[F87source]

Credit: Burger Motorsports https://burgertuning.com/products/ti...a4da5e36&_ss=r



Introduction:

In this product review I will be taking a look at the BMS Titanium Coolant Bleeder Screw and why I think it’s one of the best bleeder screws if not the best one available on the market, and why I think any BMW owner who has a car that utilizes this type of bleeder screw should have one.


So if you’re interested in this product here’s a purchase link: https://burgertuning.com/products/ti...a4da5e36&_ss=r



Disclaimer:

Damage/Injury Disclaimer: Any information, guidance, technical advice, coding advice, tuning advice, datalogging advice, installation instruction, calculation, experiment, safety information, or product installation demonstrated in my reviews is to be consumed/read/understood/followed and or done at your own risk. I will not be responsible/held liable for personal injuries, injuries to others or any living being, or any damage to your car, or any property damage.

Monetary disclaimer: I do not make commission, or profits or any kind of monetary gain from the sale of the BMS Titanium Coolant Bleeder Screw.

Sponsorship disclaimer: The way my reviews work is that I determine what product that I want to buy and actually use on my own car, and during this process the product that I end up choosing is what I believe is the best option on the market. I then reach out to the company offering the product and ask them if they would be willing to sponsor me in a review, if the answer is yes then I write a review, if the answer is no I would end up buying the product (sometimes at a later date) but I wouldn’t complete a detailed review about it (I might write something, but not to the same extent as my standard reviews). But the critical thing is that I reach out for a sponsorship and not the other way around, this means that the products I am reviewing are actually things I believe in and would use on my own car. This also means that I am not being paid to review something I do not care about. Would I do a review if a sponsor reached out to me? The answer would depend on if I believed in the product, and I would make it clear in my review if this were the case. But at the time of writing this review, such an interaction has not occurred yet.


Time of writing disclaimer: everything I am writing about in this review is described at the time of writing and may not be updated in the future, so there is a potential that things are no longer accurate in my comparisons as parts are changed and upgraded as time passes.


Bias and comparison disclaimer: Throughout this review I will attempt to be as unbiased as possible while drawing comparisons to other products.


Mistakes and Inaccuracies Disclaimer: Throughout my review I will try to be as factually accurate as possible, but there are always chances that I make mistakes and write things that are incorrect/false. If this is the case please point it out to me and if indeed it is true that I am incorrect, I will correct these mistakes and apologize for them. Afterall I am only human, so mistakes can and will inevitably happen.


Subjective Disclaimer: Please note, these reviews are also written in my own opinion, so when I am comparing different products to determine what I see as the best, there are many factors that I go through to form this opinion. Obviously there will be disagreements between people, so I will do my best to objectively determine what I deem to be the best, but at the end of the day it is still just my own opinion whether it be right or wrong. Take whatever I say in my reviews with a grain of salt.


Information Disclaimer: I read a lot of material over the years just out of sheer interest or to make these reviews. I also accumulated a lot of knowledge over my many years of education that are really relevant to cars (Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics). That being said, my reviews are mostly based on this accumulated knowledge and I cannot always cite these sources due to the original source material possibly being lost to time, or there being so much knowledge compiled to make a single point. So, when possible I will cite my source(s) (for example data on tensile strength of a metal, or peer reviewed research). There are cases when I get information from blog posts, youtube videos, or forum posts I may not cite it, because I go through a lot of these sources only to use the gained knowledge in a small section of my review and it is not feasible to list them all. So pretty much what I am trying to say is I am not citing “common knowledge” - I will cite peer reviewed research and photos though (if applicable or used), or really explicit user experiences (if applicable or used).



Image Credits:

Images and videos used in this review are all property of their rightful owners as credited below each image, I am just using them for the purpose of this review but if you (the owner of the image) would like them removed please let me know via pm. Otherwise thanks to the respective image owners (I made sure to credit your online name and link where I found the photo) of the photos, without you this review would be so much more bland.



Review Disclaimer:

First and foremost I would like to thank Burger Motorsport for agreeing to sponsor me for this review. Despite this I will remain as unbiased as possible during the review. Please note, the dynamics of this relationship was that I reached out for a sponsorship review and not the other way around. This should demonstrate how I truly feel about the BMS Titanium Coolant Bleeder Screw - in the sense that I truly believe it is truly an excellent bleeder screw and one of the best ones available on the market. In fact I actually have this bleeder screw installed on my own m2 as of now, and I really love the durability/reliability it adds to my car.



What Are Bleeder Screws Used For?:


Credit: F87Source



Credit: F87Source



Credit: F87Source


The first topic I would like to talk about is what these bleeder screws are used for, and how to properly use them. So like the name suggests the bleeder screws are used for bleeding the cooling system, more specifically it is used to bleed the air bubbles out of the cooling system. The reason why these allow for air to be bled out of the cooling system is because the bleeder screw portion of the coolant expansion tank is the highest point of the cooling loop, because it is connected to the expansion hose which is connected to the coolant outlet from the oil filter housing - and this is the highest coolant outlet on the engine block and also the highest connection on the radiator. So all air bubbles from the cooling loop will exit the highest part of the engine block and the highest part of the radiator as the coolant level rises, and then get accumulated at this expansion hose. The air bubbles will then be forced through the expansion hose and into the expansion tank right to where the bleeder screw is. This allows the bleeder screw to bleed off all the air bubbles in the cooling system, and here is an image to help explain what I mean:



Credit: Photo from JWBIERE’s M235i and edited by F87Source
https://www.reddit.com/r/BMW/comment...an_engine_bay/


1) the box labeled 1 is the bleeder screw, this is the highest point in the expansion tank that can be used for bleeding, it is also where the expansion line connects to the tank and where coolant can actually return to the expansion tank after going through the entire cooling loop.

2) The circle labeled 2 is the expansion hose, you will notice one end connects to the expansion tank and the second connects to the coolant outlet hose from the engine.

3) The box labeled 3 is the coolant outlet hose from the engine, in particular the side that connects to the radiator. This is also the highest connection point on the radiator so all bubbles from the radiator will accumulate here.

4) The box labeled 4 is the coolant outlet hose from the engine, in particular the side that connects to the oil filter housing. Again this is the highest connection point on the engine so all bubbles from the engine block will accumulate here.


So in summary all of the air bubbles from the engine and radiator should collect in the coolant outlet hose as outlined in 3 and 4, and as the coolant level keeps rising there will be nowhere for the air to go except out via the coolant expansion line outlined in 2. This will lead to the coolant bleeder hose 1 and where the air can exit.



Now how do you properly use the bleeder screw? Well the bleeder screw should only be opened during the filling of the cooling system, and not during the bleed procedure as you can risk making a huge mess and BMW stipulates to keep the expansion tank closed during bleeding. So what you will do is open the bleeder screw fully, then fill the expansion tank via the normal cap and keep filling it until coolant comes out from the bleeder screw. Once this happens essentially most of the air has been forced out of the cooling loop. Then close up the expansion tank and run the built in bleed procedure, if the coolant level drops repeat the procedure until the coolant level remains steady. Once it does siphon the coolant out of the expansion tank until it is at the mid level (the seam).



Stock Bleeder Screw Issues:

Now I would like to discuss the issues that commonly happen to the stock bleeder screw, and are the reasons why you should upgrade to a metal bleeder screw.

1) Broken head:


Credit: 6plsshootme9 https://www.reddit.com/r/BmwTech/com...tom_half_of_a/




Credit: crdiscoverer's https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...r-screw-thread


As you can see above, the head of the stock plastic bleeder screw can break off the threads of the screw and this can be lodged in the expansion tank. This occurs when the threads on the bleeder screw get seized to the expansion tank (the coolant on the threads dries and just binds the threads up), and when you try to unscrew the bleeder screw it’ll just snap off. When this happens it is an extremely tedious task to try and drill out the threads and extract that broken screw, so this is a reason to upgrade to a metal aftermarket bleeder screw that cannot snap off.


2) Leaks:


Credit: symonh2000 https://www.babybmw.net/threads/leak...-screw.151998/

The stock bleeder screw uses imo a sub par o-ring that can deteriorate and crack over time, or get flattened and not rebound. This leads to an O-ring that leaks over time, and obviously this is not a good thing because you are losing coolant. Also if the o-ring can’t seal the cooling system is open and therefore it cannot build pressure and thus the boiling point of the coolant is decreased so you risk boiling your coolant and ending your driving session - whether that be spirited driving on the street or on the track.


3) Stripped screw:


Credit: F87Source



Credit: F87Source


The last issue that commonly occurs to the stock bleeder screw is the head gets easily stripped out due to the plastic becoming old and brittle. So what happens is that as you use a screwdriver to remove the bleeder screw, the plastic just cannot handle the load you are putting on it and the head of the bleeder screw strips out. Sometimes it is just a minor issue and you are still able to remove your bleeder screw - this is what happened to me as you can see above where a corner broke off. But it can completely strip out to the point where you can no longer use a screwdriver on the bleeder screw and now you are left trying to drill out the stripped out bleeder screw. So again this is another reason to upgrade to a metal bleeder screw.



BMS Coolant Using the Bleeder Screw:

Finally let’s take a look at the BMS coolant bleeder screw.


Compatibility:

First I would like to go over vehicle compatibility, and what cars can utilize this upgraded BMS coolant bleeder screw.


If your BMW’s coolant expansion tank utilizes this type of bleeder screw - part number: 11537793373


Credit: F87Source



Credit: F87Source


You can utilize the upgraded BMS coolant bleeder screw.


Furthermore here’s a real oem compatibility list:


https://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/par...&q=11537793373


1' E81   (02/2006 — 12/2011)
1' E87   (02/2003 — 02/2007)
1' E87 LCI   (01/2006 — 06/2011)
1' E88   (11/2006 — 10/2013)
1' E82   (11/2006 — 10/2013)
1' F20   (07/2010 — 02/2015)
1' F20 LCI   (05/2014 — 06/2019)
1' F21   (07/2010 — 02/2015)
1' F21 LCI   (05/2014 — 06/2019)
2' F22   (10/2012 — 06/2017)
2' F22 LCI   (09/2016 — 12/2019)
2' F87 M2   (11/2014 — 06/2017)
2' F87 M2 LCI   (09/2016 — 06/2018)
2' F23   (03/2014 — 06/2017)
2' F23 LCI   (09/2016 — 12/2019)
3' E46   (04/1997 — 12/2018)
3' E90   (02/2004 — 09/2008)
3' E90 LCI   (07/2007 — 02/2012)
3' E91   (02/2004 — 08/2008)
3' E91 LCI   (07/2007 — 05/2012)
3' E92   (05/2005 — 02/2010)
3' E92 LCI   (11/2008 — 06/2013)
3' E93   (09/2005 — 02/2010)
3' E93 LCI   (11/2008 — 10/2013)
3' F30   (02/2011 — 01/2016)
3' F30 LCI   (09/2014 — 03/2019)
3' G20   (10/2017 — 01/2020)
3' F31   (07/2011 — 07/2015)
3' F31 LCI   (09/2014 — 06/2019)
3' G21   (05/2018 — 12/2019)
3' F34 GT   (07/2012 — 06/2016)
3' F34 GT LCI   (09/2015 — 01/2020)
3' F35   (06/2011 — 08/2015)
3' F35 LCI   (01/2015 — 03/2019)
3' G28   (01/2018 — 12/2019)
4' F32   (11/2012 — 02/2017)
4' F32 LCI   (05/2016 — 12/2019)
4' F33   (03/2013 — 02/2017)
4' F33 LCI   (05/2016 — 12/2019)
4' F36 Gran Coupé   (07/2013 — 03/2017)
4' F36 Gran Coupé LCI   (05/2016 — 12/2019)
5' E39   (12/1997 — 12/2003)
5' E60   (02/2002 — 02/2007)
5' E60 LCI   (10/2005 — 12/2009)
5' E61   (11/2002 — 02/2007)
5' E61 LCI   (11/2005 — 05/2010)
5' F07 GT LCI   (08/2012 — 02/2017)
5' F10   (06/2010 — 06/2013)
5' F10 LCI   (10/2012 — 10/2016)
5' F11   (06/2010 — 06/2013)
5' F11 LCI   (10/2012 — 02/2017)
5' F18   (03/2011 — 08/2013)
5' F18 LCI   (10/2012 — 04/2017)
5' G30   (10/2015 — 01/2020)
5' G31   (03/2016 — 12/2019)
5' G38   (02/2016 — 12/2019)
6' E63 LCI   (05/2006 — 07/2010)
6' E64 LCI   (04/2006 — 07/2010)
6' G32 GT   (09/2016 — 01/2020)
7' E38   (12/1997 — 07/2001)
7' E65   (11/2001 — 07/2008)
7' E66   (03/2005 — 07/2008)
7' G11   (10/2014 — 02/2019)
7' G11 LCI   (01/2018 — 01/2020)
7' G12   (10/2014 — 02/2019)
7' G12 LCI   (01/2018 — 01/2020)
8' G14   (06/2018 — 12/2019)
8' G15   (06/2018 — 12/2019)
8' G16 Gran Coupé   (05/2018 — 12/2019)
i8 I12   (02/2013 — 02/2018)
i8 I12 LCI   (11/2016 — 11/2019)
i8 I15   (01/2017 — 11/2019)
X1 E84   (09/2008 — 12/2015)
X3 E83   (01/2003 — 07/2006)
X3 E83 LCI   (02/2006 — 08/2010)
X3 F25   (02/2011 — 08/2017)
X4 F26   (05/2013 — 03/2018)
X5 E53   (01/2000 — 09/2006)
X5 E70   (02/2006 — 06/2013)
X5 E70 LCI   (04/2009 — 06/2013)
X5 F15   (08/2012 — 06/2018)
X5 M F85   (04/2013 — 06/2018)
X5 G05   (09/2017 — 01/2020)
X6 E71   (01/2007 — 06/2014)
X6 E72 Hybrid   (10/2008 — 10/2011)
X6 F16   (09/2013 — 05/2019)
X6 M F86   (10/2013 — 05/2019)
X6 G06   (06/2018 — 01/2020)
X7 G07   (11/2017 — 12/2019)
Z4 E85   (01/2002 — 08/2008)
Z4 E86   (10/2005 — 08/2008)
Z4 E89   (01/2008 — 08/2016)
Z4 G29   (10/2017 — 12/2019)
MINI R56 LCI   (03/2009 — 11/2013)
MINI Clubman R55 LCI   (03/2009 — 06/2014)
MINI Cabrio R57 LCI   (04/2009 — 06/2015)
MINI Coupé R58   (12/2010 — 05/2015)
MINI Roadster R59   (01/2011 — 04/2015)
MINI Countryman R60   (01/2010 — 10/2016)
MINI Paceman R61   (03/2012 — 09/2016)
Phantom RR11   (09/2016 — 12/2019)
Phantom EWB RR12   (09/2016 — 11/2019)
Ghost RR4   (08/2008 — 11/2019)
Wraith RR5   (11/2012 — 12/2019)
Dawn RR6   (04/2015 — 11/2019)
Cullinan RR31   (10/2017 — 12/2019)
Zinoro M12   (01/2013 — 07/2015)
MS BMW Motorsport   ( — )


So if your vehicle is listed above, the BMS coolant bleeder screw is compatible.


Images:

Now let’s take a quick look at some images of the BMS bleeder screw:


Credit: F87Source


Credit: F87Source



Credit: F87Source



Specifications and Analysis:

Moving on let’s examine the BMS Titanium Coolant Bleeder screw in further detail:

1) Grade 5 aerospace titanium: The BMS coolant bleeder screw is CNC machined from Grade 5 aerospace titanium, this makes the bleeder screw extremely strong and resistant to corrosion. So you will never ever have to worry about the bleeder screw snapping off, corroding/aging and failing over time, or having the head strip ever again.

2) Viton O-ring:


Credit: F87Source


The BMS coolant bleeder screw utilizes an extremely high quality viton O-ring making it extremely resistant to all types of chemicals - in particular antifreeze and petroleum products (incase you unfortunately had an OFHG fail and oil ends up in your cooling system). These high quality O-rings are also very resistant to deformation and rebound after being flattened, this means you can reuse them over and over again and not have to worry about them not being able to reseal the expansion tank. These O-rings will also be very resistant to degradation and dry rotting due to ozone and engine bay heat.

3) 4 mm Allen head:


Credit: F87Source



Credit: F87Source


The BMS coolant bleeder screw utilizes a 4 mm Allen head, this makes it alot easier to tighten and loosen the bleeder screw without slipping off vs. an extremely large and shallow phillips head on the stock bleeder screw.

4) M10 X 1.0 Threads:


Credit: F87Source



Credit: F87Source


The BMS coolant bleeder screw utilizes M10 X 1.0 threads just like the stock bleeder screw, and thus it will fit without any issues or thread damage.


Now I would also like to address the concern I have heard with metal bleeder screws, and that they expand at different rates vs. the stock plastic threads in the expansion tank and thus running them long term will cause issues and damage to the threads in the expansion tank. Well my response is that simple isn’t true, because the stock plastic expansion tank has a metal female thread insert for the bleeder screw to screw into. So this makes the aforementioned concern moot.


Credit: F87Source


Alternatives:

Finally the last thing I would like to quickly discuss is the alternative bleeder screws that you typically find on aliexpress, ebay, or amazon - and these are the brass bleeder screws.


Credit: TAKPART https://www.amazon.ca/TAKPART-Upgrad.../dp/B07CHJ4W9M

So the issue with these bleeder screws mainly revolves around 2 areas:

1) the o-ring: these bleeder screws typically use really cheap O-rings that may get flattened and not rebound after use, and this means they will leak the next time you reuse the bleeder screw. Or they are not very chemical resistant and will swell and crack over time after exposure to the coolant, or even dry rot due to ozone or engine bay heat.

2) Threads: sometimes these cheaper bleeder screws were really poorly made and have very rough threads that can gall and damage the threads in the expansion tank.



Installation Tips:

Installation is fairly simple, you remove the stock bleeder screw with a phillips screwdriver and install the new one with a 4 mm hex key. I would also recommend using pure undiluted antifreeze as lubrication for the O-ring, the reason why is it will not dry out as easily and this helps prevent seizing.


Installed Images:

Finally here are some images of the stock bleeder screw vs. the BMS titanium coolant bleeder screw, and the BMS bleeder screw fully installed in my car:



Credit: F87Source



Credit: F87Source



Credit: F87Source



Credit: F87Source



Credit: F87Source



Credit: F87Source



Credit: F87Source



Credit: F87Source



Credit: F87Source



How to Bleed Your Coolant Using the Bleeder Screw:

Here are some detailed steps on how to bleed your coolant:

- First you will ensure the entire cooling system is put back together before starting. Then you will remove the bleeder screw on the expansion tank:


Credit: F87Source


After this is done, you will fill the expansion tank until coolant comes out of the bleeder screw, since this is connected to the expansion hose which is connected to the radiator hose from the oil filter housing (highest point in the cooling loop), filling the system until it overflows from this bleeder screw means it is filled to the absolute max and this will drive almost all the air out of the system.

- Next you will suck out some of the additional coolant in the expansion tank to bring it down to the max line, and then tighten up the bleeder screw and close the expansion tank cap, and begin the built-in bleeding procedure.



1) Connect a battery charger to the underhood jump terminals, do not connect to the battery directly or else you risk damaging the IBS.

2) Switch the ignition to accessory mode, aka click the start stop button without your foot on the brake or clutch.

3) Set high beam to low, set fan speed 1, set temperature to maximum for both zones, set driving mode to sport.

4) Press the gas pedal to the floor and hold it there for ~10 seconds, you can let go when you hear the water pump start.

The bleeding procedure will start and take 10-12 mins, and it will stop automatically afterwards. Check the coolant level in the expansion tank after this is done, and top it off to the middle line - which is the thick seam on this car. Or if you have too much coolant suck it out to the middle line.


Repeat these steps until the coolant level no longer drops and no additional coolant needs to be added after the bleed cycle has been run. That is it! For me personally, the last time I did a coolant flush 4 years ago, I bled the system ~20-30 times just because I was paranoid, but it was probably done after 3-5 bleeds.



Summary:

So overall the BMS Coolant Bleeder screw is a fantastic little mod to have on your car, as it prevents you from running into trouble if your stock bleeder screw breaks and gets stuck in the expansion tank, or causes a cooling leak.

If you’re interested in purchasing one here’s a link: https://burgertuning.com/products/ti...a4da5e36&_ss=r

[F87source]

Reserved for Future Posts.