Spare engines.

[getty150]

Originally Posted by X5chemist

getty150, super nice collection! Are they all daily drivers?

Yep all dailies...if one is down the others step in its place. My way of getting around the BMW reliability myth. But after the first I came to realize heck... these are good cars. I'm also not "under the gun" when repairs have to happen on the weekend or I'm waiting for a hose or some uncommon part which is usually out of stock. And I spend $$ when i want to, you know.

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[X5chemist]

Originally Posted by Effduration

https://www.e46fanatics.com/threads/...ption.1259657/

See post #4...It will clean the carbon off your rings, and will likely fix your oil burning issue. It will also completely de-sludge your engine.

This of course assumes your CCV is fresh and not failed.

The instructions are printed and nicely recorded in my X5 notebook. I may skip doing the procedure this time around. Letting it idle for half a day makes me nervous. After a coolant pipe update, I won't be so nervous.

An E70 passed me up the other day. He noticed my X5 and I noticed his. Hope his a/c works. It was warm and all the windows were down. I won't complain about mine smoking from a dead stop. Or a full WOT burst of speed. The E70 let a puff of smoke on every gear shift!

[Spanker]

Can you swap a M54 automatic engine into a manual transmission car….just by changing the flywheel? Or is there more to it?



B][/B]

Originally Posted by Effduration

Yes, it's certainly compatible...

I like to have a couple of M54's on hand in case I come across an E46, E53, E83, E39, E36/7 that blew a head gasket or has some other engine failure. I would often pick up used engines,...usually overheated, and rebuild them. I really only want the 3.0 liter M54B30...

I found myself a few years ago with five M54's ready to go, so I sold several, including one I shipped across the country. Now I have one B30 and one B25..

But the truth is, that if you can keep oil and coolant in your M54, it will likely last longer than the rest of the car.

[Effduration]

Sure you can use a manual engine in an auto car and vice-versa...

To use a manual engine in an auto, you need to swap the flywheel AND remove the pilot bearing from the manual engine...

To use an auto engine in a manual car you need to swap the flywheel AND install a pilot bearing in the rear of the crank...easy peasy..

I just bought two M54 B30's with problems for $100 total.....one was hydro-locked driving thru a car wash (likely has bent connecting rods) and the other was a race engine that lost its oil pump sprocket...

Hoping I can salvage at least one of them...I have spare M54 blocks, heads, cams, etc.

[Bdc101]

Originally Posted by X5chemist

Thanks, an OEM CCV is ready for installation. A coolant pipe refresh is coming soon. The CCV will go in at the same time. An oil pan gasket and OHFG stopped all the oil drips. It's nice to see a garage and driveway drip free.

During winter driving, white goo was visible on the oil cap. Summer driving has no buildup. Would that be a sign of a bad CCV?

It's at 159645 miles.

Is that the original CCV at 160k miles?



If you see sludge build up during the cold season then you absolutely need to take things apart to see if there is any more. The sludge under the oil cap is not a problem, it's the sludge in all the hoses and lines. My vacuum distributor (the big plastic thing on top of the intake manifold) was completely clogged with mayonnaise after only 90k miles.



A cold climate increases sludge buildup, but short trips are worse, even in hot weather. So even those in warm climates should take the vacuum lines apart to look for any sludge.



I would also wager that your oil burning problems are caused by the CCV if it hasn't been changed in 10+ years or is original.

[Spanker]

How much would a block cost that still has hood cylinder head threads in them…or should I just time wert anyways?

Would also like to upgrade piston rings? Are these blocks okay to overbite and or hone? I thought they may have a special cylinder hardness process…

QUOTE=Effduration;1230795]Sure you can use a manual engine in an auto car and vice-versa...

To use a manual engine in an auto, you need to swap the flywheel AND remove the pilot bearing from the manual engine...

To use an auto engine in a manual car you need to swap the flywheel AND install a pilot bearing in the rear of the crank...easy peasy..

I just bought two M54 B30's with problems for $100 total.....one was hydro-locked driving thru a car wash (likely has bent connecting rods) and the other was a race engine that lost its oil pump sprocket...

Hoping I can salvage at least one of them...I have spare M54 blocks, heads, cams, etc.[/QUOTE]

[Effduration]

Originally Posted by Spanker

How much would a block cost that still has hood cylinder head threads in them…or should I just time wert anyways?

Would also like to upgrade piston rings? Are these blocks okay to overbite and or hone? I thought they may have a special cylinder hardness process…

When you say a "block" do you mean lower half of engine with pistons and crank or a bare block without? An overheated M54 would most likely have a good block with pistons and crank. The head would be warped. You can buy an overheated M54B30 for $100 - $500, but may take a while to find.

If you want a bare block, I can sell you one. I can even time-sert it for you.

I always time-sert the block when I pull a cylinder head for any reason. I view the aluminum threads as one-time use. I also have the time-sert tools.

I re-ring the M54 pistons all the time. I use the standard Mahle rings that have been upgraded with bigger oil drain slits for better drainage and less carbon build-up.

As for honing, I don't hone the cylinders unless there are grooves in the cylinder walls that I can feel with my finger nail. Most of the time, I still see factory cross-hatch in the cylinders and leave them alone.

[Spanker]

My 2003 X5 overheated on the highway. I looked in my rear view mirror and saw a huge plume of presumably water vapor and then the engine shut down and refused to start. It started and drove the next day, but was missing and had the tell tale signs of bubbles in the coolant.

Previous to it overheating, I wanted to do something about the excess oil consumption. So I figure rather than just do a head job, put some piston rings and new bearings in it and fix the head bolt threads on an engine stand. From what I understand, it isn’t too much more work to just remove the engine. I’ve changed the engine on my manual vette with no issues. This looks easier.

So I guess I probably need a cylinder head eh? How much are non warped heads going for ?

Originally Posted by Effduration

When you say a "block" do you mean lower half of engine with pistons and crank or a bare block without? An overheated M54 would most likely have a good block with pistons and crank. The head would be warped. You can buy an overheated M54B30 for $100 - $500, but may take a while to find.

If you want a bare block, I can sell you one. I can even time-sert it for you.

I always time-sert the block when I pull a cylinder head for any reason. I view the aluminum threads as one-time use. I also have the time-sert tools.

I re-ring the M54 pistons all the time. I use the standard Mahle rings that have been upgraded with bigger oil drain slits for better drainage and less carbon build-up.

As for honing, I don't hone the cylinders unless there are grooves in the cylinder walls that I can feel with my finger nail. Most of the time, I still see factory cross-hatch in the cylinders and leave them alone.

[Effduration]

Okay...that helps.

I have done an in-car head gasket on an E53 and now drive that car daily.
An in-car head gasket on E53 6 cyl is nice in that you never have to put the car on jack stands.

I have also done several out-of-car M54 engine rebuilds.

most of the oil consumption issues are due to carbon-clogged oil control rings. The new Mahle OEM piston rings have bigger drains slits to fix this...with proper oil change intervals.

Below are high level, incomplete overviews of your options.

Option 1- Do an in-car head gasket and treat oil consumption with a thorough engine flush
- Take your head off (with exhaust manifold attached) and send it to a machinist. About 70% of the time in my experience you can save a head. Machine and valve work $300 - If you need to replace a cylinder head it's $200 - $800+ depending on condition (used vs machined)... I have a few on the shelf...

-Put a straight edge on the block and make sure it is not warped, most of the time they are not.
-Time-sert the engine block.. I rent the tools..you want Time-sert kit 1090.
-Change hard coolant pipes and a few other things while the head is off.
-Re-time the Vanos timing (tools needed) and fire it up.
-address your oil consumption with a thorough engine flush procedure...See post # 7 above.


Option #2 Rebuild your own engine out of car.
- drop your engine /trans/exhaust manifolds as a single unit on the subframe out the bottom- see Nathan's DIY garage video on this.
- separate trans, axles, front diff, etc. and put engine on a stand
- same as above, send the head to a machine shop
- pull oil pan off and remove pistons
- re-ring pistons (with upgraded OEM mahle rings) and reinstall with new conn-rod bearings and bolts
- don't touch main bearings.
- time-sert block, reinstall head and re-time vanos as above.
- the big benefit here is that you can seal the oil pan which is likely leaking.
- oil consumption is fixed with new rings and without engine flush.

I think Option 2 is a little more work, but if you have time and space, you end up with a better (leak free) finished project.
...A lift would be nice, but not required, though access to an engine hoist is a must.


You can try and source a used engine, but that's a bit of crap-shoot, and you will likely have the same oil consumption issues.