Oil Filter Housing Leak

[Cisc0]

BMW of Manhattan recently gave me a "Complimentary Inspection", which I appreciated a lot being that it was FREE and under their inspection they found that I have an oil leak coming from the Oil Filter Housing. I recently purchased a new gasket but have not found a DIY. If anyone has had any experience in replacing this gasket, please share your input on how the project went and what to expect.

Thanks in advance!

[radaddict]

I don't know if there is a specific X5 DIY, but here's one from the E46Fanatics forum:
Oil Filter Housing Gasket DIY - E46Fanatics
What engine do you have? If it's 3.0, then this DIY will work. If not, you may want to look for a DIY more applicable to the larger engine. Good luck!

[Cisc0]

This job was a pain in the ars. I couldn't do it myself, so I took it to a friend of mine that works at an audi/vw indie in NYC and literally we lasted about 2.5 hours. Funny thing is how the "stealership" wanted to charge me for the full oil housing replace when all I needed was a $8 gasket. Also crazy was the amount of oil that leaked out of this part. I had to degrease and power wash the lower part of the engine. X is back and running smooth.

[imalabil]

Did mine yesterday, 3.0i. Biggest issue--could NOT get the fan off! Wasted much time trying. I completed the job with the fan and shroud left attached. Alternator wasn't too bad, but getting the belt back on was a pain. I had my sons help with that and getting the alternator lined back up. I did lose a couple of the wire bails on connectors, since I didn't know you just pushed them in to release. I pried them off and they went flying. The dealer had some old harnesses that I was able to salvage the spring wires off of, so all's well. I did have to take the bottom tray off to access the alternator bolt and belt tensioner.
BTW, I HATE the torx belt tensioner bolt. The torx socket has a tendency to rock and come out right when you're pushing it the hardest.
Got 'er done, but don't really want to do 'er again. Good for another 87K.
Bill

[Danger]

Question for you guys who've got this done - were you experiencing any loss in oil pressure prior to the repair? Was there any moisture build up in the oil cap and/or dipstick? I too have a gasket leak (yet to be repaired) but I've been noticing a bit of sludge and was wondering if it was related. I already had the separator and hoses replaced a couple of months back and have had a few oil changes since but trying to track down whether the sludge could be caused by the gasket leak or something else. any information is appreciated.

[Cisc0]

Originally Posted by Danger

Question for you guys who've got this done - were you experiencing any loss in oil pressure prior to the repair? Was there any moisture build up in the oil cap and/or dipstick? I too have a gasket leak (yet to be repaired) but I've been noticing a bit of sludge and was wondering if it was related. I already had the separator and hoses replaced a couple of months back and have had a few oil changes since but trying to track down whether the sludge could be caused by the gasket leak or something else. any information is appreciated.

I did not experience loss in oil pressure, but more like loss of oil. In one week I had to add 2 qts.

[Danger]

Thanks Cisc0. That is pretty much what I'm experiencing as well in addition to the bit of sludge.

[beewhy]

cisco i am suffering from the same diagnosis from the stealership as you. Refusal to be robbed has left me to do the work myself but I have to replace my alt. since its in the same process i will try to kill 2 birds w/one stone. im abot 1qt a week.

[Cisc0]

Originally Posted by beewhy

cisco i am suffering from the same diagnosis from the stealership as you. Refusal to be robbed has left me to do the work myself but I have to replace my alt. since its in the same process i will try to kill 2 birds w/one stone. im abot 1qt a week.

Just take your time and do it yourself if you have the ability. I am thankful for the stealerships diagnosis, but I refused to pay the amount of money they wanted to charge me. You do have to remove the alternator in order to reach the oil filter housing so its a win win for you. Good luck with the repair.

[beewhy]

Just got through replacing the transfer case chain so hope it's easier than that!