Coolant System/Radiator Issues

[admranger]

Turner motorsport sells them as do many other places. Google or search ebay for the Bentley X5 Manual and see what pops up. Sorry, I forget where I got mine (ebay I think for a new one). They are not cheap but they are phone book sized (major metropolitan area, not Yankton, South Dakota sized.

Seriously, it is worth every penny. I have one for each of my three BMWs (e36, e46, e53).

[x5addict]

Ok, cool...I appreciate the help...Would one portion of the repair be easier for me to do, such as swapping out the radiator, and then letting the indy do the other stuff??

[admranger]

Once you have the radiator out, the water pump should be easily accessable (though I've never done it on an X5, just e30/e36/e34/e46.

I've never had to do the valley pan gasket (knocking on wood as I type) so I don't know how hard it is. I'm sure others will chime in.

[x5addict]

What about the electronic version of what you're talking about. It's called a BMW X5 Series E53 Factory Repair Service Manual 1999-07. Check this out on eBay for $9.99: BMW X5 Series E53 Factory Repair Service Manual 1999-07:eBay Motors (item 150392258490 end time Dec-25-09 20:40:23 PST)

[we350z]

Bentley Publishers Home *-* Bentley Publishers - Repair Manuals and Automotive Books

I prefer the TIS but I'm sure this is quite nice.

Originally Posted by x5addict

Where would I pick that up?

[Weasel]

OE style direct fit replacement, seems identical to the OEM one I pulled out. I've been running this one for almost a year now.

I went with it because not only was it $100 less than my cost on the OEM radiator (which was not in stock for some reason) but it was in stock at the local performance radiator outlet/warehouse. I had one of their radiators in my old ford bronco, my E36 325is, my mothers old dodge van, etc. Always had nothing but good luck with their products.

Originally Posted by we350z

I take it that rad is not OE? Wonder if it is more efficient?

[we350z]

Right on - I hear nothing but mostly complaints about the OE radiator cracking. I'm sort of worried about mine since I am replacing everything else. I hope it doesn't stress it and cause it to break. I am even more worried about the valley pan gasket becoming a problem.

Originally Posted by Weasel

OE style direct fit replacement, seems identical to the OEM one I pulled out. I've been running this one for almost a year now.

I went with it because not only was it $100 less than my cost on the OEM radiator (which was not in stock for some reason) but it was in stock at the local performance radiator outlet/warehouse. I had one of their radiators in my old ford bronco, my E36 325is, my mothers old dodge van, etc. Always had nothing but good luck with their products.

[we350z]

I don't think you need remove the radiator to reach the water pump on the X5 - just the fan clutch, belts, h20 pulley, lower & upper rad houses. Sure it would allow for more room but I think it's already pretty spacious in there.

Originally Posted by admranger

Once you have the radiator out, the water pump should be easily accessable (though I've never done it on an X5, just e30/e36/e34/e46.

I've never had to do the valley pan gasket (knocking on wood as I type) so I don't know how hard it is. I'm sure others will chime in.

[flatlander]

You can do this job yourself. It helps to have another person for some of the steps, including getting the belt on and off if you're gonna change the water pump and thermostat. I had the valley pan leaking. My pics are still located here:
The BMW Diaries

[Braymond141]

Originally Posted by x5addict

Thanks for the info guys, I really appreciate it. I'll probably shop around for the parts myself, and see if I can save a little money...On the upside, I LOVE the car! Got a good deal on it (other than this issue). One owner, 89k miles, new tires (20", as you know) clean carfax, maintained with extended warranty up to 72k miles through BMW. Very clean. Doesn't look like anyone's every sat in the back seats...Got it for $17k! The indy shop looked it over and only found a couple of small issues (other than this issue).

All those things you listed can be done fairly easy yourself. But... I refuse to have someone touch my cars and find mechanical work easy.