Water pump life

H

highway1

Member
We all know that this "can" be a problem on Z4s- particularly SIs', as its that much more expensive!

But, is it actually a given?? I don't want to tempt fate here ( I probably have now!) but my 13.5 year old Coupe (76,000 miles) is still on original.
I've already had the ABS unit rebuilt by ECU testing, after the lights come on but, maybe, with the waterpump, it comes down to if the coolant is changed every 3-4 years?? The reason being, the anti-corrosion properties of the coolant decrease with age ( garages only seem to test for anti-"freeze", which is less important in my case - south-west UK-, as it doesn't get cold) but neglect its anti-corrosion properties!

Maybe the pumps fail due to corrosion and so if you carry out proper coolant changes every 3 -4 years, this will help the life of the pump?

Any way, id be interested to hear peoples thoughts, particularly from folks with SI engines that are still on original pumps way over the 70k plus "danger" zone!
 
Google will give you all the back history you need about this. I Googled it just now and this was one of many threads about it: https://z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=91573
 
highway1 said:
We all know that this "can" be a problem on Z4s- particularly SIs', as its that much more expensive!

But, is it actually a given?? I don't want to tempt fate here ( I probably have now!) but my 13.5 year old Coupe (76,000 miles) is still on original.
I've already had the ABS unit rebuilt by ECU testing, after the lights come on but, maybe, with the waterpump, it comes down to if the coolant is changed every 3-4 years?? The reason being, the anti-corrosion properties of the coolant decrease with age ( garages only seem to test for anti-"freeze", which is less important in my case - south-west UK-, as it doesn't get cold) but neglect its anti-corrosion properties!

Maybe the pumps fail due to corrosion and so if you carry out proper coolant changes every 3 -4 years, this will help the life of the pump?

Any way, id be interested to hear peoples thoughts, particularly from folks with SI engines that are still on original pumps way over the 70k plus "danger" zone!
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They seem to fail electrically so changing the coolant’s not going to effect it, you do realise that now you’ve mentioned this your water pump will fail imminently! :?
Rob
 
It's quite an issue on facelifts as all the 6s have the N52 engine with an electric water pump that costs around £250!

My 1st Coupe had one die at 9 years and 60K miles, but my next Coupe was still on it's original one when I sold it last week on 91K miles and after it had it's 14th birthday.

I had an E91 325i with the same N52 engine and that had one go at 135K - but I don't know if it was its 1st or 2nd!

Each time it was an electric failure so the engine gets very hot, very quickly and you don't want to go far after it happens or the car will go into "Limp" mode (as I found out). :oops:

You might also find this interesting:- https://z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=95479&hilit=water+pump+poll
 
I replaced one this week which had failed on 66k. Failed electrically but also didn’t have much antifreeze content in the system.
 
bowser134 said:
I replaced one this week which had failed on 66k. Failed electrically but also didn’t have much antifreeze content in the system.
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What was the cost of this mate?
 
Ross may not be too comfortable disclosing what one of his customers paid!

But my E91 with an N52 had a new one fitted by TWG Automotive in Camberley in September 2018 and I got a bill for £541.20 which hopefully provides a guideline.
 
I asked my local indi about doing a pre-emptive water pump change and he said there’s no point replacing a perfectly working one just because it “might” fail one day. If it fails, it will be very noticeable, very quickly. So my car is on 71k and I’ll just enjoy it with half an eye on the Temperature gauge.
 
Chidda said:
I asked my local indi about doing a pre-emptive water pump change and he said there’s no point replacing a perfectly working one just because it “might” fail one day. If it fails, it will be very noticeable, very quickly. So my car is on 71k and I’ll just enjoy it with half an eye on the Temperature gauge.
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It could save you breaking down at the most inconvenient time & place you could imagine :?
Rob
 
My 3.0si is 13 years old, with 30k miles. No problems with my water pump, but I chose to replace it mine as a precaution as I wanted peace of mind for longer road trips.

The Pierburg water pump was £230 direct from Germany and another £100 to fit. But I did sell the used water pump for £100 on ebay, so £230 total.
 
There are plenty of Chinese pumps doing the rounds on Ebay and the like for around £100 or so. Might be good but might not be! I’m not sure if anyone on here has tried one yet?
 
Not something I'd be willing to take a punt on.

I sold mine on 115k on the original pump.
 
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