Coolant Fitting Broke Off Inside Engine Block Receptacle

matreyia

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Hey Everyone...just wondering...if you tried to take off a hard plastic coolant pipe and the head/fitting with the gaskets breaks off and is stuck inside the engine block...what would you do to remove it? I've been thinking about this because this happened to me on an old e46...but it could happen on an n54.
Here are the possible remedies, please add if you have more possible solutions.

1. use expanding circlip pliers to grip inside of broken fitting and pull out --- tried this and it does not work.
2. use micormeter smaller bolt and screw into inside of fitting then use a vice grip to wiggle the fitting out? Have not tried this yet.

Any tools exist that are designed for this specific task? Any additional ideas?

VT
 
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The Convert

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Try an easy out tap. If the fitting doesn’t spin, it may work. Might also be worth trying a little heat to soften things up a little?
 

matreyia

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Found the solution in e46 Fantatics (which is a crazy ass forum with some crazy ass people)

Used a soldering iron to cut the plastic into bits and then pulled out with fingers and removed water pump to clean out any stray plastic crumbs.
 
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matreyia

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If its what i think you're talking about i just took a 90* angle pick and pulled it out.

And you would have a damaged mating surface for the life of the engine from scraping the mating surface accidentally...unless you are a grandmaster of kung fu with x men sensitivity and awareness. Also, your pick would die and bend because the hose is ultra hard plastic and lodged in very tightly. Also, your pick would not fit if it were wider than 15mm.
 
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The Convert

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Found the solution in e46 Fantatics (which is a crazy ass forum with some crazy ass people)

Used a soldering iron to cut the plastic into bits and then pulled out with fingers and removed water pump to clean out any stray plastic crumbs.
Correction. You found A solution. Good deal nonetheless.
 

DCook

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And you would have a damaged mating surface for the life of the engine from scraping the mating surface accidentally...unless you are a grandmaster of kung fu with x men sensitivity and awareness. Also, your pick would die and bend because the hose is ultra hard plastic and lodged in very tightly. Also, your pick would not fit if it were wider than 15mm.
Never had any issues. Can also use a straight one and break it upwards. Ive done this on 4+ motors. None ever leaked or had any issue related. Didnt say you had to hulk arm retard strength the tip into the aluminum head either. To each their own i guess.
 
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matreyia

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Never had any issues. Can also use a straight one and break it upwards. Ive done this on 4+ motors. None ever leaked or had any issue related. Didnt say you had to hulk arm retard strength the tip into the aluminum head either. To each their own i guess.

Even a tiny scrape on the mating surface will risk leakage. Best to avoid any potential slipping with a sharp metal tip to the soft aluminum mating surface. Again, the hard plastic hose has two gaskets that keep it totally tight inside the hole. There is no way a tiny L pick can pull it out and no way that pick will not deform. Don't think I didn't try this already. But the risk was too great. It would be foolish to do it knowing the risk. You can't just get bigger gaskets to seal up any damage and you can't get larger pipe fittings since they are one piece with the pipe itself.

The soldering iron was soft and did zero damage to mating surface. The entire orfice was corroded into one solid piece...no way you can hook it out and not damage the surface on this particular car.
 

The Convert

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Even a tiny scrape on the mating surface will risk leakage. Best to avoid any potential slipping with a sharp metal tip to the soft aluminum mating surface. Again, the hard plastic hose has two gaskets that keep it totally tight inside the hole. There is no way a tiny L pick can pull it out and no way that pick will not deform. Don't think I didn't try this already. But the risk was too great. It would be foolish to do it knowing the risk. You can't just get bigger gaskets to seal up any damage and you can't get larger pipe fittings since they are one piece with the pipe itself.

The soldering iron was soft and did zero damage to mating surface. The entire orfice was corroded into one solid piece...no way you can hook it out and not damage the surface on this particular car.
If you assume other people only have the same skills and experience you do, you’ll never learn anything. @DCook clearly has more real life experience doing this than you and yet you’re claiming he’s wrong. He has done it multiple times with no ill effect. Maybe, just maybe, there’s nuance in the process that you’re not aware of and he’s not mentioning because to him it’s obvious. There are many ways to skin a cat.
 

fmorelli

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If its what i think you're talking about i just took a 90* angle pick and pulled it out.
How about a small inside puller? Then that provides even pressure on two sides and would hopefully make it slide out evenly?

This coolant design is one more example of incredibly stupid crap BMW has and continues to do. I've worked on a ton of BMW's over my life, not to mention lots of other brands. It used to be that I'd say BMW was at the top of the heap. Honestly after 2-3 years of supporting my wife's Mercedes GLK250, I have to say it a far superior vehicle in how it is put together. No car is perfect but BMW is a pile of plastic waiting to fail. They integrate plastic in places that brake or fail, and in such a way that replacements off require extensive work or replacement of expensive parts.

I happen to have an E46 in the family with leaking coolant. We replaced that hard line (both but I digress) and the entrance area was a shitmess @ 150k. Obviously we didn't get it perfect as the new pipe is leaking. Just freaking stupid. Of course you have to pull the intake to get to this ... and BMW again in its infinite stupidity decided that hanging an octopus of crap to the bottom of the intake has been and continues to be a fantastic idea. Really wonder what is happening to this company.

Filippo
 

matreyia

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How about a small inside puller? Then that provides even pressure on two sides and would hopefully make it slide out evenly?

This coolant design is one more example of incredibly stupid crap BMW has and continues to do. I've worked on a ton of BMW's over my life, not to mention lots of other brands. It used to be that I'd say BMW was at the top of the heap. Honestly after 2-3 years of supporting my wife's Mercedes GLK250, I have to say it a far superior vehicle in how it is put together. No car is perfect but BMW is a pile of plastic waiting to fail. They integrate plastic in places that brake or fail, and in such a way that replacements off require extensive work or replacement of expensive parts.

I happen to have an E46 in the family with leaking coolant. We replaced that hard line (both but I digress) and the entrance area was a shitmess @ 150k. Obviously we didn't get it perfect as the new pipe is leaking. Just freaking stupid. Of course you have to pull the intake to get to this ... and BMW again in its infinite stupidity decided that hanging an octopus of crap to the bottom of the intake has been and continues to be a fantastic idea. Really wonder what is happening to this company.

Filippo

You know of an inside puller that fits inside 15mm hole? Post a link of this unicorn. I never seen on that small.
 

DCook

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Could also use a puller with a slide hammer. How do you think pilot bearings are removed? they're smaller than the inside of the coolant hose, if not similar sized. If there's a need for it, chances are there's a tool for it. And im sure snap-on sells it as well.
 
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matreyia

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Could also use a puller with a slide hammer. How do you think pilot bearings are removed? they're smaller than the inside of the coolant hose, if not similar sized. If there's a need for it, chances are there's a tool for it. And im sure snap-on sells it as well.

Send a link of this tool that is smaller than 15mm inside hole. If you're talking about a tool that pushes against the inner walls of the broken pipe nipple for grip while trying to pull it out of the hole, you might want to rethink this strategy. The pressure pushing the inner walls of the broken hose piece will make it tighter and tighter and harder to pull out, and eventually, you might destroy the inner wall itself and risk damage to the aluminum mating surface. Soldering iron was a good and easy tool. Next time, I will use it again but even more mindful of the technique to eliminate any burn pieces from breaking off into the orfice.
 

matreyia

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15mm to freedom units is 0.59". Google must not work in your country. 30 seconds of googling.

1/2 to 1 1/2" puller.

Nope... that tool would scrape the shit out of the mating surface. That is the exact type of tool to avoid. It would work for other hard core surfaces though.

Also, it is insane to pay 72 bucks for a tool that does something that can be done for chunk change.
 

The Convert

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Nope... that tool would scrape the shit out of the mating surface. That is the exact type of tool to avoid. It would work for other hard core surfaces though.

Also, it is insane to pay 72 bucks for a tool that does something that can be done for chunk change.
Dude, you should really just stop posting help threads if you’re never going to listen and always going to argue. How can you sit around and argue that these other people are wrong when you didn’t even know how to fix the problem in the first place?
 

DCook

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Dude, you should really just stop posting help threads if you’re never going to listen and always going to argue. How can you sit around and argue that these other people are wrong when you didn’t even know how to fix the problem in the first place?
Everytime he responds i just think of this.
Screenshot_20200623-093136_Instagram.jpg
 
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matreyia

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Everytime he responds i just think of this.
View attachment 40106

Do you realize that there is a soft aluminum mating surface that will leak if you scrape it? Wtf? It's not arguing, it's pointing out why I didn't try those things like a metal pick or ANYTHING METAL to pull out a hose connection inside an engine block. Stop being so sensitive.
 

matreyia

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Understand that you are advising me to use a metal tool to scrape a plastic nipple stuck onto a soft metal surface that is sensitive to leaks due to surface damage. And NO... I am not offended so you're stupid meme doesn't make any damn sense. I told you the solution already that will not damage your mating surface and you keep offering solutions that I have already counted out as too risky to the mating surface. The only things I tried were techniques which specifically avoided touching the mating surface with uncontrolled pressure.


jpg diagram.jpg
 

matreyia

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Dude, you should really just stop posting help threads if you’re never going to listen and always going to argue. How can you sit around and argue that these other people are wrong when you didn’t even know how to fix the problem in the first place?

I told you the damn solution found elsewhere. NOBODY is listening.

jpg diagram.jpg