BMW 3 Series (E36)

1990–2000

Cluster: Analog with LCD display: cars with this instrument cluster
Centre display: Radio only

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7 generations · 1975–present

5 facts · 2 sources

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Photo credits (9)

BMW 3 Series (E36), photo 1Cockpit · “BMW E36. (07/2015)” (opens in a new tab) · © BMW AG · Editorial use (opens in a new tab) · BMW Group Newsroom
BMW 3 Series (E36), photo 2Cockpit · “M3 e36 zegary PL” (opens in a new tab) · Photo: Beemwej · CC BY-SA 3.0 (opens in a new tab) · Wikimedia Commons
BMW 3 Series (E36), photo 3Cockpit · “E36 interior” (opens in a new tab) · Photo: Tim Alexander · CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab) · Wikimedia Commons
BMW 3 Series (E36), photo 4Cockpit · “BMW M3 Evo E36 Convertible - Flickr - The Car Spy (18)” (opens in a new tab) · Photo: The Car Spy · CC BY 2.0 (opens in a new tab) · Wikimedia Commons
BMW 3 Series (E36), photo 5Cockpit · “1993 bmw 325is dashboard” (opens in a new tab) · Photo: Milkmandan · CC BY-SA 3.0 (opens in a new tab) · Wikimedia Commons
BMW 3 Series (E36), photo 6Cockpit · “BMW M3 Evo E36 Convertible - Flickr - The Car Spy (3)” (opens in a new tab) · Photo: The Car Spy · CC BY 2.0 (opens in a new tab) · Wikimedia Commons
BMW 3 Series (E36), photo 7Cockpit · “320i Touring M Tech PL” (opens in a new tab) · Photo: Beemwej · CC BY-SA 3.0 (opens in a new tab) · Wikimedia Commons
BMW 3 Series (E36), photo 8Instrument cluster · “M3 e36 coupe PL” (opens in a new tab) · Photo: Beemwej · CC BY 3.0 (opens in a new tab) · Wikimedia Commons
BMW 3 Series (E36), photo 9Instrument cluster · “BMW 318ti Compact (7)” (opens in a new tab) · Photo: Rmoreno010 · CC BY-SA 3.0 (opens in a new tab) · Wikimedia Commons

BMW 3 Series lineage

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BMW 3 Series (E30)
1982–1994 7 photos© BMW AG
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BMW 3 Series (E46)
1997–2006 9 photos© BMW AG

Photo credits (7)

BMW 3 Series (E21)Cockpit · “BMW E21. (07/2015)” (opens in a new tab) · © BMW AG · Editorial use (opens in a new tab) · BMW Group Newsroom
BMW 3 Series (E30)Cockpit · “BMW E30. (07/2015)” (opens in a new tab) · © BMW AG · Editorial use (opens in a new tab) · BMW Group Newsroom
BMW 3 Series (E36)Cockpit · “BMW E36. (07/2015)” (opens in a new tab) · © BMW AG · Editorial use (opens in a new tab) · BMW Group Newsroom
BMW 3 Series (E46)Cockpit · “BMW E46 Coupé. (07/2015)” (opens in a new tab) · © BMW AG · Editorial use (opens in a new tab) · BMW Group Newsroom
BMW 3 Series (E90/E91/E92/E93)Cockpit · “BMW E90. (07/2015)” (opens in a new tab) · © BMW AG · Editorial use (opens in a new tab) · BMW Group Newsroom
BMW 3 Series (F30)Cockpit · “New BMW 3 Series: Cockpit standard version (10/2011)” (opens in a new tab) · © BMW AG · Editorial use (opens in a new tab) · BMW Group Newsroom
BMW 3 Series (G20)Cockpit · “The all-new BMW 3 Series Sedan - BMW M340i xDrive (11/2018).” (opens in a new tab) · © BMW AG · Editorial use (opens in a new tab) · BMW Group Newsroom

Summary

The E36 dashboard was designed from the start to take a passenger airbag, and its check control messages appear on a display in the centre stack rather than in the instrument cluster.

Specifications

Years: 1990–20001990s: cars launched in the 1990s
Chassis code: E36
Instrument cluster: Analog with LCD display: cars with this instrument cluster
Head-up display: None
Centre display: Radio only
Input: Physical buttons
Climate: Physical controls
Physical buttons and knobs: About 56, dash and consoleCounted from this photo Button Census
Predecessor: BMW 3 Series (E30), 1982–1994
Successor: BMW 3 Series (E46), 1997–2006

Cockpit

Instrument cluster

Speedometer, rev counter, fuel and temperature gauges, with warning lamps across the face; higher-line cars add a CHECK CONTROL lamp.

Controls

The centre-stack display is a digital clock with outside temperature as standard, or optionally a multi-function clock or the On-Board Computer V.

Facts

The airbag-ready dashboard meant a smaller glovebox; the passenger airbag itself arrived with 1993 production.[1]
The cluster combines a main circuit board, driver electronics, an LCD block and the gauges. Variants differ by model and model year, among them separate 1992–1996 and 1997-on clusters for the US saloon, coupé and convertible.[2]
Check control warned of lamp failures and low fluid levels, and was fitted only to cars with the multi-function clock or on-board computer.[2]
The On-Board Computer V, the top option on the 325, 328 and M3, covered fuel consumption, outside temperature, average speed, distance and arrival time, range, an anti-theft code, a speed-limit warning and a stopwatch.[2]
Buyers could specify climate control with electronic regulation.[1]

Sources

[1]Wikipedia. BMW 3 Series (E36) (opens in a new tab). en.wikipedia.org
[2]BMW of North America (via Internet Archive). Driver Information Systems, Part 1 (BMW technical training) (opens in a new tab). archive.org

Record

Record: bmw/3-series/e36
Wikidata: Q608824 (opens in a new tab)
Status: Documented: what the record statuses mean
Open questions: 2Answer one

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BMW 3 Series generations