2007 BMW 328 N52 90 E91 E92 E93 Brake booster vacuum pump replacement

This is a step by step guide to replacing the brake booster vacuum pump with noted tool sizes and torque specs as needed.

[@albertonunez851]

You my friend are awesome! You have given me the courage to move forward. Thank you!

[@barrettgarage1088]

Thank you, if you have the initiative to watch the video you have the ability to do this repair. It is not as bad as you would think.

[@geosgarageandharleyusa2950]

That’s great you took time to make the video . Now I know what I need on my car 🙏

[@jafarhon]

you are awesome, i was looking for this video and here you are, thanks man, now i can do mine.

[@barrettgarage1088]

Yeah when mine went bad there was no video on this to give me insight so I took my phone and tried my best to cover every step so no one else has to go in blindly on this repair then created this channel I will have more videos coming as bmw tends to break easily

[@blackmaninamerica2000]

Thanks your video may help me on my 328xi my brake pedal is hard to push but I'm only running on three cylinders so I'm going to fix this problem first and then see how the brakes feel afterwards

[@barrettgarage1088]

Thanks man if you have any questions just ask

[@user-lq5ui9yq2t]

Not all hero’s wear capes

[@barrettgarage1088]

Thank you I tried to be as detail oriented as possible to help everyone with this problem

[@markt9438]

TMI LOL Just Kidding ! Excellent DIY ,You got Chestnuts Buddy ! Even a caveman can do this Now .

[@barrettgarage1088]

Yea it's not hard

[@dazeboy79]

Thanks for sharing! Good work!

[@barrettgarage1088]

Thank you this was my first video I did using my phone I did it because there wasn't one and I wanted to help people.

[@dazeboy79]

@@barrettgarage1088 could this cause the booster diaphragm &/or MC to go bad or lose vacuum sooner? i replaced valve cover & gasket, valvetronic motor & gasket, eccentric shaft sensor & gasket, plugs & coils, OFHG, throttle body gasket, I still have a vacuum leak i think, i was misfiring and found missing DISA valve, i think another vacuum leak source could be this vacuum pump and lines &/or brake booster &/or Master Cylinder, i also see corrosion all over the vacuum line attached to the pump, i assumed it got degraded due to oil leak from oil filter housing gasket before my repair but not too sure now... i have bad brake booster symptoms also just wondering if on the right track.. thanks again brother!

[@itzdarian06]

Hey man thanks for having literally the only video, just to clarify, under normal circumstances I just pop the cover, remove the t55 bolt, remove the t30 bolts, slide out pump, slide new one into gear reinstall and torque 3 bolts then t55? And just to confirm, is it possible for the gear to stay in while I just remove the three bolts from the gear holes then align the gear back up with the pump and reinstall with the same holes? And in regards into installing and removing the gear, is it okay to remove and torque it just as it, meaning can I just unscrew and screw it back in now issue? Or will it need to be counterbalanced or held in place so it doesnt spin

[@barrettgarage1088]

Yes i haven't had any issues if you do it like I did in the video there has been no issue in the last 2 years since I did this. This video is special to me I couldn't find a video so I video everything I did and how I did it specifically to be my first video and this is what got me interested in making videos to help people.

[@Huarnaisl]

Hello, my middle screw broke off while driving. I have now disassembled everything, removed the vacuum pump and pressed the chain tensioner to the left. Still, I can't get the sprocket out. The instructions say simply tilt the top in the direction of travel and take it out. Unfortunately, my sprocket is damaged because it was still running on the shaft, which is why I want to replace it. Somehow I don't have that much space with the chain.

[@barrettgarage1088]

If the center screw broke off then it should give enough play in the chain to get the sprocket loose. Pull the sprocket outward and try to work the chain off of it then remove it.

[@alexandercastello9046]

Tank you for you help good video the help me Very much

[@barrettgarage1088]

No problem

[@aaronspencer4483]

How did you hold the timing sprocket on the vacuum pump while torquing the center bolt?

[@iavila2189]

So question my pump just went out completely when you took the front seal off what was the easiest angle to slide it out. And did you use a pry bar or just a regular flathead

[@barrettgarage1088]

Regular flathead to remove the front seal no pry bar I didn't want to break anything

[@bekhzodanvarov9860]

Is there anyway you can mess up the timing while removing the pump?

[@barrettgarage1088]

No this is a secondary chain that just comes from the crank to to vacuum pump

[@bekhzodanvarov9860]

@@barrettgarage1088 one more question, I ran the car and I pulled one of the vacuum hoses apart from the pump and up before it connects off to another one. There was no air coming out is this a sign of a bad vacuum pump?

[@barrettgarage1088]

@@bekhzodanvarov9860 absolutely I had no pressure on mine but after changing it I had strong vacuum pressure

[@bekhzodanvarov9860]

@@barrettgarage1088 thank you, you deserve a sub and a like

[@pine-sol5177]

I have a N55 and I have oil all in my vacuum lines. Could this be a failure in the pump due to oil bing pumped into the vacuum system? Had codes for my boost solenoid going out and also have lots of turbo lag, could the vacuum pump cause these problems?

[@barrettgarage1088]

Mine had oil in the vacuum line from the pump to the brake booster. If you have oil in other vacuum lines that would indicate ccv failure.

[@jamescreel9771]

Thanks so much for your video. It was a great help! I was having an issue aligning the sprocket to access the bolts for the vacuum pump. Any advice?

[@barrettgarage1088]

Yea I was only able to align it when I removed the sprocket bolt and removing it completely then I was able to get the bolts out and they were tight felt like loctite on them so be prepared

[@jamescreel9771]

@@barrettgarage1088 thanks again! They talk in the BMW manual about rotating the central bolt of the crankshaft, but I didn't know if that would throw timing off somehow. Your way seems much easier!

[@barrettgarage1088]

@@jamescreel9771 don't drop the chain if you do it will be hard to get that is why I hooked it with a wire to keep it from falling down

[@jamescreel9771]

@@barrettgarage1088 Will do, thanks! Also, this may be a stupid question now, but should I have had the car in neutral while doing this work.... Or does it matter?

[@barrettgarage1088]

It does not matter the slight movement won't affect the transmission with it being either auto or manual. Don't let it spin backwards you will get slack in the timing chain going backwards, that will cause valve damage. Find something and lock the sprocket to get the bolt loose.

[@ishmaelwhite15]

?.is there a way to replace the guides without pulling engine completely apart

[@barrettgarage1088]

You can change them removing everything on the front of the engine. Remove the timing cover and change them but leave the chain on the cams and crank so it will still be in time. Then you can change them.

[@frankrempel8272]

Quick question, if you had not broken the t30, would you not have had to take the sprocket out? Also if that does happen, is there a possibility of the chain coming off of the other sprocket it is connected to? Or is there some sort of retainer to keep it on? Thanks.

[@barrettgarage1088]

First question yes I would have taken the sprocket off just for better visibility when lining new pump up and easier to get the bolts back into the pump without sprocket in the way, second question im not sure that's why I kept tension on the chain with it tied up to make sure if there wasn't anything then I wouldn't have to worry, third ill have to look in my breakdown manual when I get off work I don't remember right off if there is or not. I hope that helps.

[@Bmwguyyyy]

Dose this cause poor engine performance

[@barrettgarage1088]

No this is separate creating vacuum pressure for the brake booster

[@driftdriftow3264]

I have a BMW e60 n52 brake in winter, there is a tight brake in summer. From what can be?

[@anupjthomas]

This doesn't work for N52/N54 or any BMW engine which doesn't have a vacuum in the intake (thanks to VANOS). These engines use separate vacuum pump for the brake booster. Sending seafoam through the brake booster vacuum line won't put it through the engine.

[@barrettgarage1088]

Your right if I said that I was thinking of a traditional engine and didn't mean to.

[@wessel5673]

how on earth u got of the cap infront of the chain?

[@barrettgarage1088]

I ordered a new one and when I seen it was thin metal I took a screwdriver and popped a hole in the center, pried slightly, and it popped right out.

[@wessel5673]

@@barrettgarage1088and those 3 torxs pretty damn stuck is that normal?

[@GreggSchroeder81]

How did you determine that the brake vacuum pump was bad? Sometimes my brakes work okay but the booster seems "weak". As in, if I happen to pump the brakes once before coming to a stop, the 2nd time I depress the pedal, it is hard, and I have to press like crazy to stop the car. After I release the brake pedal, the boost rebuilds after a few seconds and it's good for another 1 pump. However, when the ambient temp is below 40, I have only about a 1/2 brake pump before it goes hard. In other words, the initial brake depress (first half of a second) feels normal but then as I continue pushing longer and deeper, it goes hard. I've checked for a vacuum leak and can't find any. I'm suspecting the brake vacuum pump as well, but I'd like to test it before I go to the work to replace. Any way to test the vacuum with basic (or rentable) tools? Thanks,

[@barrettgarage1088]

The back of my vacuum pump had oil leaking around it for starters. When I pulled the vacuum hose off the booster there was very little suction. My brakes cold or warm would be fine one minute then would be super hard to push and left me struggling to slow the car. That's what made me start investigating the pump because my issues were not like the ones people described in forums.

[@GreggSchroeder81]

@@barrettgarage1088 Thank you for the informative response! Yesterday afternoon I was able to rule out my vacuum pump as the culprit, as I bought a vacuum tester, and it's pulling just fine. (~28in mercury) I'm now suspecting my booster... :(

[@GreggSchroeder81]

@@barrettgarage1088 Thanks for the reply! I ended up replacing my brake booster, rebleeding the wheels with INPA (because I had to remove the DSC to get the booster out) and that fixed my brake problem entirely. I did gain an ABS light part way through the bleeding process and I had a time resolving that. Eventually ran a series of recalibration procedures in INPA and then cleared it and it went away for good. Since the cruise control and DTC won't work without the ABS system functioning properly, it was somewhat pressing that I get that light cleared.

[@lame.e3415]

you can also get a vacuum gauge and take off the hose for the brake booster and measure the amount of vacuum you have!

[@GreggSchroeder81]

@@lame.e3415 Correct. I bought a cheap vacuum gauge from harbor freight and used that to determine that my vacuum was not a problem. I even built a smoke tester to ensure that the rest of my lines and connections were good.

[@alpinen52ny79]

I came across your video looking to solve my problem, I don't know if the same thing happened to you...well my brakes don't react fast, sometimes they do and sometimes don't, and this happens more when I'm on the highway, i already bleed my brakes, check the caliper and guide pins they were fine and also the brake pistons are working fine. ¿ What do you think is happening ?

[@barrettgarage1088]

Mine would get work fine one minute then I press the brake and it would be hard to push the pedal then be easy the next time. Yours sounds like something I've seen on another vehicle where the master cylinder was allowing fluid to pass instead of compressing internally so there was no air in lines but delayed when pressed like there was air in the line even though there wasn't air in the line.

[@DespiertaVe]

You didn’t use any special tool ? I am afraid of doing it cause in another video they said you need a special tool since the chain is part of the timing chain😩😩

[@barrettgarage1088]

They sell a special tool to pull that cover out but since it has to be replaced I just popped a hole in it and pried it off.

[@DespiertaVe]

@@barrettgarage1088 what about the chain ? Since you have to rotate that metal wheel in order to get those 3 torx bolts out. Does affect the timing?

[@barrettgarage1088]

@DespiertaVe I took the center torx bolt out, unhooked the chain, tied it up so it don't fall, the removed the sprocket out of the way . Then I was able to reach all three vacuum pump bolts with ease. Then I put it together the same way I took it apart.

[@barrettgarage1088]

@DespiertaVe and no it does not affect the timing this small chain just comes from the crankshaft sprocket to the vacuum pump. There is no timing involved.

[@FourtyKevgangg]

Hey quick question. Do you know where I can get the replacement mounting bolts specifically the middle bolt?

[@barrettgarage1088]

www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/showparts?id=VA33-USA-12-2006-E90-BMW-328i&diagId=11_3758

[@barrettgarage1088]

ISA screw M6X40 10.9 3 11667564953

[@barrettgarage1088]

ISA screw M10X30 1 11667528325

[@barrettgarage1088]

There I got time off of work to find it but there is the center and the mounting bolts

[@rogerreyes4694]

What’s the part number to the plastic cover you broke off

[@barrettgarage1088]

The part number is 11117530262

[@rogerreyes4694]

Thank you I was gonna ask there Is no wrong way to put the chain on right it’s not to be timed right ?

[@barrettgarage1088]

@@rogerreyes4694 no it dont have to be timed there is no sensors that monitor vacuum pressure or revolations. So just get the chain on and tensioner and you will be good.

[@rogerreyes4694]

Awesome thank you do you have the part # for the tool that’s used to remove that cover you broke

[@lostzlegend598]

Hey man how did you keep the engine in time??

[@barrettgarage1088]

I didn't take the timing chain loose the crankshaft has a dual sprocket one for the timing chain and one for the vacuum pump this is similar to the old 12 valve Cummins motors. But the vacuum chain does not affect timing at all.

[@jayrodriguez5280]

I bought the tool and I don’t see one single vid on how to use it . I’m having trouble . How did you even hammer it ?? I don’t have room . You’re the only video for a n52 that’s shows all this . And Can u not just take the middle bolt off and the chain still be fine ? Please answer

[@barrettgarage1088]

Yea in the video I did not use the tool it's not needed

[@jayrodriguez5280]

@@barrettgarage1088 ok but how did u hammer the cover off ? I have the tool but no instructions at all . I am struggling to take this cover off

[@barrettgarage1088]

@@jayrodriguez5280 I hammered a flat screwdriver through the center its just a tin cap I had a new one and seen it was like the lid on a paint bucket so I went through center and popped it out it sits about a inch from the pulley

[@jayrodriguez5280]

@@barrettgarage1088 I’ve been trying to hammer but I’m not getting no where I got two bolts in there to try n pry it out but nothing . I wish u showed how u did it

[@barrettgarage1088]

@@jayrodriguez5280 I thought about that after I posted the video but I had to hammer it in at an angle to get enough swing

[@hiiamyu]

Hello, Would you be able to to remove these t30 vacuum pump bolts without removing the sprocket

[@barrettgarage1088]

Sporo bracket?

[@barrettgarage1088]

If you mean leave the sprocket in and remove the pump yes it's possible my situation was not that easy my t30 broke off inside the bolt so I had to remove the spocket in order to get the broken piece out in order to remove the pump

[@hiiamyu]

@@barrettgarage1088 My apologies. I am not sure why I spelt sprocket like that. If the sprocket doesn't need to be removed, then I am assuming the special tool is only for removing/installing the seal cap?

[@barrettgarage1088]

Yes the tool is only for the cap and holding the sprocket still so the center bolt can be removed the special tool is not necessarily needed.

[@hiiamyu]

@@barrettgarage1088 Awesome! I was worried that removing the sprocket will fk up the timing or something.

[@autodjelovi2092]

i have problems with weak braking force on my e60. What could be the reason for that? 🙋‍♂️

[@barrettgarage1088]

Weak braking? I'm assuming your referring to the pedal being soft/spongy feeling so that could be a caliper leaking or air in the line since air compresses easier than brake fluid. If that is not what you meant let me and we will figure it out.

[@autodjelovi2092]

@@barrettgarage1088 no i have normal hard brake pedal but not have power 🤔

[@barrettgarage1088]

@@autodjelovi2092 scan it to see if there are errors in the dsc module if there is your abs pump could be failing not sending the power to apply appropriate braking force

[@stephenwillis9518]

Hi, what is the part number for the case oil seal ?

[@barrettgarage1088]

P/N is 11117530262. Good luck.

[@alejandroborrego4642]

🤯🇨🇺🤟👏👏🙏🙏🙏🙏

[@jth1703]

Symptoms?

[@barrettgarage1088]

Hard brake pedal most of the time sometime it would be softer but not like it should be so I removed the vacuum line going to the brake booster while running and I could hear it trying but when I put my finger on the end there was no suction to create any vacuum pressure for the brake booster to work.

[@xavde44]

Torx de 55…

[@driftdriftow3264]

I have a BMW e60 n52 brake in winter, there is a tight brake in summer. From what can be?

[@driftdriftow3264]

I have a BMW e60 n52 brake in winter, there is a tight brake in summer. From what can be?