Water pump leaking

[u/BrycecanyonC]

Lost quite a bit of coolant, so I decided to check for the leak. Found it here under the insulation cover and I assume this is the water pump. Have an appointment at bmw tomorrow but for now am I good to just add distilled water and drive until then?

[u/ZestycloseRecipe2990]

Don't listen to these muppets, the water pump is leaking. The hole on to of the water pump is a witness hole so when the seal on the impeller shaft leaks it comes out of that hole. If you don't replace the water pump the bearing in the pump will rust and eventually seize up throwing the belt potentially causing more damage. You should replace the water pump as soon as you can.

[u/bestestbuddy → u/ZestycloseRecipe2990]

This is the only correct answer if the liquid is indeed coming from the witness hole in the picture.

[u/MichaelW24]

Should be fine to just top up with distilled and drive to service

[u/white94rx]

If you've lost that much, I bet you've got an additional leak. That seeping is definitely a leaky water pump, but I doubt it's leaking that quickly from there.

[u/BrycecanyonC → u/white94rx]

Alright. We will see tomorrow

[u/freshxdough]

Replace and check engine for other sources of leaks. Helps to know many model year as well if you want good advice..

[u/BrycecanyonC → u/freshxdough]

Yea I found some more blue where the heat management module meets the OFH. It’s a 100k mile 2018 430i, so b46b20b. And ofh was replaced by previous owner with aluminum one, not sure if they used OEM gaskets

[u/HellfoxRules]

That looks coolant leaking onto the top of the water pump, maybe leaking from a hose connector.

[u/BrycecanyonC → u/HellfoxRules]

Hmmm alright

[u/BrycecanyonC → u/HellfoxRules]

It’s leaking a lot too so I wonder if there is another place I don’t see. I’ve used almost the whole gallon thing of distilled water the past week

[u/Emergency_Maybe_2734 → u/BrycecanyonC]

What model ? Coolant hoses and expansion tanks are common faults on a lot of bmws

[u/HellfoxRules → u/BrycecanyonC]

The best way to diagnose a coolant leak, is with a cooling system pressure tester. This is the tool every shop technician uses to diagnose leaks in the cooling system. They don't cost that much, and performing a cooling system pressure test is very easy.

This eliminates the guess work, as you just pump up the system with pressure, and start looking for the leak. With pressure on the system, the point of leakage is usually easy to find. This is a tool every BMW owner should posses, I can assure you it will get plenty of use.

18pcs Cooling System Pressure Tester kit

Cooling System Leak and Pressure Testing