97 BMW 316 Auto, using alot of engine coolant, no signs of leaks

If your losing coolant water pump may be leaking, not enough coolant will make it overheat. If not that, thermostat may be bad stuck open or shut. Hope this helps

has it been run hot lately?do you have water or coolant in your oil? pull the engine dipstick to see. do you have oil in the radiator? do you see coolant coming from the exhaust? these are all signs of blown head gasket. unexplained useage of coolant with no apparent signs of leakage usually means that coolants going trough the engine and out the exhaust system.smell bad when idleing in enclosed space? unexplained smoke coming from tailpipe when weathers warm? water residue dripping from tailpipe after the engines warm? i've given you most of the signs of a blown head gasket,which is what you requested, using alot of water with no sign of leakage. if no water in the oil,no oil in the water, then the leaks into the exhaust and out the tail pipe. you can do this, remove the ant-freeze from engine, then apply nanno technology[auto zone] water only added to engine. follow directions on 1quart bottle. this has worked for me several times.[for blown head gaskets that leak into exhaust] it's new technology that's new to the automotive industry. 1 quart costs $20.00 considering how much it costs to replace a blown head gasket that's only leaking into the exhaust sysytem,that's worth a gamble l to me. i've seen it work myself.

Possible coolant leak on hot engine parts causing it to evaporate as it leaks. That would definitely invade the cabin air. You would need to carefully check under the hood with the engine warmed up and running.

Also could be a headgasket failure between coolant channels and a combustion chamber. This latter problem sometimes shows itself as vapor at the tailpipe after there should be no more visible. You may also detect the odor of coolant there too.

might be drain plug washer or could be a leak from higher up the engine. get it cleaned off using some gunk remover and low pressure hose then watch for easier indication of actual leak.

your going to have to clean it down good with some engine cleaner, then run engine, try to pin down leak. may have a bad oil preasure switch thats leaking, or oil filter, or a gasket; hope this helps good luck.

High possibility the maf sensor needs dervicing or replace. you can clea it yourself with electrical spray cleaner CRC brand. It is located inside the intake duct in a metal section. Do not brush or rub to clean. Use the spray to thoroughly wash off the sensor, It is sensitive and expensive to replace so be nice to it.
The spray will dry fast so don't use compressed air and don't physically touch the unit. Good Luck, Ned

try the coolant pump to test it take the bottom house of the radiator of ( messy coolant leaks a lot ) turn engine on if it just trikles out with no pressure its the coolant pump another sign which worked on my golf, turn your heating on if it does not stay hot or is not very hot then its your pump .right bk to let me now

have coolant system pressure test.what they do is pressurize your coolant.about 14 psi look in radiator for bubbles if so you have head gasket leak. or they drain oil out leave drain plug out to see if coolant come out crank case.that also means leaking head gasket or intake gasket.they will look for leaks around radiator +all hoses.look at water pump gasket weep hole.for leaks also check engine core plugs for leaks.they will make sure you have 50% coolant and 50% water .if you have too much water.it will evaporate away.

Take it to a service center and have them put it o o lift and check it out.

sounds like headgasket , when it si done you must make sure you fill with water and no aIR BUBBLES IN SYSTEM .i did one once took me 4 hours with a hose pipe ramming water into it heater matrix first then engine .i had a garage do the gasket 1st time they did not fill with water properly and it blew had to do it myself