oil leak
 

I have the x5 3.0i. I have an oil leak. I mainly see oil residue near the rear of the engine and rear passenger side. I can sometimes smell burning oil in the air conditioning.

Where do you think the oil is coming from?

Burning oil smell will be the valve cover gasket. Not too hard to replace and plenty of diy videos out there.

I’d first check the valve cover before looking further down the engine

Cheers, E53Envyy


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Ok, I will change the valve cover gasket.

I also see oil on top of the valve cover nuts and bolt. Does it mean the valve cover is cracked or a normal gasket leak?

Get an m56 valve cover and gasket. You'll never have a leak or have a valve cover crack ever again.

https://www.e46fanatics.com/threads/...#post-18999398

Sources of oil leaks can be deceiving. I suggest cleaning the the engine as much as possible and then run the engine. After 30 minutes or more use a flashlight with a small beam and trace the oil leak from the bottom point toward the top of the engine to verify the source. The valve cover gasket might be the problem but troubleshooting may save you from buying parts you don't need.

Thanks, I’ll try to trace the oil leak. It just the top rear of the engine is difficult to see anything. The engine starts to “go into” the passenger compartment. I also don’t have the luxury of getting below the car.

Since you can't get underneath, suggest you clean the valve covers and as much toward the bottom of the engine and follow the same procedure to see if you can verify the valve cover is the culprit. Valve cover leaks are very common source of oil leaks but I hate to buy parts and find the cause was something else.

I’ve watched some videos on replacing the valve cover gasket.

Some people put couple dabs of sealant on both ends of the gasket. There are people who put sealant all over the gasket and spark plug gasket.

Which way is the “right” way.

My x5 has slightly higher mileage at 170,000 miles.

Just the half moons and where the vanos meets the head. You'll see the distinct line where they meet at the front on either side.

I do the dabs and use a torque wrench to tighten the bolts so I don't exceed torque specs, tightening the bolts going side to side from center out in two stages to reach specs.

The Valve Cover Bolts are not torqued very high, the spec is about 89 in. lb. You will need new grommets for the bolts. The bolts can easily be over torqued with a 1/4-inch drive handle. Be careful.

7.4 ft·lb is not much. Needs to be done with A torque wrench not just saying click.


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Not always.

Yup. Use a tiny 1/4 inch torque wrench and also definitely use new grommets. Don't skimp on those.

When I do it I use a small round 1/4 inch finger ratchet till they just get tight. Then the torque wrench. You'll barely turn it before it clicks in most cases.

I had success with my 3.0i following the Bentley instructions (page 113-2).

Drei Bond 1209 on the half-moon corners (corners only) and aluminum seams up front by the VANOS. Nothing else.

When torquing, what I found, which is what I think should happen, is that you first torque things down (lightly of course) as the hard surface approaches the hard surface, compressing and sliding the rubber. So there is a lot of turning going on until the hard contact first occurs. Then after that, the actual angle to get the specified torque value is pretty minor. Kind of similar to the oil filter cap.

If you reach the torque spec without bottoming out the plastic, I think that is a problem. If the plastic cylinder head cover (valve cover) is warped in between bolt holes, as it commonly is to some extent, you might have sealing problems, requiring a new cover.

Good info for him.

I can't stand the plastic valve covers on the m54's. They warp and crack way too much. If you do need to replace it make sure it's oe spec. Not some crap off ebay or Amazon.

Better yet do the m56 valve cover if you need to replace yours. I have it on my m54b30 e46 and m54b30 e53. No more leaks, no more warping, no more cracks and biggest bonus..... no more excess oil consumption because you can bypass the POS ccv system that's under the intake.

How likely is it for the oil to leak out of the grommets? The grommets on top of the valve cover with the bolts holding them in place.

Couple of grommets look like they have rust on it? may be the washers.
I may have washer fluid run down to the grommet area. It may explain the rust.

Very common leak source. It's why people said make sure to use new grommets


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