Pierburg fuel pump - but plastic?!
 

Hi all,

The fuel pump in my X is definitely on the way out, there’s a very audible whining noise from the rear right hand side of the car when it’s running.

BMW no longer supply the part anymore it seems, so I’ve been trying (without too much luck) to source something from elsewhere. Seems like it’s fine to buy just the actual pump rather than the whole unit complete with the sender and then just swap out the pump.

Even so, the only one I can find that’s actually in stock is either some east European copy part that costs about £40 which I very weary about or one made by Pierburg (the OEM for this part) but the only version that is in stock anywhere is this one:

https://www.autodoc.co.uk/pierburg/16165273

Which is made of plastic instead (and about £120 as opposed to about £300 for the normal metal bodied version).

Anyone used this? Any thoughts on this as a replacement part?

I don’t fancy having to replace it again in 6 months time.

I am guessing Plastic is Ok bc many fuel pumps on Volvos these days
are plastic anyway.

Plus...Pierburg is a great brand, the original supplier.

If you really want metal casing, then search US eBay or
FCPEuro website, but shipping to the UK may be expensive.

Or try eBay UK or eBay Germany.

Thar's just a plastic shell holding the metal pump. I think when I changed my pump I ended up transferring the metal pump to the existing cage sure to minor differences in the attachment points.

Some sites quote this Pierburg version as compatible to E53.

https://www.motointegrator.de/artike...burg-707795180

So i decided to go with the plastic Pierburg one above and finally got around to fitting it today. Seem to work just fine. Fit into the original plastic sender/pump assembly unit as easily as fully metal cased one would have.

As Andrew correctly stated above, it does appear to just be a plastic shell around a metal fuel pump inside. I guess they managed to make the actual pump smaller (not a surprise with modern motors) and so now have a plastic shell around it to give it the same dimensions as the previous version.

Aahhh you hit the nail on the head! Plastic shell to make same dimensions!

Be careful with these pumps I dropped one a foot to the ground and destroyed it. Bosch not cheap