Head gasket, Oil Separator, or something else

[aftorwar]

I’d appreciate any thoughts from the collective brain trust before I wheel myself into the stealer.

The subject: 2002 X5, 3.0l 85k miles

The symptoms: after parking outside for the weekend (low temperatures in the teens F) I noticed a strong oily burning smell after driving for ~5 miles. Pulled over, turned off the vehicle & popped the hood. No apparent smoke but saw signs of oil leaking under pressure (around the PCV valve), no major oil leaks apparent under the vehicle, pulled the dipstick and heard sounds of pressure being released from around the dipstick (pressurized crankcase). Pulled oil fill cap & radiator cap, no apparent signs of coolant/oil mixing (foam, goop, etc) or abnormal fluid levels. Restarted vehicle & had lots of white smoke from the tailpipe (coolant vapor in the exhaust gas). Shut off immediately & had it towed home.

The questions:

1) My CPO expired on 1/9/08. Anyone had any success in having major issues covered shortly after CPO expiration? Any tips?

2) I immediately thought head gasket (augghhh!) but after looking through the forum have seen lots of posts regarding the oil separator issue. Not sure if this was prevalent on my year/engine combination or whether it is common in the temperatures it was parked in (Typically garaged but left out in the cold this past weekend). Any thoughts? Could it be that simple?


3) If it is the head gasket, what’s a “typical” repair bill through the dealer.


I’m not overly optimistic but this X5 has been a good runner & I believe I caught the problem immediately. The pressurized crankcase is weird & made me wonder whether the issue was PCV valve (now oil separator) related and not the catastrophe I think it is.

Thanks in advance for your input.