[sowbmw]

Are there any differences in quality and how long the coolant hoses will last between Genuine BMW and Rein?

I know for something things, Rein is the OE supplier, but in this case it seems like an OEM supplier, based on where each part comes from.

[StradaRedlands]

Originally Posted by sowbmw

Are there any differences in quality and how long the coolant hoses will last between Genuine BMW and Rein?

I know for something things, Rein is the OE supplier, but in this case it seems like an OEM supplier, based on where each part comes from.

Anecdotally, it seems like there has been an uptick in complaints about Rein fitment and longevity. You can't go wrong with BMW, but I think Rein has a bit more hit or miss.

[sowbmw]

Thank you, I'll go with Genuine BMW for the hoses and will upgrade to the aluminum fitting at the cylinder head.

Do you think the aluminum fitting will corrode over time which is why BMW uses plastic here?

[StradaRedlands]

Originally Posted by sowbmw

Thank you, I'll go with Genuine BMW for the hoses and will upgrade to the aluminum fitting at the cylinder head.

Do you think the aluminum fitting will corrode over time which is why BMW uses plastic here?

You won't go wrong with the BMW hoses, but Rein can definitely save you some money. FWIW I refreshed with Rein and had a small fitment issue at an O-ring, but it went away after a few heat cycles. But others have posted major complaints and sworn them off. Just giving you data to decide with.

The aluminum flange is one of the best upgrades you can do on a BMW! Definitely get it. It will last as long as you keep your car. It's going onto an aluminum head, so won't corrode before the rest of the engine does!

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by sowbmw

Thank you, I'll go with Genuine BMW for the hoses and will upgrade to the aluminum fitting at the cylinder head.

Do you think the aluminum fitting will corrode over time which is why BMW uses plastic here?

The plastic part is far less expensive to manufacture and lasts a very long time before it fails. The aluminum part is much better and a great upgrade.

[The Nightman]

Originally Posted by sowbmw

Are there any differences in quality and how long the coolant hoses will last between Genuine BMW and Rein?

I know for something things, Rein is the OE supplier, but in this case it seems like an OEM supplier, based on where each part comes from.

Which specific parts are you looking at? Rein does not manufacture any parts - they simply rebox other parts for sale. Sometimes they rebox the exact OE part but most of the time it can be junk.

I've heard of people having fitment issues with the Rein upper radiator hose, as well as leaking with their aluminum coolant flange (o-ring issue IIRC).

[tlow98]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

The plastic part is far less expensive to manufacture and lasts a very long time before it fails. The aluminum part is much better and a great upgrade.

Agree on both accounts. Pick your poison.

I used to always upgrade parts like this, but for daily drivers that see not much hard use I now lean towards the OE stuff for ease of assembly.

Ymmv.

[jsunma]

Personally, I have never had any issues with Rein.

The aluminum mickey mouse flange is far superior to the plastic one that BMW supplies. It's kind of a no-brainer to upgrade that. The one I used is from Rein.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by tlow98

Agree on both accounts. Pick your poison.

I used to always upgrade parts like this, but for daily drivers that see not much hard use I now lean towards the OE stuff for ease of assembly.

Ymmv.

Because I was putting nearly 32,000 miles annually on my E90 from 2007 thru 2014, in January 2014 I replaced all 9 coolant hoses (for the manual transmission version) at 236,500 miles. Going thru the replacement I found at that mileage and time, 7 years and 7 months, none of the hoses needed replacement. It was a waste of time and money. Back then no one had discovered there was a failure issue with the mickey mouse flange. In fact, I remember when the issue surfaced I was skeptical because I had not found any issue with the OE 236K mile near 8-year-old t-stat hose from my car. Granted my car really only saw two, 2-hour long, 80-mile long heat cycles per day. I few years into the mickey mouse flange (MMF) issue and as more vendors began selling the aluminum replacement, I thought it might be a real issue and decided to replace the E90's flange at the next coolant change event.

In May 2019 at 378,500 miles I swapped in the MMF, so that would have been on the then 5-year old 142,000-mile replacement t-stat hose (which was a BMW OE part). At the replacement I did find the plastic flange in decent shape; it was a little soft. It crushed with some difficulty as I remember it (I posted a DIY on the flange replacement at that time). Below is what the flange looked like at the time of replacement. I think the flange had a good 3 or 4 years and another 100,000 miles in it before it failed.

Since I have two N52's I bought two aluminum flanges in May 2019. On the 2008 Z4, I replaced the flange a year later (past the E90) in July 2020 at 105,000 miles and 12 years old on the factory-installed hose. The flange for the Z4 was not degraded at all. I think use case has a lot to do with flange longevity. I do not see the flange as an Achillies Heal by any stretch, but it is a smart upgrade nonetheless.

Pic of the E90 flange:

[drawz]

Originally Posted by tlow98

Agree on both accounts. Pick your poison.

I used to always upgrade parts like this, but for daily drivers that see not much hard use I now lean towards the OE stuff for ease of assembly.

Ymmv.

I believe Rein also sells a hose with the aluminum flange built-in.

[sabino56]

Originally Posted by StradaRedlands

Anecdotally, it seems like there has been an uptick in complaints about Rein fitment and longevity. You can't go wrong with BMW, but I think Rein has a bit more hit or miss.

Timely thread as I just replaced upper radiator hose with Rein and had leaking problem with the heater hose yesterday. (2006 E90 N52 160k, no hoses replaced - I’ve seen the thread and was considering doing all hoses but was finishing up oil pan gasket, broke the overflow tube nipple and had to just get this one replaced)

I pulled heater hose and noted o-ring was loose on the male hose connector. I assumed o-ring had deformed and was going to go search for replacement at hardware store. I wanted to see what the ID should be so grabbed the old fitting I had removed and on it the o-ring was tight!? Got out the mic and measured the OD of the fitting on the old and new fitting for the heater hose. The original, just removed OD was 22.5 mm. The new Rien was 21.9mm. That is a huge difference from a tolerance perspective on a 22mm tube. I was thinking perhaps the 17 year old original had expanded? But that seems like a lot for that also? The original was degrading, was crumbly in places but not on the bip for the heater hose. Maybe poor tolerance control on the Rein but if so, that’s very, very bad. Was going to post question if anyone has seen same and saw this so tagged on here.

[marvinstockman]

Most important is who you buy your parts from.

[sabino56]

Agree. I bought the Rein radiator hose mentioned above from FCPEuro.

[850CSi]

Originally Posted by sabino56

Timely thread as I just replaced upper radiator hose with Rein and had leaking problem with the heater hose yesterday. (2006 E90 N52 160k, no hoses replaced - I’ve seen the thread and was considering doing all hoses but was finishing up oil pan gasket, broke the overflow tube nipple and had to just get this one replaced)

I pulled heater hose and noted o-ring was loose on the male hose connector. I assumed o-ring had deformed and was going to go search for replacement at hardware store. I wanted to see what the ID should be so grabbed the old fitting I had removed and on it the o-ring was tight!? Got out the mic and measured the OD of the fitting on the old and new fitting for the heater hose. The original, just removed OD was 22.5 mm. The new Rien was 21.9mm. That is a huge difference from a tolerance perspective on a 22mm tube. I was thinking perhaps the 17 year old original had expanded? But that seems like a lot for that also? The original was degrading, was crumbly in places but not on the bip for the heater hose. Maybe poor tolerance control on the Rein but if so, that’s very, very bad. Was going to post question if anyone has seen same and saw this so tagged on here.

Did you ever get anywhere with this? I have the same issue. You’re talking about the “heater” hose that connects up to the bottom of the upper radiator (radiator to oil filter housing) hose right? I have a leak there after installing a Rein replacement purchased from FCP euro.


Based on my experience so far I would not use Rein again. The aluminum Mickey Mouse flange went on just fine. But as mentioned above the upper radiator hose may have an issue. In addition, the lower radiator hose I bought was a total POS. It simply would not fit on to the water pump connection.

[sabino56]

Yes, the leak was on the downward connection by the radiator for the heater hose. I was able to find a smaller o-ring at ACE which stopped the leak. So far so good. I’m going to stop buying Rein also. I also bought a Rein DISA which only lasted 18 months - just failed, so that is enough of Rein for me.

I’m not going to replace that hose for now but have occasional thermostat codes which I’ll need to fix eventually and plan to buy new upper hose and replace when I do that job.

[Hoody007]

Here’s my upper rad hose from Rein I pulled off the car, date code 2021:

The upper nipple which attaches to the expansion tank was not even punched through. Rein = crap. Didn’t even fit my BMW radiator - the o ring was too wide.

[850CSi]

Originally Posted by sabino56

Yes, the leak was on the downward connection by the radiator for the heater hose. I was able to find a smaller o-ring at ACE which stopped the leak. So far so good. I’m going to stop buying Rein also. I also bought a Rein DISA which only lasted 18 months - just failed, so that is enough of Rein for me.

I’m not going to replace that hose for now but have occasional thermostat codes which I’ll need to fix eventually and plan to buy new upper hose and replace when I do that job.

I’m now seeing the same thing you did — the oring from the heater hose female end is a looser fit on the new Rein radiator hose than it was on the old OE hose.

By any chance do you happen to know what the outer/inner diameters were on the oring you got from Ace?

[850CSi]

Originally Posted by Hoody007

Here’s my upper rad hose from Rein I pulled off the car, date code 2021:

The upper nipple which attaches to the expansion tank was not even punched through. Rein = crap. Didn’t even fit my BMW radiator - the o ring was too wide.

Yikes

[sabino56]

Originally Posted by 850CSi

I’m now seeing the same thing you did — the oring from the heater hose female end is a looser fit on the new Rein radiator hose than it was on the old OE hose.

By any chance do you happen to know what the outer/inner diameters were on the oring you got from Ace?

I don’t. They had a metric dimensioned box of o’rings and I just bought a range of 5 sizes close to the original. Tried them on the new fitting and picked the one I thought fit best.