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Originally Posted by bcredliner
There is no way to challenge your logic--if it ain't broke it will soon. I think that's the way it goes, maybe not.
The reason I posted it is not required is because some of us think that replacing all the hoses, the water pump, the radiator etc. is expensive. Any many of us don't have the time or talent to DIY, or alternative transportation or or. They need to know they have realistic options to consider. In addition, there are other readers of our posts and they also need to know--the rest of the story.
Sure, there are coolant problems that could cause damage to any engine--few and far between. Primarily they happen when the driver does something like driving to the next exit--it is only 3 miles or doesn't know what a temp gauge is for. I doubt very much that anyone here fits that profile.
If I had a hose fail and by examination another hose was suspect, I probably would replace all the hoses. However, I lost a hose last summer. The others looked/felt fine. I replaced the one hose. The other hoses are still fine.
I would never consider using the potential of catastrophic engine failure to justify a complete cooling system overhaul, unless I wanted to do a complete cooling system overhaul and my wife started asking questions like--- what was wrong with what you had?
Are you really saying that whenever something fails in your cooling system you replace everything? |
Well said. Can't argue your logic, either.
My point is simply that if one is dealing with a modern BMW which has over 100K miles, an unknown service history, AND a cooling system problem, it may be a good idea to overhaul the entire system. Is that practical, or absolutely necessary? Probably not. But I don't want to get stranded somewhere because of a $20 pulley or belt (or a $200 radiator, for that matter).
Some failures are gradual and can be dealt with in a timely manner, such as a cracked and leaking expansion tank. Some failures are sudden and without warning. I was driving my wife's 2000 323i about 6 years ago (it had about 95K miles on it at the time). All of a sudden the idler pulley failed and it tossed the serpentine belt. There is no denying that if I hadn't reacted quickly and shut off the engine, it would have overheated and caused serious damage. We were 30 miles from home and had to wait 3 hours for a tow truck.
Will a failed cooling system part ruin the engine every time? No, but it is possible. Someone may not be able to pay nearly $1000 to overhaul their cooling system, have a spare car to use, or the ability to DIY the job. I totally get that. But it's still cheaper and less of an inconvenience than the worst case scenario. There is no way around the fact that any modern BMW is an expensive car to own. And just because it may be 10 or more years old, doesn't mean it'll get any cheaper.
To answer your specific question: It depends. If I knew the overall condition of the cooling system to be good and a hose blew (that has happened to me, too), I would just replace the failed part in that case. But if the car in question is in the neighborhood of 100K miles, and I don't know it's history, then yes, I would replace everything. In fact, if it makes it to 100K miles with no failures, I would replace everything anyway. I just did that on my wife's current car. At 97K miles I yanked everything even though it wasn't having any cooling system problems.
I know that's overkill in the same league as the guys who change synthetic oil every 3,000 miles. But these engines are too damn expensive and easily damaged to take the chance. I may have wasted 700 bucks, but to me it's like paying on an insurance policy. I really don't want to rebuild another engine because of a problem that could be avoided with some preventative maintenance.
I'd probably be better off driving a Honda and putting all this money in my 401(k). But I've never been accused of being too smart for my own good!