Hey guys,

Just picked up a 2011 JCW today!

In the pre-purchase inspection the shop mentioned the only thing that seemed odd was that fault code 2F37 has been logged quite a bit. From searching this forum and the interwebs it sounds like this has something to do with the auxiliary water pump that cools the turbo.

According to this page:

Anyone know what the heck the "open circuit" part means? The shop just mentioned that it may have something to do with a faulty aux water pump but wasn't able to tell me anything more specific.

I was curious what the aux water pump normally sounds like and what I should be checking for. Does it only go on when the engine is shut off and not while the car is running? How long is it supposed to actuate for and what are the consequences of it not running?

There is no check engine light and the car seems to run fine. I've noticed the fan does stay on for a little bit (maybe 30 seconds or so) after I turn off the car but that doesn't seem too unusual.

My car's build date (11/25/10) was after the date range specified for the aux water pump recall, so in theory it should have the "new and improved" version.

I'm going to take it to another indy shop this week to get an oil change and get a second opinion on the water pump, but I'm curious how concerned I should be about this in the meantime.

 

The aux water pump sounds like a small fish aquarium pump that you should be able to hear crouching down in front of the upper grill, it only comes on when you shut the car off. The aux circulates coolant through the turbo since it connects directly to the downpipe/primary catalytic converter which can reach 1400F degrees, this is also when the fan comes on when you shut the car off when it's slightly warm outside.

 

+1 like system said. The auxiliary water pump make a high pitch hum noise after you shut the car off. You can hear it in the front corner of the engine and run for a couple minutes afterwards to cool of the turbo. It sets right in-between the engine and transmission towards the front. Close to the oil filter housing.

11537630368 This is the newest part #.

http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/11537630368/

 

Thanks guys! Very helpful and good to know. I checked out the engine bay after bringing the car home yesterday and turning it off. I definitely heard the fan for maybe 10 seconds before it turn off which was by far the loudest thing I heard, so I'll need to listen specifically for the pump sound.

Follow up questions:
- How long does the car need to be on for the aux water pump to activate after shutoff? I.e. does it only turn on if the engine/turbo is at a certain temperature?
- How long does the pump operate for after shutoff? Is it short enough where I need someone else to turn off the car so I can listen for it?
- What's the impact of this pump failing to [consistently] activate? Guessing it's not great for the longevity of the turbo. Seems strange that an issue here wouldn't trigger any obvious warning to the driver as I could see many people not realizing there's an issue here until they bring the car in to a shop.

 

Welcome, have not really timed it , but it runs a few minutes after the car shuts off, without or with the fan on. It seems to run longer if you have the fan running longer in high heat or after a hard run like spirited driving or track day.

Once you warm up the car to operating , seems to kick it on after shut down.

If you don't hear it make that noise, after the car is running and then stopping, its bad.

I would check the plug connections or just change it.

There was a recall for these under certain dated , see if you see a part number on it and make sure you have the updated version, part number listed above.

Thats all the info I have.

 

Thanks again. Really appreciate the input on this.

I believe my build date (11/25/10) falls just outside of the warranty period. I'll poke around a bit when I get home to see if I can find a part number on it and make sure the obvious stuff (like electrical connections) are in place.

 

Also make you got the updated version, my 07 MCS didn't get the recalled pump replaced until 2013 (3000 miles before bought) which I believe is when the recall first came out.

 

Thanks! Yesterday I asked a local indy shop I take my BMW to for a quote on the replacement (in case it's necessary) and it came out to about $275. I did double check the part number on the quote and confirmed it was the 11537630368 version.

 

There is also a date on the bottom stamped into the metal bracket ##-## which tells you the year made. Should be around late 2012 or 2013 early with the recall done.

 

Looks easy to replace, is the $200+ labor charge justified?

 

Ammodave - are you having an indy do it or MINI dealership , if you do it yourself it would be your time . Should not be more then 1hr total to replace and then bleed the coolant system if you take your time. I dont have shop estimates .

 

Sorry for the confusion, but I'm not the OP. The OP reported that an indy shop offered to do the job for $275 and that seemed excessive to me.

 

Turned out there wasn't really an issue at all. I stopped by my shop this morning and they hooked up the computer to show me what was going on. They confirmed there were indeed 255 counts of the fault logged, which matches what the other shop told me, but all of the entries were from over 9K miles ago. Why didn't the other shop tell me this??

Anyway, they cleared the system so anything new should show up next time I bring it in for service.

Thanks for everyone's input on this. Re: ammodave -- I'd love to do the work myself and have generally worked on my cars in the past, but unfortunately living in a condo the last few years means no real way to do that. :/

 

Open circuit means it is not a complete circuit IE a break in the circuit. If you were to cut the ground wire or power wire that breaks circuit, and makes it "open". Someone may have been working in the area and hit the plug and loosened it. That long ago I guess there is no reason to worry. Probably tightened it and did not clear codes.

AWW go ahead and do your maintenance in the drive or parking lot, I once changed a clutch on my MGB roadster in an apartment parking lot, lol had no choice, but then I was young and broke (and dumb).

Walt

 

You are welcome, sounds like an older stored fault code.