First problem with zed, over heating!

L

Lee.stagg3

Member
 Cumbria
Hello, I've had my E86 since July 2016 and I've just experienced my first breakdown! I decided to enjoy the great weather and go up the Lakes for drive and due to the heavy traffic around Windermere my Zed started to overheat! The red light on the temperature gauge was only for about 30 seconds and smoke started to come from my bonnet! not a nice sight or feeling!!! so I quickly did a U turn to get the car moving again and the temperature gauge began to get back to normal again, but unfortunately the coolant warning was now displayed on my dash. I drove to the nearest garage, 11 miles away and allowed the engine to fully cool down and topped it up with coolant and the car was fine again for about 15 miles and then the coolant light was then displayed on the dash again and the temperature started getting to the red zone, so I pulled over and rang the recovery services. The fresh new coolant was now on the floor under my Zed!

whilst, waiting for the recover services I began researching the forum and this seems to be a common problem? thermostat? water pump or radiator?

the joys of owning a 9+ year old car! :driving: :dizzy:
 
Hi, your n52 engine uses an electric water pump and they seem to be on thin ice after about 70k miles.
Don't go to a dealer as the pumps can be had for half price elsewhere-easy diy job (check hoses, tanks first before buying pump) :thumbsup:
Rob
 
Keep an eye on temps post-fix, as running an engine hot for any length of time can cause irreparable damage- head gasket failure, warped heads etc.
Suggest investing in Carly Pro app and obd dongle- this will enable you to monitor and log temps in realtime for analysis onthefly and after driving.
:thumbsup:
 
Expansion tank is another common one. Take off the engine undertray, seven 8mms screws, and look underneath to see where the fluid is coming from
 
Sorry to hear that OP. :(

Sounds like the electric water pump has had enough of life - the pump on my first E86 did that at 9 years and 60K miles (partly why I decided to sell it)!

I went to my local BMW indy and an OEM pump was £500 - ECP quoted £340 for the pump, but I have nowhere to work on it so with a new thermostat and labour I got a bill to make my eyes water!

Hope you can sort a fix at a reasonable price. :thumbsup:

AFAIK the expansion tank/banana radiator issues tended to afflict pre-facelift models with the M54 engine - did all that with my E46, but it's a much cheaper fix!

Looking back I should have got over it - which is why when I agreed to sell mine I went out and bought another!

Once you have your E86 fixed and go for another drive hopefully you will realise how good they are! :wub:
 
The local garage rang me today and said my cooling fan assembly needs to be replaced, £600 fitted. What's your thoughts? They said my electric water pump was working fine :thumbsup:
 
http://www.pelicanparts.com/techarticles/BMW_Z4M/41-WATER-Engine_Cooling_Fan_Replacement/41-WATER-Engine_Cooling_Fan_Replacement.htm Two hour job.
http://www.mister-auto.co.uk/en/radiator-fan/hella-8ew-351-043-251_g508_a0028EW!351!043-251.html?mkwid=sszx9QUow_dc&pcrid=101272154562&pkw=&pmt=&gclid=CjwKEAjw8OLGBRCklJalqKHzjQ0SJACP4BHrKVNHTFXg1XWA43gdHakKlWsnCwKJlaPgthdq-MRUvhoCKtrw_wcB fan is £280 so you could fit it yourself
 
As above £600 is too much to replace a fan. The fan for my ///M was around £400 fitted, 18 months ago. Shop around or fit it your self. How does a failed fan cause you to lose coolant, unless you were boiling it of, which would worry me a little.
 
buzyg said:
As above £600 is too much to replace a fan. The fan for my ///M was around £400 fitted, 18 months ago. Shop around or fit it your self. How does a failed fan cause you to lose coolant, unless you were boiling it of, which would worry me a little.
Click to expand...

^This

If you've lost coolant purely down to a failed fan then the overheating has caused damage elsewhere and your garage should really be checking for this. Maybe you've cracked the expansion tank so not too drastic but i certainly would be having a closer look.

Don't want to sound all doom and gloom but thought I'd give you my two pennies worth.
 
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