Climate Control Fails, Solar Sensor Suspect?

Hi there! I have some experience working on cars and had a similar issue with my 2020 BMW 1 Series diesel last winter. The symptoms were exactly the same as you're describing. After taking it to my trusted workshop, they found a faulty cable connection to the solar sensor. The repair was pretty straightforward, they replaced the wiring harness and connector, which cost me 95 Euro in total. Since then, the climate control has been working perfectly. Before I can give you more specific advice, could you share: Which engine variant you have? Is there any specific error code showing up? Did you notice any warning lights on the dashboard? Also, I have a who owns a BMW 3 Series and had climate control issues, but his turned out to be a different problem. Let me know those details, and I might be able to help further!

Thanks for the detailed response! Mine has 35470 KM on the clock since my last service in April. The error code is P0531, and yes, there's a small yellow warning light on the dash. After reading your experience, I'm hoping it's just the wiring harness too, as that sounds like a simple fix. I've got the B47 diesel engine. The climate control is completely unpredictable, sometimes it works fine for a few minutes, then just stops responding. Really frustrating when it's acting up during my commute. Might give my local mechanic a call tomorrow to check it out.

Hey again! After reading about your B47 engine and the P0531 code, I'm even more convinced it's similar to what I dealt with. My BMW had exactly that intermittent behavior, working fine one minute and going crazy the next. Super annoying, especially during my morning drives! The P0531 code actually confirms my initial thoughts about the sensor circuit. When my car had this issue, I first tried cleaning the sensor connections myself (wouldn't really recommend that now, learned my lesson!), but it didn't solve the problem. With your mileage being similar to what mine was when the issue occurred (I was around 38000 KM), and the same warning light, I'd bet you're facing the exact same wiring harness issue. The fact that it's intermittent is actually a classic sign of a loose or damaged connection rather than a completely failed sensor. One thing I didn't mention in my first reply, after they fixed mine, they recommended checking the climate control system during each service to prevent similar issues. Been doing that since, and haven't had any problems for over a year now. Let me know what your mechanic says! If they quote you significantly more than what I paid, might be worth getting a second opinion.

Thanks so much for all this helpful info! It's such a relief to hear from someone who's been through the same thing. The intermittent behavior you described matches my situation perfectly, and knowing it was a relatively simple fix in your case makes me feel much better. I've already called my mechanic and booked it in for tomorrow morning. They mentioned they've seen similar issues with the B47 engine before, so fingers crossed it's just the wiring harness like in your case. Really appreciate the tip about regular climate control system checks during service, definitely going to add that to my maintenance routine once this is fixed. Getting tired of sweating one minute and freezing the next! Will let you know how it goes, but thanks again for sharing your experience. It's helped me feel much more confident about what I'm dealing with.