X5 3.0 Alternator and belts DIY (with pictures!) - Page 7

daneshfar · #1 03-19-2011, 01:20 PM

This nut was not that tight on mine. As you know its reverse threaded so you are going in the correct direction by going right or clockwise to loosen it. But on mine the fan pulley would slip. there is that special bmw tool that has holes in it to hold two of the bolts on the pulley to keep from slipping or people here made theirs with a template and the clamp rod i mentioned. For me i used it on edge and used the thin part of this rod to go on one side of a bolt and the other side of the next bolt. This way you hold the fan pulley while you turn the nut. You have to have a thin cresent wrench that I believe goes up to 36 mm OR you need a long big wrench of this size . They have a set of these at Harbor freight and its not sold individually. However the wrench of the right size thats not a crescent is much longer and gives you leverage, like a breaker bar to loosen that nut if its too tight. IF it is too tight the pulley for sure will slip on the belt, even with mine which was not too tight it would slip and you have to hold that puley. Hope this helps. When you do put it back don't overtighten, remember its reverse threaded and cant come off anyway. Just tighten it a little the same way you took it off.

mrBrigante · #2 11-08-2012, 10:12 AM

GREAT WRITEUP thanks a million literally saved over $250 just doing it myself

g300d · #3 11-09-2012, 12:32 AM

Thanks OP! Just went through this, but had the alternator repaired, replaced the regulator and the bearings for good measure, now good to go!

I like a few others moved the PS reservoir out of the way and removed it from the top.

Cascios, my alternator guy could not check the regulator per se, but deduced it by checking all the other parts like the diodes, windings, etc. Everything else checked out, and combined with my symptoms of low voltage, he diagnosed a faulty regulator.

Seeing as it seems to be a common problem with a lot of the BMW alternator threads I researched, I let him do just the regulator. Mine had a Valeo 140amp, btw.

upallnight · #4 11-09-2012, 07:19 PM

While you had the alternator out, you should have replaced the oil seal between the oil filter housing and engine. It's only six more bolts and the seal is under 5 bucks. Dealers and Indy will quote you close to 8 hours to replace the seal since it involves removing the alternator to access the six bolts. The seal becomes hard over time with the engine heat and the only way I was able to remove the seal from the filter housing was to heat the seal with a heat gun so that it was soft enough to come off.

RenaissanceMan · #5 02-04-2013, 01:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by upallnight

While you had the alternator out, you should have replaced the oil seal between the oil filter housing and engine. It's only six more bolts and the seal is under 5 bucks.

I'm getting ready to replace my alternator and would like to also change the oil seal that has been mentioned a couple of times in this very helpful thread. can someone verify if #6 in the following diagram is the right one? thanks-

RealOEM.com * BMW E53 X5 3.0i Lubrication system-Oil filter

jac · #6 02-04-2013, 02:16 PM

Yes, that's the seal. Replacing it did not fix the oil leak in my case (the leak is still there), but that's the seal mentioned throughout this thread. It is very time consuming to actually pry it off...

RenaissanceMan · #7 02-04-2013, 02:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jac

Yes, that's the seal. Replacing it did not fix the oil leak in my case (the leak is still there), but that's the seal mentioned throughout this thread. It is very time consuming to actually pry it off...

thanks, jac! bummer that it didn't fix your leak.

upallnight · #8 02-04-2013, 09:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jac

Yes, that's the seal. Replacing it did not fix the oil leak in my case (the leak is still there), but that's the seal mentioned throughout this thread. It is very time consuming to actually pry it off...

If the seal is real hard, just use a heat gun or hair dryer to heat it up. This will soften the seal and it will come off in one piece.

g300d · #9 11-10-2012, 09:25 AM

^dang it, I shouldve! I had that seal go bad on an e46 and your post just reminded me of it. It was clean at the time though so it slipped my mind. It was the PS steering reservoir that was making a mess down there though.

alnsquare · #10 09-11-2013, 06:47 PM

Thank you GENERX!!!!
My GF's 2003 X5 3.0L 63,000 miles died a week ago and had to tow it back to my house. With this thread, I changed the Oil Filter Housing gasket even though it wasn't leaking, changed the alternator which was the culprit, and changed both belts. Your instruction made this project so much easier. Thanks again!!!