Radiator Plastic Pipe .. broken :(

[handgrenade 189]

hey guys,

on my euro spec nz new e36 m3, there is this stupid plastic pipe which goes from the top of the radiator on the passenger side loops around and goes around the headlight, then up the passenger side of the engine bay to a plastic coolant tank

does anyone else have this?

its stupid.

I broke it by mistake, and babied the car home, the temp gauge never went above half way. I've since replaced the broken plastic pipe by using rubber hose (high temp oil line).

has anyone else broken this before? I am thinking of replacing the entire stupid plastic brittle line all the way to the plastic tank thing.

is it the radiator overflow tank? or what is it?

Thanks

oh .. broke this bit right at the hard U bend.

bit of a noob here. what is the pipe for? I lost a fair bit of coolant, the plastic tank it goes to .. does that need to be full?

[yng_750 247]

Its the bleed to the expansion tank. Very critical to stop airlocks in the radiator.

If your hose holds it will work but if that has failed the rest of the radiator may be getting on too.

[handgrenade 189]

I broke it while pulling out the airbox. but the plastic is quite fragile anyway.

Do I need to bleed the system??

Should I fill up the expansion tank?

I'm planning to replace the entire line to the expansion tank with high temp hose.

No leaks .. after my hose splice, I went for a .. spirited drive and no leaks .. I'll check again tomorrow.

Where is the bloody radiator cap??? lol. i miss my japanese cars.

Edited July 21, 2014 by handgrenade

[euroriffic 603]

Cap is on expanation tank. And I also have broken that hose on mine by was right where it clips into the radiator so just just a couple of hose clamps and a bit of hose and good as new haha

[handgrenade 189]

cheers .. do I need to bleed the thing?

[yng_750 247]

Expansion tank will have a set level on the side that leaves a set amount of air.

With the expansion tank cap off run the engine and you should see water dribbling in where that hose connects. That bleeds the radiator.

The expansion tank cap is the rad cap.

Look at coolant maintanemce threads. Replacing radiators,pumps and hoses etc is scheduled maintanance. Really needs to be done on occasion

[handgrenade 189]

Expansion tank will have a set level on the side that leaves a set amount of air.

With the expansion tank cap off run the engine and you should see water dribbling in where that hose connects. That bleeds the radiator.

The expansion tank cap is the rad cap.

Look at coolant maintanemce threads. Replacing radiators,pumps and hoses etc is scheduled maintanance. Really needs to be done on occasion

cheers, might add that to the list before it grenades itself .. !

[KwS 2378]

The M3 engines are self bleeding. Just make sure the coolant level is OK, put the cap on, turn the heaters up and go for a drive.

[handgrenade 189]

cool thanks, going to pick up some hose clamps, some antifreeze and some distilled water tomorrow morning. just about to brave the cold to move a few things around.

[Ahmedsinc 414]

If you haven't already, now would be the prime time to overhaul the cooling system. The failure of the plastic components is a well documented phenomenon, I suspect it'd be catastrophically expensive if you overheat and crack the S50 head, good luck finding a spare in NZ!

Might set you back a few bucks but better to have peace of mind than an engine in pieces

[twisted 45]

As kws said, self bleeding. Just check the level in the expansion tank each morning for a couple of days, and top it up where required. Don't be tempted to overfill or it won't self bleed.

[handgrenade 189]

will do, thanks everyone for their responses!

have a giant bottle of distilled water in the car.

[handgrenade 189]

courtesy of some entertaining bimmersport members hazing the bmw newbie ..

PS. world famous in NZPC. (thanks anthony)

pps: no idea whats going on with my face in the pic. shocking.

Edited July 27, 2014 by handgrenade