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BMW 3-Series (E90 E92) Forum > E90 / E92 / E93 3-series Technical Forums > Mechanical Maintenance: Break-in / Oil & Fluids / Servicing / Warranty > Pictures: Electric water pump + thermostat replace



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      06-11-2011, 11:07 AM   #45
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Richbot View Post
Sudden and unanticipated water pump failure without warning is a tradition dating back to the very first BMW's. Don't mess with success!
One tradition has stopped: All my previous BMWs (’76 2002, ’79 528i, 88 325e, 91 325i, 98 328i) had a big-ass temp gauge on the right-hand side of the gauge cluster—they got as much real estate as the fuel gauges.
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      06-11-2011, 12:54 PM   #46
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Quote:
Originally Posted by roundle View Post
One tradition has stopped: All my previous BMWs (’76 2002, ’79 528i, 88 325e, 91 325i, 98 328i) had a big-ass temp gauge on the right-hand side of the gauge cluster—they got as much real estate as the fuel gauges.
Gone to serve the I-drive Gods...
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      06-12-2011, 07:21 PM   #47
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Does the M3 V8 engine have the same water pump? Looking at my engine, it appears to have a standard water pump. Is this correct?
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      06-29-2011, 08:22 PM   #48
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I did replace my thermostat and waterpump on my 330xi. It has less room to work on then in the OP's pics, but it's possible (if you got skinny fingers, lol).
For 330xi, and probably 325xi and 328xi:
Remove air intake to gain access to radiator fan,
Remove the radiator fan (only 2 screws one on top, and one underneath)
Unhook the sway bar (just like OP did)
Now there is just enough room to replace the thermostat and water pump.
Use u-joints or flex drives to get to the bolts.

DO NOT buy used water pump, my broken water pump looked fine and it was not completely dead. It's not worth it to find out that the part you struggled to put in is not any better then the one you took out.

Last edited by rusty_g80; 06-29-2011 at 09:52 PM..
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      07-16-2011, 01:02 PM   #49
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How do you know whether the therm or wp failed? Do you just replace the therm first and hope that it fixes the problem? If not, replace the wp?
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      07-17-2011, 06:41 PM   #50
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Originally Posted by maf330xi View Post
How do you know whether the therm or wp failed? Do you just replace the therm first and hope that it fixes the problem? If not, replace the wp?
Judging from all the symtoms I figure it was the water pump, but since the tstat is right there I replaced it too. I figured better spend $100 now and hopefully avoid dealing with it again for a while.

If you want to do it in steps from least $ to most $, you can, but it's quiet a bit of work. Took me 8hrs to replace both (would be same time for either, since both tstat and pump have to come out for you to replace either).
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      07-26-2011, 07:19 AM   #51
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Gr8 writeup. How many miles on your BMW at the time of failure?
Do we need to remove the fan on my model to R/R the WP?

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Last edited by BMW2Hart; 07-26-2011 at 07:42 AM..
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      07-27-2011, 05:28 AM   #52
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BMW2Hart View Post
Gr8 writeup. How many miles on your BMW at the time of failure?
Do we need to remove the fan on my model to R/R the WP?

Thanks
Yes you need to remove the radiator fan because you need the room. It is actually the easiest part of the job. There is one silver-colored torx screw on the upper right side corner to remove, two electrical connectors (temp sensor in the supply hose and the connector for the fan motor), and a thumb snap-clip on the left side about halfway down the side. The fan assembly, once freed from its mounts pulls out from the top (with a little finesse). The water pump, once you have it un-plumed from the hoses and free from the engine block (three bolts), you pull it forward towards the radiator, turn it 90 deg (so it is longitudinal to the radiator) move it to the left side of the car and drop it down once it clears the water pipe that runs along the cross member below the radiator.

Just as a side note, you are supposed to replace the aluminum water pump mounting bolts (because they are blue-headed), however the replacement bolts (come as a kit of three under the part number) are not blue-headed, which means they do not require replacement (if they are ever removed again). Knowing this, I wouldn't order the replacement bolts since the original bolts (with blue heads) are the same aluminum bolt as the replacement bolt (they just don't have the blue paint on the head). It saves you about 7 bucks. The torque on the bolts is around 80+ INCH/lbs (about 6 ft/lbs), which probably doesn't strech them very much.

Also, make sure you have a set of e-torx sockets because the pump bolts are external-torx headed.

Last edited by ENINTY; 07-27-2011 at 05:34 AM..
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      08-15-2011, 09:37 AM   #53
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This type of work would typically be covered if under warranty though, right?
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      11-19-2011, 03:05 PM   #54
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Quote:
Originally Posted by saalim View Post
Currently have ~130,000 miles on the car, so I was out of warranty.

Just got the car back today morning. Total damage: ~$2300
My dealer is charging me $1900 less a "15% off coupon" when I complained about the price. Never thought something as simple as a water pump would cost nearly $2000! Well this is the first expensive repair for a car with 170,000 so I'm not ready to start complaining yet...
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      11-19-2011, 05:56 PM   #55
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mskvarenina View Post
My dealer is charging me $1900 less a "15% off coupon" when I complained about the price. Never thought something as simple as a water pump would cost nearly $2000! Well this is the first expensive repair for a car with 170,000 so I'm not ready to start complaining yet...
You are insane to pay that amount. Find an Independent BMW mechanic. The job is a piece of cake for any certified mechanic familiar with BMWs. The pump and bolts are only a bit over $500 if buying retail at a indy shop. The pump can be removed and replaced in under an hour if the mechanic is familiar with the job (he'll probably charge 2 - 3 hours book rate). I'd estimate $750 is tops for this job at an indy BMW shop.
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      12-22-2011, 03:09 AM   #56
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How to replace the water pump

Quote:
Originally Posted by JamesUKE92 View Post
...More...
Hi Thanks those are great pics, I noticed you know so much about BMW's I have a 325i 2006 and would greatly appreciate, like I'm sure a lot of other people would if you could maybe make a video or a step by step guide on how to actually change the water pump and thermostat. All the videos I found online are for older bimmers 2005 and older, which we know is no help at all because well there different. Thank you so much in advance or if you can guide in the direction where I can find this info.
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      12-22-2011, 05:23 AM   #57
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Originally Posted by ************girl View Post
Hi Thanks those are great pics, I noticed you know so much about BMW's I have a 325i 2006 and would greatly appreciate, like I'm sure a lot of other people would if you could maybe make a video or a step by step guide on how to actually change the water pump and thermostat. All the videos I found online are for older bimmers 2005 and older, which we know is no help at all because well there different. Thank you so much in advance or if you can guide in the direction where I can find this info.
We have a DIY (Do It Yourself) Section on the forum. You can search it and find a step-by-step procedure for replacing the water pump on a 325i. The 2005 3-Series (E46) water pump is belt-driven, the E90 water pump is electrically driven; the replacement procedures for each are totally different.
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      12-30-2011, 06:22 PM   #58
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ************girl View Post
Hi Thanks those are great pics, I noticed you know so much about BMW's I have a 325i 2006 and would greatly appreciate, like I'm sure a lot of other people would if you could maybe make a video or a step by step guide on how to actually change the water pump and thermostat. All the videos I found online are for older bimmers 2005 and older, which we know is no help at all because well there different. Thank you so much in advance or if you can guide in the direction where I can find this info.
I doubt that OP can make a video now as he'd already replaced the pump a while ago. It is actually pretty straight forward job, just follow a step by step directions and you should be all good. I found u-joints and extentions to be very useful. What would be best is havin access to a lift so you don't have to lay on the floor of your garage in some akward positions. Have one of your friends help you, makes it way easier and more fun.
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      01-04-2012, 12:05 AM   #59
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ENINTY View Post
Gone to serve the I-drive Gods...
Nope, no temp indicator in I-drive either. You know only when it is too late and already overheating. Stupid move BMW! Just like their dipstick removal for electronic indicator that been a failure issue on these cars. There is a few threads of malfunctioning oil level indicator and TSB by BMW about a fix. Annoying. What was wrong with the dipstick they felt the urge to get rid of it? Or the water temperature gauge? My car over heated badly and I only knew when I saw the warning light. The oil temp didn't budge from its 245 F normal through all this. Where is Apple when BMW could use their awesome user interface design skills?
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      01-04-2012, 07:03 AM   #60
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Quote:
Originally Posted by vase330 View Post
Nope, no temp indicator in I-drive either. You know only when it is too late and already overheating. Stupid move BMW! Just like their dipstick removal for electronic indicator that been a failure issue on these cars. There is a few threads of malfunctioning oil level indicator and TSB by BMW about a fix. Annoying. What was wrong with the dipstick they felt the urge to get rid of it? Or the water temperature gauge? My car over heated badly and I only knew when I saw the warning light. The oil temp didn't budge from its 245 F normal through all this. Where is Apple when BMW could use their awesome user interface design skills?
Eh. Water temp gauge on E46 was buffered so it was either in th middle or overheating with yellow or red light. Not useful IMO
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      01-04-2012, 08:44 PM   #61
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Quote:
Originally Posted by vase330 View Post
Nope, no temp indicator in I-drive either. You know only when it is too late and already overheating. Stupid move BMW! Just like their dipstick removal for electronic indicator that been a failure issue on these cars. There is a few threads of malfunctioning oil level indicator and TSB by BMW about a fix. Annoying. What was wrong with the dipstick they felt the urge to get rid of it? Or the water temperature gauge? My car over heated badly and I only knew when I saw the warning light. The oil temp didn't budge from its 245 F normal through all this. Where is Apple when BMW could use their awesome user interface design skills?
Nope, what I meant was BMW included the I-drive screen as the second hump on the instrument panel, which forced them to shrink the real-estate needed for the proper (classic) BMW gauge cluster, so they just ditched the temp gauge all together and moved the gas gauge under the speedo.
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      01-04-2012, 11:14 PM   #62
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And that mpg dial in E90 is totally useless. They should have substituted that silly thing for a water temp gauge. But they ain't listening to us.
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      01-05-2012, 08:22 PM   #63
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Does anyone know how fast the water pump is capable of spinning? I'm getting overheating issues but only on the track. Maybe it's find for street driving but it's not spinning as fast as it used to spin. I've got 172,000 mi on the car and I'm on my second pump. First one died at 5,000 mi. I've done a pressure test and coolant flush. Oil and coolant are clean. Oil temps are very high on the track (140C) but water temp is fine (90C). Not sure which sensor the car gets that value from. There are several water temp sensors.
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      01-25-2012, 12:13 PM   #64
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My notes

I have a 2006 330xi with 65K miles and got the engine overheating issue so I just replaced my Water Pump and Thermostat. Here in Canada BMW wants $800 for the Water Pump, $170 for the Thermostat and $30 for the screws!!! After dropping a grand on the parts I didn't want to pay for the labor and I enjoy the occasional mechanical project so I gave the DIY a shot.

The procedures here are good and I read most of the comments from folks that have done this.
My two cents from my experience are:
1) It's not hard but you have to be prepared to get dirty and have coolant spill all over and run down your arms.
2) remove the fan - it's easy to do and frees up a lot of extra room.
3) I found the power steering line mounting bracket a challenge to remove and replace since the position of the mounting bolt is really hard to get at.
4) the hoses that are attached by regular hose clamps are hard to get off - I found that by wiggling a very thin screwdriver under the hose that I could then pry it off. The hoses are flexible and can take a little abuse.
5) The two hose clamps on the water pump are the biggest challenge. You only need to remove one hose from the water pump to get it out since the other end of the second water pump hose goes to the thermostat.
6) When you put the parts back attach the water pump and thermostat connecting hose before you put it in. That leaves you with only one hard to get at hose on the water pump.
7) I found that reconnecting the hoses was a lot easier than taking them off if for no other reason than I could pick the most convenient orientation for the hose clamp bolts.
8) You don't have to remove the metal pan under the engine to do the job - I had to though as it seemed to be good at catching dropped bolts.

Thanks for everyone that shared their experience - It's what I like the most about the internet...
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      01-26-2012, 09:37 PM   #65
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Thanks for the pictures! I spent 1/2 the day trying to do mine only to get 1/2 way done. what a pain in the ass. Good call on removing the sway bar, i was trying to get my pump and stat out without doing that but no way was it going to fit. Still not worth the 2300 bucks to have them do it for me, i thought it was expensive for the hardware at 600 bucks...
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      02-04-2012, 12:13 PM   #66
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Can you guys please post the part # for the bolts to be replaced? I think those are blue painted. Thanks a lot.
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