E36 318i timing chain issues
Tony
collision (bumper damaged - about $2k to fix)
Hello,
Here is the story. Last November my car started making rattling
noises coming from the front of the cam area (eg. the timing chain).
At first it was slight rattling. By february it had gotten worse. By
march it was unberable. I took the car in to get the timing chain
tensioner replaced. That did NOT fix the problem and the mechanic
wanted to take the engine apart: $$$$. So, me being the
procrastinating moron, left it as is and kept driving it. I tried a
few things to make it better (made sure that the tensioner had been
replaced with a new one, checked the tension on the chain, check that
the chain had enough oil being splash to it, changed the viscocity of
the oil to 10w40, etc.) By now, it was just a matter of time for
something to break and sure enough, as my wife is driving to work, she
calls me and tells me that the car suddenly died. I arrive and to her
aid and find that the car wont start and that the engine spins quite
easily when the starter is engaged (eg. faster starting revs than
normal)... so, the car gets towed home. I take the valve cover off
and sure enough the chain has snapped - duh! Ok, no flames please.
So, yesterday I finally get around to try to fix thing. I buy a new
chain ($80) and a new chain tensioner ($50). I know that the original
problem might still be present. After spending the entire day taking
the thing apart (with the bentley manual) to replace the timing chain,
I give up. I am fed up with it! I spend every damn free vacation day
I have fixing something whehter it is in the car or in the house and I
never have time to enjoy my kids!!! That is it! My kids are 6 and 9
and they will never be that age again, and I am letting all this time
pass away while working at work, working in the house, working in the
car, working, working, working!!! So, no more working other than
that which produces income. From now on, I will spend quality time
with my kids and wife: fishing, resting, playing in the yard, being
there for them!
So, I don't want to bore you with my personal life so I'll get to the
point of my message:
When the chain broke, the car was travelling about 30-40mph, and
costed in gear to a stop (ok, maybe the clutch was engaged in the last
few meters of the coasting). Currently the engine can be spun by the
starter.
1) How can I tell if the valves are bent?
2) If the valves ARE bent, is the car worth fixing/replacing the
engine or the head? I figure the cost the same car (same
model/year/miles) is about $6-8k in good running.
3) If the valves ARE NOT bent, what is the cost of replacing the
timing chain on an engine that has the timing chain covers 90% taken
apart (all screws and parts are properly labeled in ziplock bags).
Will a mechanic want to work on an already started job? Dealer? Is
it worth it?
4) Any other options that you can think of (eg. sell the car for
parts, etc).
Thank you very much for your time.
Tony "free time" E.
PS - remove antispam if you want to reply by email.
Scott C
time with my kids during all stages of their lives, and now my son and I
just rebuilt from the head upwards on his 1990 535i engine.. and we loved
this project, doing it together. First, if you did not buy your parts
through BMA, you paid way to much.. my tensioner and guide were $8 and $4..
new head bolts, $1.50 each.. not $6 at the dealer.. a head gasket set, 19
gaskets in all, was $80, not $380 at the dealer... and the gaskets were the
exact same that came off the car. I took my head to a performance shop and
for $440 inc tax, everything was done.. and they took it apart.. which is
where the major money was spent. The head was trued (.2mm taken off), new
valve guides, seals, and on and on.. my intension was to just replace the
leaking head gasket, but after talking to many car friends, the all told me
to get the valve job while I had the head off. Anyway, I went all the way
down to the timing chain. It took me a week to do this, and this includes
towing my car to the BMW dealer to get a 36mm vibration damper bolt taken
off (314 ft / lb of torque) and the wheel collar pulled off (I'd never of
got this off). I think if the valves are not damaged, it would be worth your
time to fix the car. You may have to rent a car for a week, but if you plan
to keep the car ( and this is a key question), I'd fix it and drive it
another 100K miles.
Good luck... and the Bentley book helped me a lot.
Scott
"Tony" <testradav...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:4de29c65.02082...@posting.google.com...
Andrew Thomas
Just get a new engine - a short-block M42 won't be that expensive.
You managed to snap *both* chains (it's a duplex chain) at only
110,000 miles? Wow :)
bimmerman
head off.
Also change all the chain guides and Sprockets - top and bottom otherwise all
your work will be wasted.
These chains have a life of approx 100,000 to 120,000 miles.
Starting to do a lot of these now.
Never ignore a rattle.
Bimmerman
In article <4de29c65.02082...@posting.google.com>,
testradav...@yahoo.com says...
Serial # 19781010
(bimmerman) wrote:
>Depending on road speed - many valves WILL be bent . No big deal in lifting the
>head off.
>Also change all the chain guides and Sprockets - top and bottom otherwise all
>your work will be wasted.
>These chains have a life of approx 100,000 to 120,000 miles.
>Starting to do a lot of these now.
>Never ignore a rattle.
>
>Bimmerman
Seriously 100,000 to 120,000 miles. My 535 has twice that on the
original stock chain and sprockets. Is this specific to the 318's?
SEL
John Burns
> original stock chain and sprockets. Is this specific to the 318's?
I think so. My E30 318iS M42 was noisy when I bought it, it had been run
with a bad chain tensioner too long. I did the chain and sprockets at
130k. Early M42s have a tensioner that only last 80k, your M30 will be
fine.
--
Who needs a life when you've got Unix? :-)
Email: jo...@unixnerd.demon.co.uk, John G.Burns B.Eng, Bonny Scotland
Web : http://www.unixnerd.demon.co.uk - The Ultimate BMW Homepage!
Need Sun or HP Unix kit? http://www.unixnerd.demon.co.uk/unix.html
Serial # 19781010
<jo...@unixnerd.demon.co.uk> wrote:
>> Seriously 100,000 to 120,000 miles. My 535 has twice that on the
>> original stock chain and sprockets. Is this specific to the 318's?
>
>I think so. My E30 318iS M42 was noisy when I bought it, it had been run
>with a bad chain tensioner too long. I did the chain and sprockets at
>130k. Early M42s have a tensioner that only last 80k, your M30 will be
>fine.
Thanks John... I bought the chain/sprockets etc when I first bought
the car with 347,000km on it. Didn't install them as I had many other
issues to deal with. Then I spoke with a guy that has worked on BMW's
for 30 or so years (old German guy) and he said that I would never
need them so they have been sitting in my garage since. I may install
them when I do the engine rebuild this winter. Oh yeah, I have had the
car for 8 months now and put 20,000km on it as of yesterday. Engine is
still fairly quiet and runs great.
SEL