head gasket and cam belt

[noney82]

can anyone tell me how hard is it to do head gasket and replace cam belt at same time?

[bultjeboo]

in theory not too hard but i'll let you know in a fortnight when i do mine!!!!!!!!!!

[noney82]

have you done one before

[kam-325i]

on which engine, i am half way through doing my head gasket and cam belt on a 325i

[noney82]

325i,

[kam-325i]

It looks like a right twat to do. But once you start, it is not that hard to do.....

[noney82]

are you a mechanic or you just giving it a go yourswelf

[Ant]

removal and refitting of the head will take you up to 6 hours 1st time around, the TDC marks are easy to see, and with the rad removed you should have no real issues dude

for ease, leave the inlet and exhaust manifolds on the head, and get a mate to give you hand to pull the complete assy from the bottom end, then strip them off whist on the bench for a cleanup and new gaskets, this way, should a stud break ( common !! ) you can recitfy it whilst the head is off.

get a head set from GSF/ECP/Dealer, if you can aford the time off the road, a new set of exhaust valves, a valve lap and new stem seals is time and Ԛ£Ã”šÃ‚£ well invested.
take your time, make sure the gasket faces are clean enough so you'd happily have open heart surgery on there, and dont use any form of sealer !!

Good luck

bultjeboo, yours is an M40 engine yes ? make sure and replace both the tensioner roller and idler pulleys, be aware also that you'll need the "special tools" to complete this job , 8mm drill bit in the flywheel , engineers square for the camshaft, be very careful with belt tension on this engine in particular.

HTH

[blingsta]

very easy dude... ive done mine 3x in a week and a half.. bit of an expert now!! if you havent done one before, make sure you remember what came off where (tipex can help)

[noney82]

thank you ant, do i need any special tools to do cam belt? what do i have to do to time her up? i dont think the head gone but i want to do the cam belt as i dont trust them, but i am losing water over 3 days i have to put about a litre in but the bottom of th rad looks wet so im going to pump some pressure in to see if it pisses out. so i thought while i do belt i might just do head to then i know all major things to go wrong cant. i might get another head and spend some time doing valves etc them when i do cam belt iv got a head ready to just throw on
so dont you put any like wellseal on it or anything?

all help is greatfull on this one the more the better


what sort of prices are head kits and that cheers

[Ant]

if you havent done one before, make sure you remember what came off where (tipex can help)

Good advice there dude, respect to your "glass half full" attitude to the whole affair too, fair play Erel

[kam-325i]

Only real special tool needed is a torque wrench if you take the head off.

[noney82]

iv just found some tipex

[blingsta]

is oil and water mixing at all? bit too much water to be losing there

[noney82]

not that i can see no but like i say the bottom of the rad looked wet so im going to put some pressure in it see if i can see water piss out anywhere,

[blingsta]

also have a good look around thermostat housing area as the hoses can start to leak a bit where clips loosen

[noney82]

thats on the top of the engine init where the blue and brown plugs are init

[blingsta]

yep, thats it fella, look out for any dry water marks and tighten jubilee clips

[noney82]

were you based mate liverpool

[blingsta]

nope, i do support them, but based in north london.

[noney82]

i thought enfield was in liverpool lol

[E30BeemerLad]

for a cambelt change in isolation check out this guide.

I did the belt on my 325 having never tackled a job like this before and it worked out spot on

guide http://www.angelfire.com/blues2/bimmer/

thread http://www.e30zone.net/modules.php?name ... iots+guide

[kam-325i]

i thought enfield was in liverpool lol

Anfield maybe !!!

[noney82]

ha ha silly me

thank you for the link e30beemerlad

[blingsta]

Ha ha, yeah. closest i found to Anfield was Enfield, so im a north london scouser

[noney82]

Ha ha, yeah. closest i found to Anfield was Enfield, so im a north london scouser

pmsl

[blingsta]

what does that stand for??

[noney82]

i just looked at them links e30beemerlad they look very helpful, you know any the same for headgasket

[noney82]

pmsl p i s s myself laughing lol

[Brianmoooore]

Back on topic, change the water pump as well, and make sure your radiator cap is the new type. Original one should have been replaced under a recall, but I see plenty that haven't.

[noney82]

what the new typw look like brian

[Brianmoooore]

Yellow disc on the bottom of the ones I've had replaced, but the conclusion of another thread on the subject a while back was that there is a second version around as well. Can't remember the details.

[noney82]

this is the type iv got on mine, is it the right one after they recalled them, sorry if the pics are to big iv forgoten how to make smaller

[noney82]

says rsutter at top or something
1177592 at bottom

[Brianmoooore]

Disc on the bottom seems to be missing completely. That cap looks very suspect to me, and I would replace it.
Give the dealer your VIN, and if it's still outstanding on the recall, you should get a new one FOC.