Secondary Air Pump / Smog Pump Q's

[Garndawg]

Gents,

Pump on my '97 328i has been squealing/whining/grinding for a while now. Finally got the infamous smog pump CEL. Read the FAQ on repairing it and looks fairly do-able.

Parts are a bit much though. Cheapest quote I've got is $315+ship for pump/valve/gasket assy. Substitute a used pump saves about $100. Assuming that used pump doesn't croak...

I have read here that you can buy a smog pump delete gizmo that'll remove the CEL. I live in Atlanta and we have smog laws, but they don't sniff the pipe, just read the codes, so that would probably work.

However...

I've read here that No Smog Pump = Dead Catalyic. Like quick.

There's also another thread saying that you can "repair" the failed pump by taking it apart and beating the crap out of it (literally). (Thread # 348024) I assume that for this "repair" you'd want to change the valve anyway, as that's probably why it quit in the first place.

So, I am asking all you gear head types out there for your opinion on this lil' problem.

Suck up, buy the parts, and do the job?

Or??


Thanks a bunch in advance, ya'll!

Ron

[98BMW323is]

well i dont know how into this you are but . . .

i been wanting to remove my air pump with the sensor for the cel as well. but i deleted my cat so i wont have any problems with it. If your into doing a cat delete its really simple then you just need an o2 simulator which is also very cheap.