Intake Valves at 40k miles! Pictures inside

[miiipilot]

I went to 2 dealerships inquiring about the M3 allocations and then I decided to check in with the service dept regarding this cleaning.

They both quoted @$850. They said it is 6 hours labor + Parts

I just nodded.

Ganley BMW told me that the factory is NOT recommending this except in rare instances. I was suprised. He offered to set up an appointment to gauge my engine hesitation in 1st gear b/c they "can" warranty it.

Cleveland BMW had to do some digging as they have never performed this outside of a warranty service.

Is this cleaning not needed???

It sounded odd.

Any thoughts?

[NathanIngrao]

I wonder if the the BMW Oil Catch Can by BMS keeps this from happening. Does anyone have experience running the oil catch can that can attest to their claims of a cleaner intake? After I get my service done on mine I will add the can if it will help reduce build up.

FYI link: http://www.burgertuning.com/BMW_335_oil_catch_can.html

[SfValley335i]

Originally Posted by NathanIngrao

I wonder if the the BMW Oil Catch Can by BMS keeps this from happening. Does anyone have experience running the oil catch can that can attest to their claims of a cleaner intake? After I get my service done on mine I will add the can if it will help reduce build up.

FYI link: http://www.burgertuning.com/BMW_335_oil_catch_can.html

The catch can does not 100% prevent buildup on the valves but it does help slow it down. I've skipped the catch can in favor of getting walnut blasted every 30k miles.

[NathanIngrao]

I wonder what interval you could do the walnut blast if you had the Can as well.

[tglazed]

Come August I will get walnut blasted and install the catch can. I see it as slowing down the maintenance. Instead of every 30,000 miles, it will be every 50,000 miles.... Well at least I hope

[135iam]

I had mine done at 37000 miles and there was nowhere the buildup the OP had. I didn't mind getting it done, as I had the work done for $250 in a group buy, but I am curious if there is a good way to determine if/when this needs done.

Is buildup is more significant with those that are easier on their cars?
Is buildup more significant with stock tuning or higher boost?
Does fuel type impact buildup? (e85 mix vs 93)
I admittedly work my car out regularly with higher than stock boost and normally using an e85 mix. With this I had minimal buildup. (The INDY shop owner agreed it really didn't need done yet, and it could have waited another 20K miles or so)

[j_marinelli]

Got mine done today at 70K. Shop said they had seen worse than mine which surprised me a little. Overall I am happy with it. I went ahead and did the RB PCV valve upgrade at same time.