Has anyone's HPFP died TWICE?

[BlackjackMulligan]

I just had (what I thought was) an interesting thought:

Has anyone's fuel pump failed twice? If not, isn't that strange?

That leads me to believe that there could ***possibly*** be a problem with the initial installation of it, etc. What other reasons could there be for such a high percentage (on this board) of the pumps failing once but not twice? Remember, mine was an "updated" model that failed, so the new ones do too.

[Papa13]

Haven't heard of a HPFP on a 135 dieing twice. But, i do know that my buddies 335 has gone through three of them. So, it's bound to happen...

[Artz 330]

i had mine done at 1,900 miles

[penny]

You got an interesting point there blackjack.

[Lucky1]

Originally Posted by Papa13

Haven't heard of a HPFP on a 135 dieing twice. But, i do know that my buddies 335 has gone through three of them. So, it's bound to happen...

I've also seen posts from 335i owners on E90post claiming they've had two or more failures. The've had their car from before the 135i existed so I'm assuming they got their pumps replaced with the remanufactured pumps as opposed to the new ones BMW is using...although I read at least one 135i owner had a problem with the most recent pump part no. I'm not convinced you guys are out of the woods yet

[isitspringyet]

My first one was replaced with a reman one, which failed, and I got the new version. So, yes. And I have been having a few long starts lately 20K+ miles.

[jeremyc74]

Looking at the parts diagrams, the installation looks pretty straightforward to me. It's only 3 bolts and an o-ring, so I doubt that's getting screwed up.

A possibility though is that something from the manufacturing process is being left in the fuel path upstream and is entering the pump and killing it. I'm pretty sure that if that were the case BMW would have figured it out by now, and put a stop to it. It also wouldn't really explain the failures on higher mileage cars very well.

I'm betting there's some tolerence in the pump manufacturing process that they're have a very hard time getting under control. Whatever it is, I hope it's fixed with this latest revision. I'm going to have to pay for mine out of my pocket when the time comes, and I fucking sure don't want to do it twice!

[BlackjackMulligan]

Originally Posted by Lucky1

I've also seen posts from 335i owners on E90post claiming they've had two or more failures. The've had their car from before the 135i existed so I'm assuming they got their pumps replaced with the remanufactured pumps as opposed to the new ones BMW is using...although I read at least one 135i owner had a problem with the most recent pump part no. I'm not convinced you guys are out of the woods yet

Mine was the 881 HPFP (the updated one) and it failed.

Originally Posted by jeremyc74

Looking at the parts diagrams, the installation looks pretty straightforward to me. It's only 3 bolts and an o-ring, so I doubt that's getting screwed up.

A possibility though is that something from the manufacturing process is being left in the fuel path upstream and is entering the pump and killing it. I'm pretty sure that if that were the case BMW would have figured it out by now, and put a stop to it. It also wouldn't really explain the failures on higher mileage cars very well.

I'm betting there's some tolerence in the pump manufacturing process that they're have a very hard time getting under control. Whatever it is, I hope it's fixed with this latest revision. I'm going to have to pay for mine out of my pocket when the time comes, and I fucking sure don't want to do it twice!

I figured you'd have a good response to this post Jeremy!

I agree, it doesn't make much sense that there could be anything different with the initial install, I just thought it a bit strange that I haven't heard of anyone (until now) complain that 2 of their pumps failed. Hopefully something does change when the second one is installed.

FWIW, I put an inquiry into BMW USA about the HPFP. One woman called me, and asked what my issue was. I told her about how my HPFP is the updated one, it failed after 1700 miles and was replaced with the exact same part. I asked her what BMW was doing to alleviate this situation. Of course, she pretty much played dumb to the whole HPFP fiasco. She took my info and said she'd call me back.

A few days later she called me back to update me and tell me she had no info yet, she'd get back to me the following week.

In the meantime, I got an email survey from BMW USA about my experience with the dealer when I had the pump replaced. While I gave the dealer high marks for the great job they did, I again wrote a note about my concerns with the pump.

Today a gentleman from BMW called me to address my concerns. To make a long story short, he was very evasive about addressing the issues that BMW was having short of admitting that BMW had extended the warrantee for the "3" Series. I politely reminded him that it wasn't just the 3 but the 1 too for the 08 model year. He was pleasant, and said all the right things about being concerned, etc. But at the end of the conversation he didn't have any answers. I asked him how BMW was compensating their clients for the inconvenience of having to go to the dealer each time one of these fails, and he said they wouldn't entertain anything until the "second occurance". I didn't really expect anything, but it doesn't hurt to ask.

[rushbmw]

Just had my HPFP replaced today. Hope it last. By the way does anyone know where the HPFP is located?

[themyst]

3800 miles, still on the same HPFP... 09 1er with 09/08 build. I really think it has to do with the gas!

[1013mm]

some people on the 3 have had them die 4 times

[cagekicker]

terrible!

[Raflekt]

4 times? Whats the cost of the hpfp?

[jeremyc74]

Originally Posted by BlackjackMulligan

I figured you'd have a good response to this post Jeremy!
.

Thanks. I get sort of a unique perspective on stuff like this. Over the years I've owned a lot of cars (34 to be exact) and most of them were well used...or to be honest, they were beaters, so I worked on them a LOT.

These days I design and build the manufacturing equipment (not by myself of course, but you know what I mean) that is used to make parts like our HPFP, and sometimes I walk away from a job thinking "This thing is going to cause problems when it hits the streets!" because certain parts are so tricky to consistantly build correctly, or the processes require a lot of attention from the facilities engineers, and I know they're not going to get as much as they should.

Ever wonder why your headlights fog up? That's a laser welder that's not working properly, and someone has tweaked the thermal vision system that monitors it to make them pass anyway, because they look good enough. The joint didn't get hot enough for a good airtight seal in a few places.

Vacuum pump that won't hold as much vacuum as it should in a VW diesel? That's a machine I helped build and install that's screwing up and not putting the vanes in properly.

ABS module in a GM truck that dies after a year? Sorry about that one. The program in the conformal coating machine got tweaked and it missed a couple of spots. The new one should last longer.......unless it got screwed up again.

If you've got a Nissan or Toyota with a TPMS that's constantly screwing up...I had a hand in that machine last year.

I'm exaggerating a little (most of that stuff would get caught before it ever shipped to an OEM), but the opportunity for error in modern cars is just staggering because there are so many complex processes involved in making them.

Originally Posted by BlackjackMulligan

Today a gentleman from BMW called me to address my concerns. To make a long story short, he was very evasive about addressing the issues that BMW was having short of admitting that BMW had extended the warrantee for the "3" Series. I politely reminded him that it wasn't just the 3 but the 1 too for the 08 model year. He was pleasant, and said all the right things about being concerned, etc. But at the end of the conversation he didn't have any answers. I asked him how BMW was compensating their clients for the inconvenience of having to go to the dealer each time one of these fails, and he said they wouldn't entertain anything until the "second occurance". I didn't really expect anything, but it doesn't hurt to ask.

It's good to hear that they're communicating. I really hope this has gone WAY up the chain, and BMW is considering a second supplier for this part. I'm not sure who's actually building these units, but at this point it's obvious to me that they don't have a handle on the situation, and should probably lose the business. They've damn sure given BMW a black eye with this mess.

Although it could be worse. Toyota truck frame replacement anyone?