I ran my 3.0d like this for a while (in winter) when the viscous clutch shat the bed... ran fine, although I noticed the engine acoustic cover got hotter than normal, so watch that.

Unfortunately the "temp indicator" on the dash is useless to monitor the temp. did you use an actual method like OBC hidden menu? The mornonic dash indicator shows everything perfect from about 65 to 110C. I drove my car for months with a stick open thermostat because of the asinine design

But to answer your question as long as your electric fan is operational it's fine to run the car without the water pump fan in the winter months. I'm thinking of taking mine off vs the other typical Wisconsin option of block the radiator with cardboard.

Even with a new cold weather crankcase ventilator, I still have sludging issues. So the hotter the better at this time of year IMO. But no, I did not use the hidden menu. Havent figured that out yet. Long as it isnt past halfway it is still safe, so I don't really care how hot it is as long as it isn't going to break.

While there might be no problem without the mechanical fan installed, I would install it since at some point you will do so anyway. No reason to take any risk. The electric fan is meant to be a backup for overheating and AC. Using as the primary fan will accelerate wear to some degree. Electric fan is fairly expensive to replace and since the clutch fan is in good order I wouldn't take any risk of electric fan failure or overheating.

The needle stays at noon until way hotter than normal. If it ever moves past noon it's basically too late. It's not a helpful tool. It will go from ok to fill overheat in a second. It may as well be a simple red light.

Learn how to bring up the hidden menu and watch the actual temp. It should stay at about 90C.

I ran my e46 auto without the fan clutch for a few years before installing an electric fan. It never went over 210f using my obd adapter via bluetooth. I did lots of shorter trips so I like that the oil got to operating temp faster.

changed the oil went with castrol 5 /30 and hey no more turbo whistle

New MAF and airbox filter (plus pantyhose insert)

Original BMW MAF runs 1822.00 SAR [emoji2959][emoji2959] and this is from the actual supplier to make sure it's not made by Shitzalot inc.

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upon receiving the E53 4.8is, previous owner turned out to be not as honest and forthcoming as I thought they were. Very disappointed in that....:cussing:

Vehicle was hemorrhaging coolant.... turned out to be the water pump... so $1,200 later, 3 days after receiving the vehicle... new water pump, thermostat and belts. no leaks now

Sourced the OEM roof rack on Ebay for $70, cleaned and repainted it, then installed with fresh hardware... looks MUCH better this way.:strut:

Also, fresh Dinan air filter. Feels so nice:thumbup:

Got the Avant 4 on Cyber Monday, installation will be next

I agree they look better with the roof rails. I always thought the X5 looks "bald" when I see them deleted. I also bought a $50 set off fleaBay and they are over at the powdercoater this week for a quick aesthetic transformation when they get back. My original rails were looking rather faded at 15 years old.

You are going to love the Avant-4 when you get it up and running. :thumbup: