M54 Valve Cover Gasket DIY

[richardb]

Quick little DIY on the M54 6 cylinders valve cover gasket. Sometimes the covers themselves have very small hairline cracks that cause intake leaks and check engine lights. I've had to replace the entire cover on 2 cars so far, and they're not cheap ($350).

If you can get away with just a gasket, consider yourself very lucky!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkNaNGtnyYU

May as well do the spark plugs while you're in there:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjAojOoi_ZQ

[Serb404]

Originally Posted by richardb

Quick little DIY on the M54 6 cylinders valve cover gasket. Sometimes the covers themselves have very small hairline cracks that cause intake leaks and check engine lights. I've had to replace the entire cover on 2 cars so far, and they're not cheap ($350).

If you can get away with just a gasket, consider yourself very lucky!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkNaNGtnyYU

May as well do the spark plugs while you're in there:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjAojOoi_ZQ

very informative about to do mine, anyone have any thoughts on aluminum vs plastic valve covers for E53?

[Effduration]

The ONLY aluminum valve cover I would use is the Genuine M56 valve cover, which includes a better CCV design...

I have seen a few complaints about fitment of the asian-made aluminum M54 valve covers. Though I have heard about cracks and warpage on plastic valve covers, I have never had a problem with any of the plastic valve covers on my BMW's - more than 6 vehicles...and I have several spare valve covers from previous engine rebuilds on the shelf...

[Serb404]

Originally Posted by Effduration

The ONLY aluminum valve cover I would use is the Genuine M56 valve cover, which includes a better CCV design...

I have seen a few complaints about fitment of the asian-made aluminum M54 valve covers. Though I have heard about cracks and warpage on plastic valve covers, I have never had a problem with any of the plastic valve covers on my BMW's - more than 6 vehicles...and I have several spare valve covers from previous engine rebuilds on the shelf...

would you happen to have any spare newer covers for M54? I'm not looking to do anything extreme here, I'd prefer just the OEM plastic or asian made aluminum tbh doesn't look that bad, surprised mine has lasted this long tbh, I'm not having any codes or issues but I do have a small whistle noise when I am around 1.5 RPM even after replacing my intake boot, my theory is it might be the valve cover

[Effduration]

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