2009 45k miles valve cover leand and WHAT!

[shah269]

So i had my 2005 CPO 135 in the dealership for an oil leak from the valve cover gasket. Hey it happens the car has 45k miles it's an 09 no worries.
But then when i pick it up they tell me that the car was also leaking oil from the oil cooling line to the turbo......ok WTF! Really?
I had my 1.8T Jetta for 130k miles and never had any oil leaks associated with the turbo....come on BMW what gives!

[135Pats]

Doesn’t sound at all weird to me, N54s have pretty laughable oil control issues. Between the return lines from the turbos, the turbo seals, the entire PCV system, VC gasket, OFH gasket…lots of places for leaks to spring. At the moment I have at least a shot VC gasket, and likely bad seals and/or oil lines. Fun times.

[shah269]

wow how sad is that!
how many 1.8t's did VW make? And they were fine!
how many 3LTT engines did BMW make...at what cost to the customer and they leak? hUH?

[135Pats]

“It is what it is”. I get the frustration though. Basically the N54 is an over engineered marvel of a crank and shortblock, with loads of crappy peripheral parts. Very rare the actual motor needs work, it’s always tracking down the latest leak, pump failure, electrical issue, etc etc etc. If your goal isn’t to crank up the power a good deal, there’s no doubt in my mind the N55 is the superior motor.

Then again BMW hasn’t designed a good VC gasket like ever….Or a good water pump. Sigh.

[shah269]

I trust the car will last over 100k miles. I trust the car will not leave me stranded on the side of the road.

[Colt]

Originally Posted by 135Pats

At the moment I have at least a shot VC gasket, and likely bad seals and/or oil lines. Fun times.

Join the club....lol

[135Pats]

Originally Posted by Angerman

Join the club....lol

Saw you ordered STG1 snails from VTT, very interested to see how those work out for you. I'm really in a tough spot, as of now I have hardware that is probably overkill for stock turbos…but I can still get pretty serious #s if I spin the crap out of them. Or I could go STG2/RB and run a relatively conservative curve, but at that point is it worth the cost? IDK. No plans for more than 450-470WHP and similar WTQ, which for upgraded twins is conservative. But I have the FFTEC LPFP on order, and HFS-4 meth sitting in my garage. How hard do you plan to spin the new turbos? If yours hold up well to high boost, maybe i'll go that route. Sorry to thread jack OP.

Edit: and who are you going to for install?

[135Pats]

The amount of smoke my car dumped this morning a few times under vacuum was genuinely embarrassing.

[Colt]

Originally Posted by 135Pats

Saw you ordered STG1 snails from VTT, very interested to see how those work out for you. I'm really in a tough spot, as of now I have hardware that is probably overkill for stock turbos…but I can still get pretty serious #s if I spin the crap out of them. Or I could go STG2/RB and run a relatively conservative curve, but at that point is it worth the cost? IDK. No plans for more than 450-470WHP and similar WTQ, which for upgraded twins is conservative. But I have the FFTEC LPFP on order, and HFS-4 meth sitting in my garage. How hard do you plan to spin the new turbos? If yours hold up well to high boost, maybe i'll go that route. Sorry to thread jack OP.

Edit: and who are you going to for install?

I PM'ed you

[Davyhay]

Originally Posted by shah269

I trust the car will last over 100k miles. I trust the car will not leave me stranded on the side of the road.

From an owner with 94K miles and who was stranded on the side of the road last Friday, I aint making no promises.

[Miko226]

I trust the car will last well past 100k... Well at least the motor will and if you haven't replaced your Water Pump you will be left stranded at some point past 60k miles i can guarantee you that..

[Davyhay]

Yep--it was the WP that left me stranded last week.

[shah269]

well that gets replaced soon.
50k miles / next oil change
how much does BMW charge for that in NJ
any one know?

[HIPSI]

With thermostat expect, $12-$1,300...

[135Pats]

Save yourself a few hundred bucks and go to an indy. Parts are about $500, labor probably similar. I’ve heard of far worse than $1,200 from the dealer though, so prepare yourself if you go that route.

[shah269]

yeah i figured about the price of a timing belt....$1,000 in all at 50k miles.

[Spoolin Montego]

IMO leaking valve cover gaskets isn't really a big deal. I've had 3 BMWs and they leaked on every one. When I got my 135i with 28k miles it was already leaking. All I notice is a small amount of oil in the spark plug hole when changing the spark plugs...I'm at 72k now and still haven't replaced it. Probably won't either.

[135Pats]

Originally Posted by Spoolin Montego

IMO leaking valve cover gaskets isn't really a big deal. I've had 3 BMWs and they leaked on every one. When I got my 135i with 28k miles it was already leaking. All I notice is a small amount of oil in the spark plug hole when changing the spark plugs...I'm at 72k now and still haven't replaced it. Probably won't either.

It's not "bad" in the sense that anythings going to explode...but it means oil is going places it shouldn't, inevitably it will find a way to combust and you'll start smoking and/or losing oil. Just fix it. My 2C.

[Simsims]

next time, buy a jetta

better yet, buy a corolla, they last 200k miles without much maintenance.

[shah269]

well i got a new set of spark plugs out of it....but also the oil line to the turbo was also leaking? How strange!

[135Pats]

Originally Posted by shah269

well i got a new set of spark plugs out of it....but also the oil line to the turbo was also leaking? How strange!

Well that’s not good. Again though, not all that uncommon. Told you the peripheral parts on N54s are FTL!

[Reapur]

Originally Posted by shah269

well i got a new set of spark plugs out of it....but also the oil line to the turbo was also leaking? How strange!

I think u need to relax. It got fixed for free don't complain