Serious Problem in my 4.6is X5?
 

Hi to all,

My 4.6is began having a somewhat loud ticking engine noise. It is pulling up two codes P1353 and P1170. The ticking noise seems to come from as you standing in front of engine on right front side. Also it seems to burn oil and Left rear exhaust muffler shows signs of White/Black smoke. I know that code P1353 is a random misfire code for or around cylinder 6 and the P1170 code is a oxygen sensor code, but whats the knocking in the motor I dont know. Any idea's on where to begin? :confused:

Does anyone have any ideas with this issue? Should I consider engine replacement?

reply
 

maybe you can take a picture of the problem and then upload it.
someone may happen to have this problem and can help you.

Could be simply a hydraulic valve lifter. I would get it looked at by a good bmw wrench.

I tried finding a 4.6 engine when mine packed in, and in the UK at least it was impossible as they appear to be quite rare.
You need to trace the scource of the noise before you can figure out what direction to go. They can suffer from cam chain tensioner problems (faint rattle), vanaos noise (loud rattle, check out you tube), and sticking tappets (half speed tapping noise). Mine had a dead bottom end, but you would know if that had happened. As mentioned, if you are not too confident with spanners then you will need an experienced mechanic to pinpoint the problem. A replacement engine from BMW in UK is around £16000. I checked:D

camshaft position sensor might need replacing.

Thanks for all your replies so far. I took the car to 5 local bmw only mechanics and all told me that it is fixable it just depends how much you willing to spend $$$. 3 mechanics said that I will be better off finding a used nice engine and it might come out cheaper at the end and better for car. I been quoted on the repair 2-5k and the engine I found is $6500 with 25k miles. Should I do the repair to my 85k engine or buy the used one and swap it? what you all think?

I tried to find a used engine in UK with no success, but I would think more 4.6's were sold in the US, probably something to do with your gas prices :stickpoke. However if I could have found one thats the route I would have taken. If the engine you have found is warranted with that mileage, and you will have a warranty after its fitted then thats the best way in my opinion. After a complete strip and repair of my 4.6 I think I was into it for around $6000 in parts alone. Luckily I could do the work myself, but when you take an engine apart you will always find stuff you may as well change while you are in there.
You could always have the engine stripped that you remove and see how much it would cost to put right, and then sell it;)

Hard to give you an answer without posting what the problem might be.
Did all five local bmw only mechanics tell you it was the same problem?
Perhaps providing some additional info regarding what they said might help.:dunno: