It ended up being the water pump seal. They replaced the water pump and thermostat free of charge.
Graf here. 15k miles/ 2 years, no problems.
I use on my 12v and 24v VR6 engines, Eurowise aluminum thermostat housing and 42DD stainless steel crack pipe. Water pump I use GRAF or Hepu for its metal impeller.
I paid similar for a BMW TBF, however, another garage told me that the garage I went to was known for charging high prices. I always shop around when the price is in the hundreds so I'm confident I wasn't ripped off.
I had my 2008 BMW 135i E88 for going on 14 years, it's about to hit 70k miles and looks like new. I've done a couple bolt-ones (IC, charge pipe, Cobb tune). It's been a great car and a blast to drive. I did replace the water pump this past summer otherwise normal maintenance.
I’m on year 3 of a 2020 M240ix and it has cost me nothing besides regular maintenance and premium fuel. Now I expect that to change soonish, as at my last oil change I was told my water pump has a very slow leak and, at some point, will need to be replaced to the tune of $2k.
I've also had a Graf I think it was, it did have a metal impeller, which started leaking after 7 yrs.
I had an 2001 740iL that I traded an old truck for. The electronics are kind of a nightmare, the water pump has a plastic impeller that likes to randomly explode and shoot plastic all through the cooling system. You can buy one with a metal impeller that solves this.
what I had problems with is with Graf water pump, that was included as part of FCP euro cooling system kit, water pump seal around the bearing started pouring coolant like a waterfall after only 11k miles, I replaced it with a Stewart pump
The cooling system is the major weak point (ask me how I know) - water pump failed before 70k (changed under warranty)
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If choosing water pump across many manufacturers, check the part ranking. If your choice is down to two brands, the PartReview part comparisons help.
We compare water pump across these categories:
In March 2026 on PartReview, water pump GRAF were overall better than OEM BMW.
In March 2026 on PartReview, water pump GRAF were overall more popular than OEM BMW.
By vote balance, water pump GRAF surpassed OEM BMW:
By number of reviews, water pump GRAF surpassed OEM BMW:
In March 2026, according to PartReview, water pump GRAF led more car-specific ratings than OEM BMW:
GRAF are chosen by owners of cars such as: Volkswagen Jetta, Volkswagen Tiguan, and others.
Water pump OEM BMW have not yet taken leading positions in car-specific ratings. You can help by adding a review and specifying your car.
If this comparison didn’t fully answer your question, there are many others on PartReview.
For example, comparisons of water pump OEM BMW with: OEM Volkswagen, OEM Audi, AISIN, Gates, Hepu, Pierburg, OEM FORD, OEM Toyota, GMB, Saleri.
Also available: comparisons of water pump GRAF with: OEM Volkswagen, OEM Audi, AISIN, Gates, Hepu, Pierburg, OEM FORD, OEM Toyota, GMB, Saleri.
You can also see who is better among other water pump manufacturers: OEM Audi or OEM Volkswagen, GRAF or OEM Volkswagen, AISIN or OEM Volkswagen, Gates or OEM Volkswagen, Hepu or OEM Volkswagen.
