Waterpump, Thermostat repair quote.. or DIY

[jakewied02]

Hey guys,
'94 530i, Dropped the car off yesterday (not a BMW dealer) to check out a coolant/overheating problem. Call back today says I need a new water pump and thermostat. I was pretty sure I needed the water pump before I brought it in as I caught the coolant boiling over awhile ago. They aslo suggested the oil pan was in rough shape and said a degreased... oil dye? not sure what this means, i'll have to look that up in a minute. Anyway, the quote they gave on parts was about $700 plus about 3 hours of labor. Just looking for any tips from any of you who may know more. How much would a water pump cost me? I'm intelligent enough to look at the manual and install it myself if it was considerably cheaper. Is a new thermostat necessary? Again, any ideas on cost of doing it myself. I don't have all the time in the world to work on it but being about to graduate Aerospace Engineering from the U of M, I don't have a lot of cash lying around to pay a hefty pricetag either. Any words of wisdom are greatly appreciated. Thanks...

[Jay 535i]

I'm no expert, but here's a small piece of advice from my own experience:

Use the Bentley manual and the help of people on this forum to make sure your cooling system is thoroughly bled.

Doing that would have saved me $400 is diagnostic and parts costs I didn't need.

"You need a new thermostat and water pump" seems to be the pavlovian response to any overheating problem, but not necessarily the cause of your problem.

[SnakeyesTx]

That seems ridiculously steep. I see (shopping thru the local parts houses) water pump prices form 38-98 dollars, and a thermostat for around 15-36 dollars (USD). RTV is what.. 2 dollars? Coolant... 10 bucks?

If parts are 700 dollars, they better be made by Nasa and come with a hooker to install it for you and have your way with afterwards. You could probably do this all yourself in a full day on a weekend, and have the satisfaction of thumbing your nose at the indy.

[jakewied02]

Thanks.. that's the convincing I need to get it done myself. Any website suggestions on finding the parts online?

[jjdickm]

You deffinitly want to replace the thermostat because when it heats up too much it can become damaged. It is really simple to install that. The water pump is not that bad just tim consuming ang remembering how everything went back on. Good luck!

[SnakeyesTx]

Well, I used (update OMG, new parts houses prices for the 530i)

www.oreillyauto.com $266.99 (wtf?!)
www.autozone.com $59.99 - $322.99 (what a price range!)
www.advanceautoparts.com $69.99 - $292.99 (clearly reman vs. new)

But, those are just the local places for me in Houston. Some will say that brand really matters, and 9 times out of 10, I agree. You may want to go with BMA for the water pump if you can wait the two or three days for shipping.

www.bmaparts.com

I just noticed you have a 530.. I tooked up for my 525 >.< The pump at BMA for your 530 is 107.10, but that's still far better than 700 :D Yeah... definitely go with BMA for it.

Sorry for the initial misquote!

[yaofeng]

I'm no expert, but here's a small piece of advice from my own experience:

Use the Bentley manual and the help of people on this forum to make sure your cooling system is thoroughly bled.

Doing that would have saved me $400 is diagnostic and parts costs I didn't need.

"You need a new thermostat and water pump" seems to be the pavlovian response to any overheating problem, but not necessarily the cause of your problem.

Bleeding is not required nor needed on the 530.

[632 Regal]

thats crazy expensive! Get the parts from bmaparts.com call them and make sure you dont get a GEBA waterpump, get the gasket and a new thermostat. Also you should upgrade the water neck to the aluminum one.

There is 1 bolt on the waterpump that is a complete bitch unless you remove the harmonic damper, which I wouldnt. That 1 bolt took longer than the entite job. The tube going from the waterpump to the back of the block can pull out of the back if you are not careful...you dont want to pull the intake to replace the O ring if it ends up leaking back there.

Now, after all that, do you simply need a fan clutch or have a clogged radiator? Either inside the rad or in front covered in dirt... check the basics before diving in. While your in there if you do end up replacing the pump, you should replace ALL the hoses and belts.

you might need to make one of these to hold the fan pully (dont use vise grips the thing is plastic)
http://www.bimmer.info/~regal632/Fan%20removal%20tool.jpg

[guinness]

thats crazy expensive! Get the parts from bmaparts.com call them and make sure you dont get a GEBA waterpump, get the gasket and a new thermostat. Also you should upgrade the water neck to the aluminum one.

There is 1 bolt on the waterpump that is a complete bitch unless you remove the harmonic damper, which I wouldnt. That 1 bolt took longer than the entite job. The tube going from the waterpump to the back of the block can pull out of the back if you are not careful...you dont want to pull the intake to replace the O ring if it ends up leaking back there.

Now, after all that, do you simply need a fan clutch or have a clogged radiator? Either inside the rad or in front covered in dirt... check the basics before diving in. While your in there if you do end up replacing the pump, you should replace ALL the hoses and belts.

you might need to make one of these to hold the fan pully (dont use vise grips the thing is plastic)
http://www.bimmer.info/~regal632/Fan%20removal%20tool.jpg
Sorry to highjack the thread, but do you (Regal) have the dimentions to that tool?
Jim

[jakewied02]

This might be a silly question but it's a thought I've been mulling in my head just because I have a pretty wicked fuse blowing problem.. Is it possible that the water pump is on a fuse or a relay that could be related to that? and perhaps I don't need a new water pump at all? just a wild thought...

[632 Regal]

hmm... when does the car overheat? When its hot and the AC is on or just regular driving even if it's cool weather?


This might be a silly question but it's a thought I've been mulling in my head just because I have a pretty wicked fuse blowing problem.. Is it possible that the water pump is on a fuse or a relay that could be related to that? and perhaps I don't need a new water pump at all? just a wild thought...

[jakewied02]

well I never run the AC, and it's not too hot here in MN right now and it still overheats.. it didn't in the beginning of summer

[632 Regal]

does the fan spin freely?

[jakewied02]

the fan spins normally yes

[632 Regal]

arghh.

[CarloE34]

About the waterpump i can say that Bmw mounted a plastic pump.Those are a commonwell problem.They brake after a while.I put an metall in it.30 min. labour and it go's on and on.
The cost over here is 60 dollar.Bmw speaks over spec.tools but you don't need them.Just relieve the belt and knokking the fan carefully loose.
Its an easy diy.

http://img240.imageshack.us/img240/1217/1000759oc8.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img174.imageshack.us/img174/846/1000760vp9.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img240.imageshack.us/img240/6435/1000765ei8.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img174.imageshack.us/img174/9969/1000769ct2.jpg (http://imageshack.us)