Head gasket

Need technical Q/A then you're in the right place

Moderator: martauto

Post Reply
teatime39
E30 Zone Regular
E30 Zone Regular
Posts: 301
Joined: Sun Mar 23, 2008 11:00 pm
Location: north london

Mon May 19, 2008 6:24 pm

i have a 1990 320i 6pot and i've been told that the front of the head gasket is leaking , its not mixing but i must say i'm alittle concerned , how much am i looking at to have it done , what are the likely ongoing problems and is there anything i can do
any help would be much appreciated
hennabm
Old Skooler
Old Skooler
Posts: 1392
Joined: Sun Jul 08, 2007 11:00 pm
Location: Edinburgh

Mon May 19, 2008 10:45 pm

If it is from the front OS of the engine then a lot of them do that. Unless very excessive it's nothing to worry about.
Both of mine do it. :roll:
'82 323i henna
'90 320iSE sterling silver No more!
'10 116d Sport Red - MkI
'12 1.4 Punto Easy Exotica Red
'11 X3 3.0d SE
'89 240 DL Estate
teatime39
E30 Zone Regular
E30 Zone Regular
Posts: 301
Joined: Sun Mar 23, 2008 11:00 pm
Location: north london

Mon May 19, 2008 10:54 pm

wicked i think i give it a degrease and jetwash and keep an eye on it see what the score is , still love to know how much replacing it would cost
Taylor325i
E30 Zone Camper
E30 Zone Camper
Posts: 1120
Joined: Sun Jan 30, 2005 11:00 pm
Location: Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, Scotland. Brilliant Red Tech II 325i.

Mon May 19, 2008 11:04 pm

teatime39 wrote:wicked i think i give it a degrease and jetwash and keep an eye on it see what the score is , still love to know how much replacing it would cost



Depends if your doing it yourself or paying a garage or getting it done by a mate and where the parts are sourced. You can buy a gasket set and new head bolts from GSF for about £50 or buy the parts from BMW for about £150 from memory.



Taylor.
Image
teatime39
E30 Zone Regular
E30 Zone Regular
Posts: 301
Joined: Sun Mar 23, 2008 11:00 pm
Location: north london

Tue May 20, 2008 4:07 pm

is there alot of difference in quality , dont think i could do it myself and none of my pals can do it so it would be a garage or someone off the zone
JGG1
Back in an E30 !
Posts: 952
Joined: Mon Dec 31, 2007 11:00 pm
Location: Brixham

Tue May 20, 2008 4:10 pm

My brother had the head gasket done on a 320i he had a while ago for £550, no idea if thats the going rate or if he had his pants pulled down though 8O
Image
User avatar
dee77nemesis
E30 Zone Newbie
E30 Zone Newbie
Posts: 1
Joined: Thu May 22, 2008 11:00 pm

Sat May 24, 2008 12:05 am

jay1980 wrote:My brother had the head gasket done on a 320i he had a while ago for £550, no idea if thats the going rate or if he had his
pants pulled down though 8O
:cool:



no that price is about right if it was done properly
User avatar
mineralblue
Rocking Horse Poo
Posts: 729
Joined: Tue Jun 26, 2007 11:00 pm
Location: Nottingham

Sat May 24, 2008 12:44 am

On what basis have they told that the head gasket is leaking?
teatime39
E30 Zone Regular
E30 Zone Regular
Posts: 301
Joined: Sun Mar 23, 2008 11:00 pm
Location: north london

Sat May 24, 2008 12:34 pm

i think its seeping oil , also this spring is leaking what is it called and how hard is it to fix is there a gasket in there or something

Image
User avatar
rj
E30 Zone Newbie
E30 Zone Newbie
Posts: 177
Joined: Fri Dec 01, 2006 11:00 pm

Sat May 24, 2008 2:32 pm

The spring around the tube is part of the crankcase breather system.

The tube has 2 O rings fitted to the top and bottom.
trigger
E30 Zone Newbie
E30 Zone Newbie
Posts: 123
Joined: Wed Apr 12, 2006 11:00 pm
Location: harlow

Sat May 24, 2008 6:24 pm

quite an easy fix! buy 2 new rubber o rings, push the tube down against the spring tension until you can move the top sideways and draw it away from the underside of the inlet manifold then pull it out and change the o rings, then lube them up with a smear of grease two aid refitting without pinching the new o rings and damaging them then refit in the reverse way of removing it! hey presto job done! although its a bit cramped under there! :D

also are they sure its the head gasket thats leaking and not the rocker cover or the front camshaft oil seal??? :wink:
teatime39
E30 Zone Regular
E30 Zone Regular
Posts: 301
Joined: Sun Mar 23, 2008 11:00 pm
Location: north london

Sun May 25, 2008 1:19 pm

What size are the o rings bro , as for the rocker cover ,i've checked its fine , not sure where the camshaft seal is mate ..
Post Reply