[AlisoBob]

It's starting to be a pain in the ass, owning "The ultimate driving machine". My daughter was 100 miles from home and calls me to tell me smoke is pouring out from under the hood.

I ask her if its blowing away, or disappearing? She says disappearing, so I l know it's steam, and not smoke.

She's a smart girl, so I have her look around under the hood, for anything out of place, she sends me a photo of a failed hose connector.



I dont feel like unhooking this hose down in the abyss on the side of the road, So I buy a new hose, slice off the metal band and steal the fitting.

I drive out there with the coolant, tools, and swiped fitting. 20 minutes later she's back on the rode, and I'm pissed. This "fitting" looks like it dissolved in the coolant. It looks like its plastic, but who friggin' knows WTF BMW uses.

So I get home, and do a little research and this fitting that bolts into the head fails all the time! So much so, the aftermarket makes a aluminum"fix" for it.



My suggestion to you? Replace this crappy BMW poly fitting, with a aluminum one before your day is ruined by a $8 part....

I'm putting ALL new hoses on it this weekend + a water pump and thermostat. Its at 145k miles and this junk is probably going to fail soon.

[TheMidnightNarwhal]

I mean yeah it might be a poor design but at the same time the car is at 241 000KM that's a lot for a car engineered for luxury and leases. That's why research of future issues is always important on all cars.

[dwashy]

Originally Posted by AlisoBob

My suggestion to you? Replace this crappy BMW poly fitting, with a aluminum one before your day is ruined by a $8 part....

I'm putting ALL new hoses on it this weekend + a water pump and thermostat. Its at 145k miles and this junk is probably going to fail soon.

That sucks. Glad it was a cheap fix though. Smart move going for the waterpump and t-stat too. Imagine if instead of that $8 part it was the water pump...

Do you have a link or name for that specific part? I'm at 154k miles and it would probably be a good idea for me to do that as well.

[Volasko]

Damn dude, cars break down. Just because you bought a "premium" car doesn't mean they're immune to failure. I mean if your engine imploded I could see the justification of the venting but this isn't one of them.

[CTinline-six]

There's only like 100 threads on this failure point along with a DIY that even includes pics of the aluminum hose bib.

[AlisoBob]

Originally Posted by dwashy

Do you have a link or name for that specific part? I'm at 154k miles and it would probably be a good idea for me to do that as well.

Here's one, but they are available anywhere. Just google "BMW coolant hose fitting" and tons of links will pop up

https://www.amazon.com/DEF-Fitting-R...xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==

[AlisoBob]

Originally Posted by Volasko

Damn dude, cars break down. Just because you bought a "premium" car doesn't mean they're immune to failure. I mean if your engine imploded I could see the justification of the venting but this isn't one of them.

This thing is SO over-engineered in some areas, and so lacking in others that it's almost schizophrenic....

I wont defend shitty engineering, just because I own one.

[CTinline-six]

Originally Posted by AlisoBob

This thing is SO over-engineered in some areas, and so lacking in others that it's almost schizophrenic....

I wont defend shitty engineering, just because I own one.

What kind of other modern cars have you worked on? I've worked on quite a few and I can say that BMW is very much like the others, just a few years ahead. The other brands are starting to catch up with all the plastic. Work on a newer Ford, GM, Chrysler or Honda lately? All the same. At least in my experience the BMW is a bit easier to take apart. Honda and Chrysler seem to love putting bolts and electrical connectors where they are impossible to reach.

The 350 V8s of old where you could sit in the engine bay or the Hondas that could be mostly disassembled with one 10mm socket are gone.

[matteblue3er]

Manufactures don't really engineer things to last anymore. They engineer them to last a rated lifetime. For BMW, this seems to be about the length of your common lease period.

Your "lifetime" fluids are actually 100k fluids. BMW just doesn't advertise it as such.

While you are it replacing things....replace your radiator drain plug. Its also plastic. I've seen it fail and dump all the coolant

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by AlisoBob

It's starting to be a pain in the ass, owning "The ultimate driving machine". My daughter was 100 miles from home and calls me to tell me smoke is pouring out from under the hood.

I ask her if its blowing away, or disappearing? She says disappearing, so I l know it's steam, and not smoke.

She's a smart girl, so I have her look around under the hood, for anything out of place, she sends me a photo of a failed hose connector.



I dont feel like unhooking this hose down in the abyss on the side of the road, So I buy a new hose, slice off the metal band and steal the fitting.

I drive out there with the coolant, tools, and swiped fitting. 20 minutes later she's back on the rode, and I'm pissed. This "fitting" looks like it dissolved in the coolant. It looks like its plastic, but who friggin' knows WTF BMW uses.

So I get home, and do a little research and this fitting that bolts into the head fails all the time! So much so, the aftermarket makes a aluminum"fix" for it.



My suggestion to you? Replace this crappy BMW poly fitting, with a aluminum one before your day is ruined by a $8 part....

I'm putting ALL new hoses on it this weekend + a water pump and thermostat. Its at 145k miles and this junk is probably going to fail soon.

I'd like to chime in a bit. I published a DIY in 2012 or so that provided the procedures to remove and replace each of the 9 hoses that comprise the cooling system of N52 w/ manual transmission. I stated at that time that none of the hoses really needed replacement. My car was 8 years old at the time and 230,000 miles. I had already replaced the failed WP (at 149,500) and the failed T-stat (at 129,000). I evaluated each hose rubber, but not really any of the plastic fittings. I still have a few of the old hoses hanging on the walls of my shop as spares, and the plastic fittings seem good.

It's been in the last few years, and mainly on the turbo engines, that the thermostat-to-cylinderhead hose will fail at the plastic hose bib fitting on the cylinderhead side. Also it's been recently discovered the small return line from the upper rad hose back to the coolant tank can fail as well. Based on concerns that the tstat-to-head hose can fail, I decided to replace mine on my E90. So a few months ago I published a DIY on converting the hose to the aluminum hose bib. I found the plastic bib to be soft but still intact, and not close to failure. The hose (replaced at 230K) had 150,000 miles on it and is 7 years old. On line you can find both a plastic replacement bib and the aluminum bib (I think O'Reilly's stocks both).

In 2012, I bitched about BMW's over-engineering of the quick-connect hose fittings. It seems the plastic quick connects solve a problem no one asked. Plastic cooling parts have been in use in automobiles for 30 years as far as my recollection goes. So using an inferior plastic compound for the t-stat hose fitting is poor engineering on BMW's part. The residual heat in the cylinderhead obviously softens the plastic over time.

My 2 cents

[juld0zer]

Better fix the oil filter housing leak or the next thing to go will be your serpentine belt, the plastic pulleys or the top radiator hose will swell and pop at the metal band

[Yangorang]

Uro also seems to make a new hose with an aluminum fitting attached which I might give a try next time I drain and fill my coolant.
https://www.ecstuning.com/b-uro-prem...37541992a~uro/
How hard is it to reach the other end of that hose on the thermostat?

[banglenot]

Originally Posted by Yangorang

Uro also seems to make a new hose with an aluminum fitting attached which I might give a try next time I drain and fill my coolant.
https://www.ecstuning.com/b-uro-prem...37541992a~uro/
How hard is it to reach the other end of that hose on the thermostat?

Did my N52 a few months ago. Annoying, more than anything.

The real trade is having to dump a lot of the coolant (the thermostat is low), catch it refill and purge.

With the aluminum, you pull the hose upright, cut the end off, and hoseclip a new one in.

Also -- you can pretty much guarantee these will collapse after 100K when you do your oil filter gasket(s). Doesn't take much of a twist/push on the connector to break it, though if undisturbed who knows how log it will last.

So if you do the OFG, plan on a new connector at the same time. You have to drain (or spill) about the same about of coolant to do the OFG as to do this.

[Yangorang]

Yeah I actually did the oil filter housing gasket about 6 months ago and noticed this thing was a pain to get off and chipped off a tiny chunk. I should've replaced it at the time but didn't think about it then....
Is there enough extra slack on the hose to cut off the existing crimp and hose clamp the same old hose onto the new aluminum fitting?

[IllSic_Design]

Originally Posted by Yangorang

Yeah I actually did the oil filter housing gasket about 6 months ago and noticed this thing was a pain to get off and chipped off a tiny chunk. I should've replaced it at the time but didn't think about it then....
Is there enough extra slack on the hose to cut off the existing crimp and hose clamp the same old hose onto the new aluminum fitting?

You're going to want to try just cutting the band/crimp off without damaging the hose.

[arkie6]

Originally Posted by Yangorang

...Is there enough extra slack on the hose to cut off the existing crimp and hose clamp the same old hose onto the new aluminum fitting?

Here is how to replace that plastic hose end fitting: https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1618232

[vilord]

My car has 166,000 miles and is still running with 100% original cooling system that came with the car about 13 years ago.

Y'all can complain all you want, but that is far better than some cars I've owned. The Supra I had (3.0 single turbo) had something like 14 coolant hoses. I bought the car with 100k miles and sold it at 130.
I was on the side of the road replacing those more than anything else I've ever owned... Some I replaced twice in the 30K miles I owned it. Also 2 thermostats in that time.
The guy I sold it to blew the head gasket on the NY thruway when he ignored the coolant temp gauge redlining.

Maybe mine is holding up better because N52 instead of N54/N55, but 150k +/- miles for coolant lines is not in my opinion shit engineering.

[Love The Drive]

Originally Posted by vilord

My car has 166,000 miles and is still running with 100% original cooling system that came with the car about 13 years ago.

Y'all can complain all you want, but that is far better than some cars I've owned. The Supra I had (3.0 single turbo) had something like 14 coolant hoses. I bought the car with 100k miles and sold it at 130.
I was on the side of the road replacing those more than anything else I've ever owned... Some I replaced twice in the 30K miles I owned it. Also 2 thermostats in that time.
The guy I sold it to blew the head gasket on the NY thruway when he ignored the coolant temp gauge redlining.

Maybe mine is holding up better because N52 instead of N54/N55, but 150k +/- miles for coolant lines is not in my opinion shit engineering.

You are shedding some light on the other side of the story. I'm in the same boat with 2011 328i, N51 manual, with 180k miles on it and all original coolant parts as well. Water pump, fuel pump, and thermostat all still original. Oh yes, still original clutch too.

Everything has an expected life. Have to replace most of the rubber/plastic parts eventually. Some of us are more fortunate than others, but if you plan on keeping your vehicle for the long haul then there is no way around maintenance in the end.

[CTinline-six]

Originally Posted by Love The Drive

You are shedding some light on the other side of the story. I'm in the same boat with 2011 328i, N51 manual, with 180k miles on it and all original coolant parts as well. Water pump, fuel pump, and thermostat all still original. Oh yes, still original clutch too.

Everything has an expected life. Have to replace most of the rubber/plastic parts eventually. Some of us are more fortunate than others, but if you plan on keeping your vehicle for the long haul then there is no way around maintenance in the end.

I think a lot of it has to do with heat cycles/environment. My Jeep XJ I owned had 200k and each cooling system component had been replaced by 100k, some twice by 200k. Those things run super hot (could bake a tray of cookies on the hood) so anything plastic or rubber became brittle.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by IllSic_Design

You're going to want to try just cutting the band/crimp off without damaging the hose.

I'm sorry, but have you actually cut the band off the hose, while the hose is attached to the cooling system? What tool did you use? The band is stainless steel which is difficult to cut.

I doubt many people have the skill to use a Dremel with a cutoff wheel and cut the band off either with the hose pulled from the car, or with the hose sandwiched between the engine and cooling fan without damaging the hose. I've been using a Dremel tool probably going on 40 years now and when I looked at how to remove the old plastic bib I decided using a Dremel was far too much risk in damaging the hose. Carefully breaking up and removing the bib described in the DIY I posted is far less risky IMO. Being that the cut has to be perpendicular across the band, there is no way to fit a Dremel motor with the cutoff wheel in the tight space between the cooling fan and engine block.

[IllSic_Design]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

I'm sorry, but have you actually cut the band off the hose, while the hose is attached to the cooling system? What tool did you use? The band is stainless steel which is difficult to cut.

Yes I have cut them off a few times, a couple used ones while on the car and a brand new one off the car. I used a dremel with a cut-off disc.

The plastic end is probably pretty hard to break into pieces when it is brand new, didn't try it though.