Power Steering Pump - What’s the go-to?

[R3VM3UP]

It’s time to replace the PS pump on my S54 swapped E30. What’s the prevailing wisdom these days?

A while back there was some discussion of M54 pumps being an option, but there was not a consensus on whether they were internally compatible. On top of that there seem to be some M54s that came with LUK pumps rather than the ZF that the S54 uses.

Is the Bosch reman the way to go? Any reasonably priced non-reman alternatives out there? I’d be interested to hear people’s experiences with whatever you’ve used.

Edit: does anyone happen to know the diameter of the S54 pulley? I currently have an E36 pump on the car which I believe is a 135mm pulley, I’m wondering if I can just swap over that one.

[bmwfnatic]

I've used the Bosch reman twice now, seems allright.

[bigjae46]

Bosch reman has been fine for me.

[elbert]

Edit: does anyone happen to know the diameter of the S54 pulley? I currently have an E36 pump on the car which I believe is a 135mm pulley, I’m wondering if I can just swap over that one.

Why not continue to use an E36 pump, does it not work well for what you need?
I think I have a stock pulley laying around somewhere I can measure if you still want one.

[jayjaya29]

The s54 power steering pump pulley has a different offset compared to the e36 m3 power steering pump. IE, the belt will not line up with the rest of the serp belt system if you put the E36 pulley on the s54/m54 power steering pump.

[elbert]

I think I have a stock pulley laying around somewhere I can measure if you still want one.

I measured it at 135 mm in diameter.

[bigjae46]

The s54 power steering pump pulley has a different offset compared to the e36 m3 power steering pump. IE, the belt will not line up with the rest of the serp belt system if you put the E36 pulley on the s54/m54 power steering pump.

The actual pump is identical...could it just be the mount bracket which is bolted to the pump?

If the OP wants some power steering relief shims...I have some

[jayjaya29]

The actual pump is identical...could it just be the mount bracket which is bolted to the pump?

If the OP wants some power steering relief shims...I have some

The E36 M3 pump is definitely different to the E46 M3 power steering pump. It has a longer "neck" compared to the E46 one. Hence the difference in pulley offsets.

[R3VM3UP]

Why not continue to use an E36 pump, does it not work well for what you need?
I think I have a stock pulley laying around somewhere I can measure if you still want one.

I’m chasing a squeak from somewhere on my belt drive and all the pulleys are already new. E36 pump has probably 170k miles on it and is from an M52. I’m replacing the alternator at the same time. Parts are high mileage and belt drive access is a pain on the E30 because clearance to the rad is tight so I’m just looking for a one and done solution over the winter.

Sounds like the Bosch reman pump is the way to go, I’ll probably just take that route.

[elbert]

I’m chasing a squeak from somewhere on my belt drive and all the pulleys are already new. E36 pump has probably 170k miles on it and is from an M52. I’m replacing the alternator at the same time. Parts are high mileage and belt drive access is a pain on the E30 because clearance to the rad is tight so I’m just looking for a one and done solution over the winter.

My question was why not replace it with another E36 pump, instead of re-inventing the wheel. Unless it was a bad fit to begin with.

[R3VM3UP]

Because it’s an S54 and I’m not sure the E36 pump is intended to spin as fast as it does on the S54. Plus the bracket is different on the E36 pump and required spacers to align with S54 pulleys so I’m not 100% sure the alignment is perfect.

I was trying to keep the budget under control when originally putting the car together but now that it’s up and running I have less patience and just would rather pay more to have a reliable solution that I don’t have to think about. There are plenty of other areas of the car that could benefit more from me putting some thought into.

[samthejam]

A M54 X5 pump will bolt up and work just fine once the brackets are exchanged over. I had to use one in an emergency on a road trip.

Externally from every picture I have seen and when swapping them in the parking lot first hand. I noticed no discernible differences visually.

As far as internal differences, I am unsure.

However this is my second pump in this car.

The first was just another used replacement E46 M3 pump. So I’ve had two go bad. One was bad when I got the car.

No discernible change switching to the X5 pump as far as steering feel or assist.

Having a track event coming up soon and will verify how it holds up with 8k rpm.