NEw ZHP owner, but not member

[Edo]

Good morning, my name is Ed, Chicago suburbs. After about 2 years of on and off searching, I finally found a decent ZHP. Vin is PL14878 if anyone cares to look. Imola with tan, auto. I conceded on the cold weather package over miles and condition. 67,000 and it spent it life in CA up till 7/11. No rust or corrosion, including underneath.

My first question is the water pump. As a 20 plus year member of BMWCCA, I am familiar with most of the trouble spots. Is this something to do immediately or over the next few months. No major long distance is planned yet.

Oh, and no good pics as of yet as the air bag light went on as I was leaving the dealer. They will take care of it this week and hopefully deliver it and save me 6 hours of driving. 3 of which would be in a mini van. Not exactly exciting.

Ed

[NoVAphotog]

Good morning, my name is Ed, Chicago suburbs. After about 2 years of on and off searching, I finally found a decent ZHP. Vin is PL14878 if anyone cares to look. Imola with tan, auto. I conceded on the cold weather package over miles and condition. 67,000 and it spent it life in CA up till 7/11. No rust or corrosion, including underneath.

My first question is the water pump. As a 20 plus year member of BMWCCA, I am familiar with most of the trouble spots. Is this something to do immediately or over the next few months. No major long distance is planned yet.

Oh, and no good pics as of yet as the air bag light went on as I was leaving the dealer. They will take care of it this week and hopefully deliver it and save me 6 hours of driving. 3 of which would be in a mini van. Not exactly exciting.

Ed

Welcome Ed! Sounds like a good pickup! Definitely in for pics!

As for the cooling system, it is generally passable till around 80k, I did it around your mileage just for peace of mind but in hindsight probably could have waited as my car was a CA car as well and barely driven. Obviously a lot of those parts are plastic and rubber so miles aren't the only factor.

You'll want to do a stage one refresh: water pump, expansion tank, thermostat, upper and lower hoses, level/temp sensors at the same time. Might as well throw belts and pulleys in there too since it all has to come out anyway. Google "bmw e46 cooling system refresh" good guides out there on here and e46fanatics.


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[Vas]

Welcome. Looking forward to pics

As far as the cooling system, I just did one over the weekend. I suggest a stage 1 kit using OE parts.

[BMWCurves]

Welcome, Ed! Post some pictures when you get a chance!

As Daniel said, you have some time for doing a cooling system refresh, but you should do basically all the parts when you do replace the water pump as the other parts aren't far behind. I used (and I think Vas did as well) the Turner Motorsports kit they have and have had no problems with it. A link is below:

http://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-1987-complete-cooling-system-overhaul-package-1999-2006-e46-323i-325i-328i-330i.aspx

[ELCID86]

Welcome (not member?).


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"ZHP is a garbage option anyway- just some cosmetic upgrades with a different cam and diff to claw back some of the performance lost fitting those hideous and heavy wheels. Any 330 with a 3.46 diff will smoke a ZHP every time. The whole Mafia thing reeks of childish behavior." - anonymous

[danewilson77]

Why u no member?

Sent from an S6 Edge

[Edo]

Thanks guys, Got that backwards. Not a new member, but a new owner. Been around a year or so researching and so on.

I have done a water pump on my old E34 540 as well as countless other cars, so I may tackle this one when time allows.

[Oli77]

Welcome to the best car forum on this planet.

[ELCID86]

Thanks guys, Got that backwards. Not a new member, but a new owner. Been around a year or so researching and so on.

I have done a water pump on my old E34 540 as well as countless other cars, so I may tackle this one when time allows.

Ahh. Now I get it!


---
"ZHP is a garbage option anyway- just some cosmetic upgrades with a different cam and diff to claw back some of the performance lost fitting those hideous and heavy wheels. Any 330 with a 3.46 diff will smoke a ZHP every time. The whole Mafia thing reeks of childish behavior." - anonymous

[3ZHPGUY]

Welcome!

Mine is an 03 that I've had since 12/06 with 28K. My first water pump failed 12/2010 at 88K. The stat at 121K @ 12/2012. In the fall of 2014 I did a PM overhaul that included expansion tank, upper & lower hoses and a Stewart Water Pump. Also needed a new temp sensor. They never reseal after removing them from the old expansion tank.


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[egiles14]

Welcome, Ed...sounds like you found a great car!

I agree with others in regards to the cooling system. You don't have to do it now, but I would do a full cooling system replacement by 80k miles. My opinion is that the water pump is possibly the most robust part in the system...the expansion tank seems to be the most failure prone. The car I recently purchased had parts of it's cooling system replaced, but the water pump was the original one at 128k miles. I changed it for piece of mind as I was replacing some of the hoses, but the bearing and shaft seemed just fine with no play.

Update: As soon as I posted this, I see that Daniel had a water pump fail at 88k. I still hear of more expansion tank and thermostat failures that I do water pumps...but it really is a moot point as all of it should be replaced at the same time.

[fredo]

Welcome, Ed. IR is my favorite color !

[johnrando]

Welcome! Yes, it's the expansion tank, not the water pump. Go OE or get a Stewart water pump as said, but absolutely so the expansion tank before 80K.

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[Edo]

Without sounding to uneducated, what is the best way to insert pics? The dealer shots I have saved to desk top and can attach, but they look small.
thanks24502

[ELCID86]

Without sounding to uneducated, what is the best way to insert pics? The dealer shots I have saved to desk top and can attach, but they look small.
thanks24502

You have to "go advanced" and click on paperclip icon. It may be that the dealer pics are thumbnails. Using the Tapatalk app also works.


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"ZHP is a garbage option anyway- just some cosmetic upgrades with a different cam and diff to claw back some of the performance lost fitting those hideous and heavy wheels. Any 330 with a 3.46 diff will smoke a ZHP every time. The whole Mafia thing reeks of childish behavior." - anonymous

[Dual]

Welcome Ed! Just joined recently myself. People here really make newbies at home.

[Edo]

24503245042450524506

Not real clear, but a start till I get it home. A bonus the find perfect wheels, new rotors and pads.

[Edo]

Finally got it home today. And drove it for more than 10 min. Loving it so far, but completely different feel than the Audi A6 4.2. Both fun cars to drive in their own way. Looking under the hood, it appears pretty packed. Water pump and associated components will be a challenge should I decide to undertake this myself. The felt pad under the hood appears to have shrunk and pulled in from the edges. A new one would most likely be the answer, depending on cost. The learning process starts.

[BMWCurves]

Finally got it home today. And drove it for more than 10 min. Loving it so far, but completely different feel than the Audi A6 4.2. Both fun cars to drive in their own way. Looking under the hood, it appears pretty packed. Water pump and associated components will be a challenge should I decide to undertake this myself. The felt pad under the hood appears to have shrunk and pulled in from the edges. A new one would most likely be the answer, depending on cost. The learning process starts.

So it does. How do you like it compared to your old Audi A6?

[johnrando]

I don't think it's all that bad to get to the water pump. Yes, very common for the under hood pad to shrink away some on these cars.

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[oldzilla]

Welcome

[Edo]

Lets see if I can make this work. Took a nice 3 hour drive today and loved it.

246692467024671246722467324668

[ELCID86]

Put some Leatherique on those seats and you'll be amazed.


---
"ZHP is a garbage option anyway- just some cosmetic upgrades with a different cam and diff to claw back some of the performance lost fitting those hideous and heavy wheels. Any 330 with a 3.46 diff will smoke a ZHP every time. The whole Mafia thing reeks of childish behavior." - anonymous

[Edo]

Yep it is on the list. Brake fluid done today, other fluids to follow.

[Edo]

The Audi is certainly more luxury than sport. And the torque of the 4.2 V8 is hard to beat. The 3 stage intake is complex but it really works. And I still have it for use as a winter car when the kids are not driving it. Handling in the ZHP (and looks) is just great.

Did a bit of cooling system research and trying to be proactive without going over board. I'm thinking of the expansion tank, but it seems that the thermostat for the trans is recommended too. So, around $120.00 for these items. I have a Bentley book coming, so I can read up on it. I would prefer not replacing the radiator if it is not needed. The Aud still has the original at 172,000. I have tended to over maintenance in the past and not get almost full life out of the component. But, trying to balance that and no disasters. If it is my own labor, not a big deal.

thanks for weighing in. Much appreciated.

Ed

[BMWCurves]

The only reason I went ahead with the radiator is previous experience from my father's 540i. His cooling system failed at the radiator like clockwork every 60k miles, and it was due to BMW, in their infinite wisdom, of building the radiator with plastic inlet/outline piping. The heat cycling just cracked those inlets. I'm not sure if the M54 has the same issue, but the radiator style is the same, plastic inlet and outlet piping.

Others can chime in for how long their radiators have lasted or if they've ever experience catastrophic failure at those points.

What thermostat are you talking about for the transmission? Is it for the auto? I'm not familiar with it.

[Edo]

William, on the BAV auto site they have the thermostat listed as 'suggested" with the tank replacement. Small cartridge deal. I can't see how it works until I have it off. I would imagine the trans fluid is pumped into a cooler in the trans, just like every other car. If all this stuff, is bomb, then waiting to replace doesn't make sense. The guy that did my Audi water pump neglected to change the thermostat and it failed. Buried deep, below the timing belts (and front clip) it was another $800.00 labor a year later. For a $30.00 part. I would rather not go thru that again.

[johnrando]

Thermostat is easy to get to regardless of WP but just do it.

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[Edo]

Leaning towards the complete kit from BAV auto at about $850.00. The seem to include everything, including Stewart water pump, and all belts and pulleys. The ECS kit doesn't give an option for a pump upgrade. Turner kit looks good, except no pulleys and belts. And tank thermostat, good for $50.00 or so. Playing devils advocate, the original parts (pulleys and so on) probably have a lot of life. But still 12 years old. Decisions....

[Vas]

Leaning towards the complete kit from BAV auto at about $850.00. The seem to include everything, including Stewart water pump, and all belts and pulleys. The ECS kit doesn't give an option for a pump upgrade. Turner kit looks good, except no pulleys and belts. And tank thermostat, good for $50.00 or so. Playing devils advocate, the original parts (pulleys and so on) probably have a lot of life. But still 12 years old. Decisions....

Here is my opinion

Get the OE bmw water pump instead of the Stewart. The money you save put it towards the pulleys and tensioners.

This list was for a manual car. Not everything is needed there but it covers the majority of the parts.

http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160304/e85bd22ce24bda667a152c4466f8e866.jpg

[ELCID86]

^this


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"ZHP is a garbage option anyway- just some cosmetic upgrades with a different cam and diff to claw back some of the performance lost fitting those hideous and heavy wheels. Any 330 with a 3.46 diff will smoke a ZHP every time. The whole Mafia thing reeks of childish behavior." - anonymous

[Edo]

Guys, got a differential oil question. Car 68,000. I changed the gear oil last weekend, using about 1/2 Redline 75/90 and the rest was 80/90 Valvoline. I t seemed the oil drained did not look that dark. Drained it again today to go with all Redline 75/90. The oil was noticeably dark after just about 200 miles. I saved a sample to send to Blackstone, but curious if this is normal? It also seemed to need a bit more than a qt, but obviously some gets wasted in the transfer pump.

thanks Ed

[ikeupinya]

Welcome to the site Ed!!! I drive up to Ch-Town at least once a month with my ZHP so I'll wave or high-beam ya if I see you in your IR...huge metro area but you'll never know!

Wish I can help you with your diff oil question, going to exchange mine out next month.

[BMWCurves]

Guys, got a differential oil question. Car 68,000. I changed the gear oil last weekend, using about 1/2 Redline 75/90 and the rest was 80/90 Valvoline. I t seemed the oil drained did not look that dark. Drained it again today to go with all Redline 75/90. The oil was noticeably dark after just about 200 miles. I saved a sample to send to Blackstone, but curious if this is normal? It also seemed to need a bit more than a qt, but obviously some gets wasted in the transfer pump.

thanks Ed

No idea, but mine was pretty dark by 50k miles. Someone else that knows more can weigh in.

[Edo]

IKe, what is the Homelink control you have listed? Is it add on? That is one feature I miss form my other car. I'll check the diff fluid after another week of driving.

[fw_fw]

IKe, what is the Homelink control you have listed? Is it add on? That is one feature I miss form my other car. I'll check the diff fluid after another week of driving.

Do a search on Homelink on here, several DYIs on how to do it. Great mod for around $30....

[BMWCurves]

IKe, what is the Homelink control you have listed? Is it add on? That is one feature I miss form my other car. I'll check the diff fluid after another week of driving.

Or if you don't have auto-dim in your rearview mirror you can buy an E90 mirror that has homelink, auto-dim, and a compass and swap that out. I did it for around $160 total and really like it.

[Edo]

This forum is paying off!. Read the write up and found a nice Homelink on Ebay. Should get it this week. Need to research what the phone mike is for, can't imagine BMW still had a phone in 2004 and hoping it is for Blutooth

[ikeupinya]

This forum is paying off!. So the write up and found a nice Homelink on Ebay. Should get it this week. Need to research what the phone mike is for, can't imagine BMW still had a phone in 2004 and hoping it is for Blutooth

That's awesome Ed, glad you saw my signature spec list that I just uploaded yesterday!!! The mic is indeed for the Bluetooth option but as a pre-install along with the Bluetooth steering wheel buttons on most US-Spec E46s.

[Edo]

Home link arrived and installed today. Programming was more time consuming than install. Diff oil appears to be yellow again after a week of driving. Not sure what was up with it previously. Perhaps it was old oil that was open to atmosphere.

[ELCID86]

You'll like the home link. Why/how are you checking the diff fluid?


---
"ZHP is a garbage option anyway- just some cosmetic upgrades with a different cam and diff to claw back some of the performance lost fitting those hideous and heavy wheels. Any 330 with a 3.46 diff will smoke a ZHP every time. The whole Mafia thing reeks of childish behavior." - anonymous

[Edo]

Regarding diff oil, I did an initial change and did not have enough Redline, so I ended up with some conventional 80/90. Drained a week later to put in all synthetic and it came out grayish looking. Kind of scary. Refilled with all synthetic and it appears normal, yellow color now. No real noise from diff, so I don't think any reason to panic. Being a higher gear than I am used to, everything is spinning faster. So maybe a tad more noise. Compared to my Audi A6 4.2.

Yes, home link is nice.

[Edo]

Quick question regarding oil. After doing some research here, I changed tonight to Castrol 0W/40 Edge European formula. I then read in the owners book that wither 5/30 or 5/40 is to be used. Am I safe with the 0 weight? I generally change at 5k intervals as it ends up being about 5-6 mo.

Cooling system completed last week. Not really difficult at all. Silicone spray does loosen stuck hoses from the pipe nipple.

Ed

[ELCID86]

0w/40 is safe and it should be a Euro formula with the BMW Long Life certification. I personally use Mobil1 0-40 as its easy to find at Walmart or Amazon. These oils can go up to 10k+ miles but most here change sooner. I usually go @7500-8000 since getting good reports back from Blackstone Labs. They will send you a kit for free and you then pay to have the sample processed. Good to have a baseline and perhaps submit a sample every year or so.

[Edo]

Yep, it is Euro formula. I have used Blackstone and will send in at next oil change. Thanks for the feedback.

[danewilson77]

I just picked up 2-5 quart jugs of Europe M1 0W-40 yesterday. Sure enough, no LL-01 spec but is ACEA A3/B3, A3/B4 spec'd.

http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160409/bfdd9ef68809cfa11953ba9cf0b0b237.jpg

Sent from an S6 Edge

[ELCID86]

Id heard that about M1. Wonder what the skinny is :dunno