I've read about the concerns of coolant system reliability with pre e60 vehicles. What I haven't heard from anyone is discussions of the e60 models, 5 series in particular because I've got an 04 530 that has 70k on the clock.

I'm curious as to when I should replace the coolant system on mine. I drive about 30k a year and flushed it last fall.

Are the e60's as much of a concern as previous models on radiator, reservoir, water pump and hose replacement, or is it more so?

 

personally i think the more you drive your car, the faster it will wear.
from previous experience (E46, E39, E36) the cooling system for BMWs is designed to wear out after a while. I'm not so sure about the E60 though, because I think its still too new to be positive that the cooling system is bound to fail at a certain point like previous BMWs. I'm searching the net for more info on this as we speak

 

my thermostat died at 80,000km
i didnt know it was the cause for high tempurature and thought i needed a coolant flush.
the mechanics couldnt figure it out either because the idrive error shows up after about 1hr of driving, until a hot day i took it to there. it caused my radiator to be blocked =[

 

I wondering if you guys can help me determine where my level is at. I got a message yesterday stating my coolant level was too low. I didnt use the car since I didnt have any fluid replacement. Now when I check the resovior, the stick does not even come out. Now, is my coolant way too low? Plus how do I check it properly? Am I suppose to use the top of the resovoir to measure the level or is there a something inside I am suppose to measure it against? thanks for the help. I did just go on a road trip from Toronto and VA round trip last week. Inspected the hose and seem all okay.

 

The stick needs to rise above the lid to be full.

 

Thanks Jon, gettin fluid now and will refill shortly. Should I do it between min and max or all the way full? Thanks

 

Start with half way in between and run it and see if the error goes away. Maybe someone else can chime in, but that's what i'd do.

 

Filled with Prestone 50/50 halfway and error message worked. Employee at the store told me make sure to get the one the bottle that says mixes with all types. Good thing I asked him cuz I was looking at something else. Just weird to me all the sudden it was really low......... Then again, I never checked it before, maybe I should everytime I change my oil. Thanks again for the help

 

I'd fill it to the top, you might as well. If you want to do this on the cheap just use distilled water. Otherwise make a mixture of 1/2 distilled water and 1/2 antifreeze. Store what you don't use for future use.

 

Thanks, sounds good. Thank god for his site, learned so much about the car just bein a member......