Trying to get caught up on Maintenance

[Helltime]

I picked up a 2009 135i back in March with 68k miles on it. I am up to 77k miles now and right before it went into storage I had a coil pack go bad, so i replaced just the one coil pack, drove about 100 miles everything was good. I put the car away for about a month and a half, got it out on a nice day where the roads were clean drove fine for about 10 miles, I go to hammer on it a bit and at the top of 2nd gear I killed another coil pack (cylinder 4 this time, last time it was cylinder 6).
At this mileage should I go ahead and just replace the remaining 5 coil packs? Is there something wrong that could be causing these to die or is it just like my previous VW 1.8Ts, they just randomly die? I am not sure of the life expectancy on these.
Also how big of a pain is replacing the Serpentine belt/tensioner and how do I check to make sure all the pullies are ok? At this mileage I think it is time to be changed.
I am also planning to have its first walnut blasting done this spring and debating on whether or not I should replace the water pump or just let it ride?
Anything else I should really look at doing?

[Dackelone]

I would replace all six coils and spark plugs. Also check for any cracks on your valve cover - they have been known to leak oil.

[Helltime]

Would a leaky valve cover cause coil packs to go out sooner? I would think it could but I am not sure. The valve cover was leaking when i first got the car, I changed the gasket and checked it a couple times after and so far no leaks. But I am not sure how long it had been leaking before I got the car either.

[Helltime]

Just ordered my new coil packs, spark plugs, spark plug socket and Serpentine belt.

[Dackelone]

Originally Posted by Helltime

Would a leaky valve cover cause coil packs to go out sooner? I would think it could but I am not sure. The valve cover was leaking when i first got the car, I changed the gasket and checked it a couple times after and so far no leaks. But I am not sure how long it had been leaking before I got the car either.

Yes, leaking oil can cause your coils to go bad. The oil will ground out the coils and they will fry up. Best thing to to make sure you don't have any oil leaking down your spark plug holes.

Also, the valve cover does seem to crack in this one spot. Causing an oil leak. There have been several posts with leaking VCG issues. They all seem to crack in the same spot as these two pics. Sometimes you can not see the crack until you use a light from behind to see where the crack is. Or since you will be right there when changing your plugs and coils... just buy a new valve cover and hardware - and replace it.


See this thread....
http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=659827

PS: always quote someone, so they get a PM that they were "quoted" in a thread. Or... use the "@" symbol in front of their user name... and it will do the same thing. Your lucky I came back to check on your thread.

[Helltime]

Originally Posted by Dackelone

Yes, leaking oil can cause your coils to go bad. The oil will ground out the coils and they will fry up. Best thing to to make sure you don't have any oil leaking down your spark plug holes.

Also, the valve cover does seem to crack in this one spot. Causing an oil leak. There have been several posts with leaking VCG issues. They all seem to crack in the same spot as these two pics. Sometimes you can not see the crack until you use a light from behind to see where the crack is. Or since you will be right there when changing your plugs and coils... just buy a new valve cover and hardware - and replace it.


See this thread....
http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=659827

PS: always quote someone, so they get a PM that they were "quoted" in a thread. Or... use the "@" symbol in front of their user name... and it will do the same thing. Your lucky I came back to check on your thread.

I will check that out. I really hope it is not leaking again as I don't feel like replacing this again. When I was told these cars can be a pain in the rear for Maintenance, I didn't listen because I have always been told that about all the turbo VWs I have owned and a p38 range rover and none of it was true. Starting to wish I had listened on this one. (That might be the winter storage bitterness talking...)

[Dackelone]

Originally Posted by Helltime

I will check that out. I really hope it is not leaking again as I don't feel like replacing this again. When I was told these cars can be a pain in the rear for Maintenance, I didn't listen because I have always been told that about all the turbo VWs I have owned and a p38 range rover and none of it was true. Starting to wish I had listened on this one. (That might be the winter storage bitterness talking...)

These cars aren't that bad to own and maintain. You just need to know what you are doing and use good(quality) parts and tools.

[Helltime]

Originally Posted by Dackelone

These cars aren't that bad to own and maintain. You just need to know what you are doing and use good(quality) parts and tools.

Turns out the valve cover is cracked, I had to look hard but it is cracked right where the picture shows almost all the way down to the gasket (maybe it is down to the gasket and I just can't see it). Not happy to say the least.

[Dackelone]

Originally Posted by Helltime

Turns out the valve cover is cracked, I had to look hard but it is cracked right where the picture shows almost all the way down to the gasket (maybe it is down to the gasket and I just can't see it). Not happy to say the least.

You could try to see IF a dealer would cover the cracked valve cover, new spark plugs and coils. I believe they are secretly covered under the federal emissions warranty until 8 years or 80K miles. (I think that's the time/mile limit). I think you would need to produce a failed emissions test certificate though. Talk to the manager of a bmw dealer near you and see what they say. Could be worth while.

Otherwise just order a new valve cover and suck it up. Use some non flammable brake cleaner and some compressed air to clean out any left over oil. Take some pics and post them up for other members to learn about this problem.

Dackel

[Silenus]

If you're on the original water pump, replace it. After 75k they drop like flies, and you don't want to get stranded.

[Helltime]

Originally Posted by Dackelone

You could try to see IF a dealer would cover the cracked valve cover, new spark plugs and coils. I believe they are secretly covered under the federal emissions warranty until 8 years or 80K miles. (I think that's the time/mile limit). I think you would need to produce a failed emissions test certificate though. Talk to the manager of a bmw dealer near you and see what they say. Could be worth while.

Otherwise just order a new valve cover and suck it up. Use some non flammable brake cleaner and some compressed air to clean out any left over oil. Take some pics and post them up for other members to learn about this problem.

Dackel

I am just going to suck it up and order a new valve cover this week. Found one on ECS tuning for a decent price that includes new gasket and bolts. Frustrated right now (as I am sure you could tell from my previous post) but I have to remember, this car still checks all the boxes for me and was one of my dream cars the moment I first saw one in 2008 and saw they were twin turbo. Christmas time just isn't very friendly on my car funds

Originally Posted by Silenus

If you're on the original water pump, replace it. After 75k they drop like flies, and you don't want to get stranded.

I MIGHT take my chances on this, I don't plan to drive it too far this year, I will mostly be driving my e30.
I read something a while back (not sure where) that before the water pump completely quits it usually throws a code for intermittent fault (but NOT a check engine light) Do you know if this is true? I usually have my lap top connected to the car atleast once a week in driving season, so if that does turn out to be true I can probably catch it before it becomes an issue.

[Dackelone]

Originally Posted by Helltime

I am just going to suck it up and order a new valve cover this week. Found one on ECS tuning for a decent price that includes new gasket and bolts. Frustrated right now (as I am sure you could tell from my previous post) but I have to remember, this car still checks all the boxes for me and was one of my dream cars the moment I first saw one in 2008 and saw they were twin turbo. Christmas time just isn't very friendly on my car funds



I MIGHT take my chances on this, I don't plan to drive it too far this year, I will mostly be driving my e30.
I read something a while back (not sure where) that before the water pump completely quits it usually throws a code for intermittent fault (but NOT a check engine light) Do you know if this is true? I usually have my lap top connected to the car atleast once a week in driving season, so if that does turn out to be true I can probably catch it before it becomes an issue.

I would replace your water pump as soon as your wallet can afford it. The water pumps fail with no warning. But yea... you might be lucky to get one or two shadow codes - IF you happen to read the fault memory. A failing water pump will NOT throw an ECL. But it will store a shadow code.


http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1021604

e8x electric waterpump failure poll...
http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=798195