[doru]

Originally Posted by Wgosma

HerrK:
I've been DIY'ing it on E39's for umpteen years, my X3 is 2012 w/N52 w/61K miles and I've owned it for 5 months.

Water pump: DIY looks unappealing at best, ugh - did you have the car on ramps, jackstands or lift for your work?

Thanks/Bill

Bill, I changed the WP & T-stat on my e92. It failed a few months after I purchased the car. DIY is not terrible, but space is at a premium compared to our defunct e39 etc.
Did one also on X3 e83si with N52 engine. Almost identical procedure as the 335. Next will be my f25 with N52 engine.
The Wp on non-turbo engines lasts much longer than the forced engines. There are many reports with original wp well over 100 k miles. They last longer than the belt driven wp on e39, e46, e30 etc (exception is the Stewart).
So if in there, because tight space, make SURE you change the hoses that connect in that area.
On another note: We all know the OFHG fails on these cars. Whenever this happens, to take off the assy to change that gasket, you might need to take off the hose #7 in this diagram.
This hose is expensive, and to make matter worse, the plastic nipple that you have to take off, usually is cooked and breaks in a million pieces. Also that O-ring comes out in like 3 sizes bigger. Happened to me and many more.
Now you can change that hose ($$$), but biggest problem is now you have to raise the car and go under in those tight places, etc.
The workaround is an identical aluminum nipple (e-bay), comes with O-ring and collar. The hose is usually in great shape. To take off whatever is inside the hose, just wrap a rag around it then crush it with a pliers. Some people tried taking off the OEM collar, but butchered the hose. Also DON'T cut it shorter.
Hope this helps

[Wgosma]

Doru-
Thanks for that info, I'm making note of the OFHG info you stated, I know it's going to eventually leak.
Interesting about WP lifespans- I watch it like a hawk (oil and water temps)- the pumps on cars w/turbo must be different design from what is on our N52's(?)....I cant see why forced injection motorwould reduce pump life, hmm....

If I can get to 100K without pump hiccup I think I'll replace it at that point-time will tell.
Bill

[doru]

Originally Posted by Wgosma

Doru-
Thanks for that info, I'm making note of the OFHG info you stated, I know it's going to eventually leak.
Interesting about WP lifespans- I watch it like a hawk (oil and water temps)- the pumps on cars w/turbo must be different design from what is on our N52's(?)....I cant see why forced injection motorwould reduce pump life, hmm....

If I can get to 100K without pump hiccup I think I'll replace it at that point-time will tell.
Bill

FIY the WP on the e83si went south when the car hit +/- 170,000 Km (N52 engine). That's +/- 106k miles
The WP on the 335is went south when the car hit 97,000 Km (N54 engine). That's +/- 60k miles

[Polo08816]

Is it worthwhile to replace all the coolant hoses while you're in there to replace the thermostat and water pump or just leave them?

[mjosco]

I just changed mine today. Changed both WP and thermo. The top small hose on the WP is the worst.

I believe my thermo was stuck open since the coolant temp on the engine was hovering low and I had no heat. All fixed now. I ran the purge process twice to be sure all the air was out. Likely the WP was fine but no way I was not going to change it since it had to be pulled anyways.

Now off to fix the LED board solder joint on my tailight...

[E90705]

Originally Posted by Polo08816

Is it worthwhile to replace all the coolant hoses while you're in there to replace the thermostat and water pump or just leave them?

Yes it's worth it, depending on condition.

[Polo08816]

Originally Posted by E90705

Yes it's worth it, depending on condition.

X3 is a 2016 with 80k miles.

[oVeRdOsE.]

Originally Posted by Polo08816

X3 is a 2016 with 80k miles.

does it need to be changed ? probably not.
Does it worth it ? probably yes, since its cheap and won't really make a huge impact on labour.

( assuming those are the same or better quality than OEM)

[pungo]

Originally Posted by Polo08816

Is it worthwhile to replace all the coolant hoses while you're in there to replace the thermostat and water pump or just leave them?

At 3 years old, I would not replace them unless the are in bad condition, though I doubt they are.

[Polo08816]

Originally Posted by oVeRdOsE.

does it need to be changed ? probably not.
Does it worth it ? probably yes, since its cheap and won't really make a huge impact on labour.

( assuming those are the same or better quality than OEM)

Originally Posted by pungo

At 3 years old, I would not replace them unless the are in bad condition, though I doubt they are.

That's what I'm thinking...

[Wgosma]

Hoses are generally good to about 10 years.

[Beberle]

159k... I'm just proactively changing water pump & thermostat. I seem to be one of the lucky ones. It is the all metal pump on the N52 F25. My e91 has 140k miles and I'll do that one next.

The fan cowl is giving me a real headache right now, not looking forward to the rest of the work on this sucker
Edit: It seem that the N52 is slightly different than all of the N55 DIYs that I've seen. I've got the T-stat out, but can't get the bottom back water pump aluminum Torx bolt out. Anyone done a N52 recently that remembers how they got to it?
2nd Edit: Got the rascal out. 10mm ratcheting box-end wrench from under the car. Had to feed in from the front side just over the sway bar. Very worried I was going to strip the aluminum torx, but no damage evident. I used the 10mm box-end to get the top torx out as well. Now... I've ordered the wrong thermostat and pump-to-tstat hose somehow. Greeaaaattt.

[3002 tii]

after reading about so many failures around 60k, decided to some preventive maintenance. ended up doing coils, plugs, wp and t-stat all this past weekend... hopefully i'll get another trouble-free 60k out of this car.

[Wgosma]

Originally Posted by 3002 tii

after reading about so many failures around 60k, decided to some preventive maintenance. ended up doing coils, plugs, wp and t-stat all this past weekend... hopefully i'll get another trouble-free 60k out of this car.

nice work, after a bit of a tussle boing VCG on my N52 I'm thinking Mr Mechanic will be getting paid to do the R&R on my water pump at some point- that job does not look like a very enjoyable one.

[hogwldfltr]

I paid a local BMW specialty shop to take care of mine at about 85K miles on my 2014 X3 35i; no sense in waiting for it to fail.

[cohenfive]

So my symptoms were a bit different...2012 X3 3.5i 98k miles. Driving back from a couple of days of skiing I noticed that the engine was really, really lethargic. I didn't get a warning light. Didn't notice whether temp guage was acting up. Car could not hold speed with cruise control if going uphill at all, and trying to accelerate would lead to not much of anything and a lot of downshifting. Took it into my indy guy today and it showed the thermostat stuck open. Not sure if this is part of the water pump failing or not, but decided to have them both replaced. Not cheap even at an indy shop ($1300) but this is the bay area. This better solve the problem, but from reading all of this, sounds like I have some sort of variant of the thermo and/or pump going or gone.

[EndOfAnEra]

Looks like I'll be doing a water pump and thermostat DIY this weekend

[pungo]

Originally Posted by EndOfAnEra

Looks like I'll be doing a water pump and thermostat DIY this weekend

What are the symptoms?

[383vett]

Car shuts down. Message says engine overheating.

[EndOfAnEra]

Originally Posted by pungo

What are the symptoms?

Well, I first got a message last Friday twice while driving home from work that the engine was overheating. It was a yellow message, and then it turned red, and then back to yellow. Lasted about 20 seconds. While the message was red, the car would no longer accelerate. It pretty much dies on you. Saturday it happened a couple more times until finally it was constantly reoccurring. That's when I knew it was done for.

[pungo]

Originally Posted by EndOfAnEra

Well, I first got a message last Friday twice while driving home from work that the engine was overheating. It was a yellow message, and then it turned red, and then back to yellow. Lasted about 20 seconds. While the message was red, the car would no longer accelerate. It pretty much dies on you. Saturday it happened a couple more times until finally it was constantly reoccurring. That's when I knew it was done for.

Thanks, Well at least it gave you some warning it was going and didn't leave you stranded

[383vett]

Originally Posted by pungo

Thanks, Well at least it gave you some warning it was going and didn't leave you stranded

Our car essentially shut down. Enough power to limp to the side of the road but that was it. Fortunately it happened an eighth of a mile from our house so after a few minutes it cooled down enough so we could drive it back into our garage.