Original waterpump lasted 13 years!

[gregsauls]

Bought a '96 318ti last month to replace a tired '87 325e daily beater. Car seemed to take a long time to come up to temperature as compared to my Z3 with the same engine. Figured the cooling system needed refreshed so I ordered a water pump, thermostat housing and upper hoses. With 218,000 and no idea when all this was last changed, it seemed a safe bet to do. This afternoon I pulled all the old parts and was shocked to find the car had the original plastic impeller pump. This was further proven by the date code of "95" molded on the plastic of the impeller. I was shocked to see it had lasted 13+ years!

[tiFreak]

I'm sure that was just an engine failure waiting to happen, good thing you changed it before the impeller broke, but damn, 218k?? that's pretty impressive

[ajoystick]

if the propeller did go what damage does it cause besides overheating? is it true it can cause failure bad enough to have to replace the entire head?

[bmvw]

It could possibly leave bits of plastic in the cooling system obstructing tiny passages. But it's not a common problem at all on our cars, not even close, as your 13-year part attests. And when you lose a pump or the thermostat locks shut, at least your block is still full of water.

Those POS plastic coolant connectors on the back of the head and block have killed more BMW motors dead than anything else, because when they break, and break they will, you lose most of your coolant before you even realize anything is wrong and have very little time to shut down.

[madhatch]

yes those POS plastic coolant connectors suck BIGTIME & they will crack..change them both...its a PITA though..what I don't understand is why some aftermarket comp. hasn't CAD them to produce in aluminum yet