How many of you have replaced your (N52/2.5/3.0) Water Pump?

M

mariojoshi

Member
Morning all,

My car was in for an inspection 2 last week - she's now covered around 73k miles and is generally in pretty good nick according to my friendly mechanic.
I was a bit surprised that he said that the water pump is likely to be nearing the end of it's natural life and should be replaced... (at a cost of around £500 no less!).

I was just wondering how many of you guys and gals have actually done this, or have had the work done?
It seems like there are actually very few threads on here about this job, leading me to believe that it isn't that common a failure.

I do trust the garage (in relative terms) as they are a very small independent that are enthusiasts and clearly know their stuff. (The knowledge pouring out of the guy that serviced my car was quite incredible!) But I just couldn't fathom the cost! Having replaced water pumps before (mainly on VW Corrado VR6s) I was used to it being a £50, 30min job..... This looks like a good few hours under the car for a home mechanic like myself!

Any thoughts appreciated.

Ta
Josh
 
It's not a normal water pump, the n52 engine uses an electric pump to increase power & reduce fuel consumption compared to using a normal mechanical pump.
It's a high price to pay though & to expensive for a pre-emptive change, I just keep a close watch on the temp gauge!
Not heard of them failing to be honest, would be interested in finding out the average life?
Regards
 
Yep - well aware of the differences (probably should have mentioned that) and it does seem an interesting way to take parasitic load off the engine and presumably generate better engine efficiency and more power.

It seems that it's not talked about much on here - but loads of chatter about it on 3 series forums etc. It could just be down to volume of cars (3 series Vs Z4s) and number of cars with higher miles on them....! I would have thought most Z4s on here are under 70k?

Josh
 
My z had its water pump changed by the previous owner at about 61k. I have an invoice for it somewhere. Unfortunately for him but good for me he came across as the type of person who knows nothing about cars and just paid for the garage to replace parts if they said so. He also had the belts and tensioners done at the same time.
 
ye going only there are many that say these last around 60k mark, which is where mine is, but id wait for the unit to fail or show signs of on its way out.

But i`ve also seen other cars last over 100k mark
 
Just paid £700 to have my electric pump and thermostat changed, recommended to do both by BMW on my 3.0 si. Theres a self bleed procedure as well in electric pump where u turn ignition on, and hold accelerator down for 10 secs, then pump kicks in a 12 minute self bleeding cycle.
Make sure the garage know this for these engines
 
I had mine replaced after it failed. They are known for going between 70k-100k miles. Mine was £700 to replace. £350 alone was for the genuine new part from bmw and not a cheaper reconditioned one. Sounds like you're getting a good deal to me. Would just inquire with the garage to make sure it is a new genuine part they are using.
 
Jesus christ.... £700? For that money I think I'd definitely do it myself!

I'm not keen on using anything other than good quality parts - but it's shocking at how much this is. Does anyone have any experience of what exactly (typically) fails? Is it just the impeller itself, or is it the pump itself?

Ta
Josh
 
Mine failed last week. 745 for pump and thermostat to be replaced. The cars just hit 99k.
 
It's a fairly easy DIY job, easier than the older mechanical ones for those of us with a pre-facelift. I did one on an E9x so maybe different access issues but certainly not a job that warrants professional help.

The aftermarket ones are likely a bit cheaper than OEM, depending on branding might be a better option.
 
Are there any pre-cursers to this happening?

My 3.0Si has recently started with a bit of a whining sound coming from the aux belt / front of the engine which increases in pitch with revs to a certain point, then stays at the same pitch when the revs increase further.
It only tends to make the noise when the car is up to full temperature and the vehicle has done just over 71,000 miles.
 
nfbr said:
Are there any pre-cursers to this happening?

My 3.0Si has recently started with a bit of a whinging sound coming from the aux belt / front of the engine which increases in pitch with revs to a certain point, then stays at the same pitch when the revs increase further.
It only tends to make the noise when the car is up to full temperature and the vehicle has done just over 71,000 miles.
Click to expand...

The pumps has nothing to do with the aux belt - If you are worried about the pump you can always run the pump In purge/bleed mode (easy to do, either google or search the forum) - You do this with engine stopped, so you are only running/listening to the pump.

Stu.
 
I'd naturally assume the pitch of the noise to increase as the revs go up if it was within the belt drive system rather than stop increasing in pitch after a certain point hence why I believe it something electrical.

I will check the procedure for purge mode and give that a whirl! Cheers.
 
£528.50 at 46389 miles on my 3.0 Si; my local garage fitted an OEM replacement water pump when a lack of engine temperature led me to query why this might be. The diagnostic code pointed to the pump and the rest is history. The BMW garage supplying the part did 'joke' that this was one of their 'most popular' replacement parts - "bless 'em"...............................!!!
 
Yep I bought a car from this very forum last year for a friend as she loved my car. Car was well cared for and looked after, and had done 82k .........fast forward 2k miles and the pump failed . She took it to and Indy who charged her 650 for a new pump and thermostat . This was a 2.5si . The N52 engine being ally needs a higher flow pump hence the electric addition and additional cost, it's the engines Achilles heel to be honest other than that they are pretty good motors .
 
Another old thread resurrected! Did confuse me at first as I remember nbfr has recently done his water pump yet he didn't seem to mention it. :)
 
nfbr said:
My 3.0Si has recently started with a bit of a whining sound coming from the aux belt / front of the engine which increases in pitch with revs to a certain point, then stays at the same pitch when the revs increase further.
It only tends to make the noise when the car is up to full temperature and the vehicle has done just over 71,000 miles.
Click to expand...

Sorry for ressurrecting this even further - but my 3.0si has started with precisely the same noise (78k), can you recall what the issue/fix was pls? Cheers :thumbsup:
 
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