E36 M3 Road Trip

[ahmadsp]

Hi all, I'm planning on doing a road trip from SoCal to Zion National Park next week. about a 7-8 hr drive. My car is at 189k. I took it into a Bimmer shop to have them look through everything and had mentioned to them that the water pump, t-stat, and radiator haven't been changed since 2012, so I wanted to have their professional recommendation to see if that should be done before my trip. I have no coolant leaks currently, but I have replaced the expansion tank and electric fan about 2 years ago. They ended up telling me that I should not replace the t-stat, water pump, or radiator, just in case they may start leaking right after replacement. What do you guys think? I don't understand the concept of newly installed parts leaking/failing. Maybe the gaskets or premature failure? Idk. Should I ignore their recommendation and proceed with replacing these parts as well as doing a coolant flush?

Also, what do you guys typically take on a road trip? This is the first time I will be doing one in my E36 and I would rather play safe than be stranded on the I-15. Thanks!

[Eric93se]

2 boxes of pop tarts, fishing string, hooks, Rambo knife, compass and magnesium for fire starter.

[M3AN]

I'd be pretty comfortable with an 8 year old water pump to be honest unless the car has been thrashed. Worst case? Any mechanic can do the job, you don't need a specialist so if it did fail it's probably just a matter of getting it to the closest shop and getting a replacement part from FCP.

[samy01]

water pump, t-stat, and radiator haven't been changed since 2012

Do you think these parts are service items that have to be replaced every 2 years?

I don't understand the concept of newly installed parts leaking/failing.

And i don't understand the concept of people deperately wanting to replace perfectly functioning parts.

[spyderg0d]

I can explain... Cough cough
Rumor and ignorance. (Not directed at OP). I had a semi seasoned capable mechanic tell me to my face one time that bmw straight 6 were garbage, that I should have gotten a trustworthy wankel... Dumb founding. As if expecting coolant leaks after 20 years is only applicable to bmw? Apperently, I should just get a rx8 and pour oil in every gas fill up because complete engine failure at 80k is overwhelmingly expected.. LOL
People exaggerate the cooling system failures of bmw to bring it down comparing to other manufactures.. As if no other car over heats when cooling system fails.. Or as if off brand parts makers make bmw replacement parts purposefully defective. Lol.


People buy a bmw and think it doesnt need maintenance because the brand image. So they get pissy or scared when a leak happens. The people who do like their bmw, LOVE their bmw. So they usually get over preventative as well. Which doesnt help the anti bmw hate group much. But hey.. Every 20+ yr old bmw on the road is 1 more win.

[blckstrm]

2 boxes of pop tarts, fishing string, hooks, Rambo knife, compass and magnesium for fire starter.

This is the answer right here!

I'd also get a couple gallons of distilled water in case either you or the car needs a drink.

I'm with Samy - no reason to get rid of parts you've proven are functioning properly to roll the dice on a bunch of new stuff.

While it isn't common, I've had "new" parts fail enough that I would rather keep original parts until they actually fail. My original alternator lasted 203k miles. I went through 5 alternators over the next 18 months. I replaced the starter proactively at 201k miles when I replaced my clutch, then had to replace that one 2 years later. If it's working fine, don't mess with it.

Also, any time you crack open the cooling system you're introducing a lot of variables. You need to make sure everything is tight and seals, and make sure it's bled properly. I wouldn't do that right before going on a trip unless I had s known issue.

I think you're asking for trouble unless you have some reason to think you have a problem that needs to be addressed.

[ahmadsp]

2 boxes of pop tarts, fishing string, hooks, Rambo knife, compass and magnesium for fire starter.

LOL. Definitely some items to put into my bucket list.

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Do you think these parts are service items that have to be replaced every 2 years?



And i don't understand the concept of people deperately wanting to replace perfectly functioning parts.

Good point. I've seen a culture of overly preventative maintenance with BMWs so getting sucked into that is fairly easy.

[ahmadsp]

This is the answer right here!

I'd also get a couple gallons of distilled water in case either you or the car needs a drink.

I'm with Samy - no reason to get rid of parts you've proven are functioning properly to roll the dice on a bunch of new stuff.

While it isn't common, I've had "new" parts fail enough that I would rather keep original parts until they actually fail. My original alternator lasted 203k miles. I went through 5 alternators over the next 18 months. I replaced the starter proactively at 201k miles when I replaced my clutch, then had to replace that one 2 years later. If it's working fine, don't mess with it.

Also, any time you crack open the cooling system you're introducing a lot of variables. You need to make sure everything is tight and seals, and make sure it's bled properly. I wouldn't do that right before going on a trip unless I had s known issue.

I think you're asking for trouble unless you have some reason to think you have a problem that needs to be addressed.

Thanks for the assurance. Bimmer shop gave me the exact same feedback about cracking open the cooling system. If its been working fine, why replace it?

I'm just considering the fact that I'll be driving my bimmer 500 miles, out in the heat, 112 degrees. We haven't seen temps like that here in SoCal in years!

[samy01]

I'm just considering the fact that I'll be driving my bimmer 500 miles, out in the heat, 112 degrees.

That's no problem for a working cooling system. There are BMW's driving in desert areas of the world, too.

Actually i'd be at the maximum of confidence with your coolant system. It has parts that have been replaced at some point, so it's not all very old parts, but still old enough that you made your experiences with it to know for sure it's working fine. I'd prefer that over a freshly rebuilt cooling system that has been rebuilt directly before a long journey.

[bluptgm3]

Maybe take a Saleri WP, couple of gallons of 50/50 BMW coolant and a T-Stat/Housing with you.
How many miles/heat cycles on current radiator?
Really what you are betting on is that the plastic neck on the inlet side of the radiator won’t fail en route and that your water pump bearing is not near end of life.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[pizzaman09]

I guess I don't consider 500 miles a lot on my M3. It gets that every week and a half at the rate I drive it. And about every other weekend it gets aggressively autocrossed by two hooligans in the middle of the hot summer. If its working and not leaking, let it be.

When I bought my M3 is leaked coolant. The previous owner had just replaced the full cooling system. It took me a few weeks to find all the connections that weren't quite tight. There certainly is some truth to what your mechanic said.

[Eric93se]

I think you would be better off changing your brake fluid than messing with a perfectly functioning cooling system.

If it were me, I would make sure my spare tire had air and I would bring my electric impact wrench with sockets to do a quick tire change.

[ahmadsp]

Maybe take a Saleri WP, couple of gallons of 50/50 BMW coolant and a T-Stat/Housing with you.
How many miles/heat cycles on current radiator?
Really what you are betting on is that the plastic neck on the inlet side of the radiator won’t fail en route and that your water pump bearing is not near end of life.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I’m not 100% sure how many miles / heat cycles the radiator has since I bought the car 3 years ago and the previous owner replaced them. I do know that it’s a behr radiator that was manufactured in 2012.

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I guess I don't consider 500 miles a lot on my M3. It gets that every week and a half at the rate I drive it. And about every other weekend it gets aggressively autocrossed by two hooligans in the middle of the hot summer. If its working and not leaking, let it be.

When I bought my M3 is leaked coolant. The previous owner had just replaced the full cooling system. It took me a few weeks to find all the connections that weren't quite tight. There certainly is some truth to what your mechanic said.

Granted mine does less than 1000 miles a month. Just some concern that driving a long distance and going up the I-15 in Nevada / Utah in 112 degree weather could make my cooling system catastrophically fail.

[blckstrm]

I’m not 100% sure how many miles / heat cycles the radiator has since I bought the car 3 years ago and the previous owner replaced them. I do know that it’s a behr radiator that was manufactured in 2012.

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Granted mine does less than 1000 miles a month. Just some concern that driving a long distance and going up the I-15 in Nevada / Utah in 112 degree weather could make my cooling system catastrophically fail.

You'll overheat before it fails catastrophically. If you don't have an OBD Bluetooth dongle to keep an eye on your temps, at least be prepared to shut off your AC when going up the big hills. You can use recirculate to lighten the load, too.

If the needle starts to move from the 12 o'clock position AT ALL, kill the AC. If it still keeps climbing, you'll have to pull over, but that means something has failed somewhere, too. The downhill should give you a chance to cool off.

I'd do it without a second thought, but you know your car best. But yeah, you're having killer heat out there right now, too.

[DrftKingIII]

Personal preference: I may be a bit overkill, but for me 8 years is past the end of the lifespan on the plastic radiator. The expense of refreshing the cooling system is far better spent than sitting on the side of the road on 140* asphalt, under the sun, waiting two hours for a flatbed to tow you to a shop to waste a full day or two fixing what you should have already replaced. Preventative maintenance is always cheaper than repairing something that's broken.

I was in Zion a few weeks ago, along with other bits of southern Utah and Nevada. It's very hot out there. That'll be a nice trip though. Bring lots of water and if you want to hike The Narrows make sure you get there very early. With the parks public transportation down due to COVID there is a line to get into "Scenic Drive" starting at 4AM. I got there at 4:30 and was the 38th car in line!

IMG_3403 by Mikellington,