So I was driving home from work today when my temps started rising. Pulled over to see what was going on and when I looked under the hood it looked as if the plastic bleeder screw had blown in half and it was spitting coolant around what was left of the screw. Filled with antifreeze and made the last few miles home.

After letting the truck cool off, I went out side and removed the bottom half of the bleeder screw from the housing. I piece of the plastic fell into the pipe and after removing all the hoses, I did not retrieve it or it may have fell out without me noticing. Should I be concerned about this small piece of plastic in my system?

Finally, can I purchase just the T - Coupling or do I have to buy an entire upper hose assembly? The threads in my current coupling may accept a screw and I will be going the the local BMW shop tomorrow, but am thinking I will need a new coupling. Thanks in advance for your input.

CD

 

Go to BMW store, they stock just the screw for around $5 or $6.

 

Alternatively, British Parts of Utah sells them for $7.

 

There has been mention of this before and if you search i bet you can find a part number for the correct screw! And who has it in stock thats open now Good luck!

 

I knew that, he is closed from today to the end of the month, that is why I recommended a BMW dealer,

 

Oh, yeah!

 

Alright, so I will pick up a screw tomorrow? Any idea what caused the nylon screw to break? If the threads are messed up in the T coupling can you buy just a replacement coupling? Also should I be concerned if a little piece of plastic got in my system?

 

Its not good to have anything extra in there lol but it will settle somewhere hopefully in a place that does not hurt anything (time will tell)

You should be able to find a replacement at a parts yard maybe Paul grant can hot ship you one? Or a local parts source for parts? Think that the heat and over tightening is usually a reason for them to break.

My just want to pay close attention to your temps and inspect if you have a issue the plastic could be the problem not sure if it went to the water pump or radiator or what?

 

when this happened to me I used a matched thread machine screw and jbl weld for insurance. Since then I use the brass screws, you can get them thru BMW as well. While it is a big deal it is an easy fix. just make sure you bleed the system afterwards.

 

+1 on the brass screw. I use one on my BMW e39 and never had another bleeder screw problem. Definitely a weak point in cooling systems.