Reply to Thread

Originally Posted by m5mel

JIM I tyried to PM you but ur mail box is full...

Jim i'm trying to find an extra set but no luck,, as I will be re sealing my VC'ers,,, if you have an extra set you wanna sell? or if you wanna sell them powder coated :) let me know pls :) what color are u planning to do this other set?

Mel, just emptied my email box.
I'm PC them and going to sell them.
There another RF guy did want them, I'll have to check with him to see if he still wants them.
The color might be black, but hasn't really been settled on yet.
I have a bunch of different color powder, but if it's a color I don't have it ranges from $10 to $17, plus shipping.
I've mostly been using the $15 speciality colors.

I do have a spare PC gun (15KV output) that I'll sell for 1/2 price, $50. I'll even include a "how to PC book" with it.
I bought a bigger gun last year it's has a dual voltage a output (15 and 25KV) and will cover larger areas quicker.

VC

Originally Posted by jimlev

No, just sand blasted them to get them clean. I'll be doing another set in a few weeks.

JIM I tyried to PM you but ur mail box is full...

Jim i'm trying to find an extra set but no luck,, as I will be re sealing my VC'ers,,, if you have an extra set yiou wanna sell? or if you wanna sell them powder coated :) let me know pls :) what color are u planning to do this other set?

Originally Posted by m5mel

Jim did you powder coat the insides of your VC's also? or left them raw?

No, just sand blasted them to get them clean. I'll be doing another set in a few weeks.

Originally Posted by jimlev

Both of mine are original and showing sings of slightly leaking. I bought new ones last week and will probably change them today. $10 each. I wouldn't replace the solenoids unless t=you were getting codes, they aren't cheap.

Jim did you powder coat the insides of your VC's also? or left them raw?

thank you - I will buy the new gaskets tomorrow

William
Richardson, Texas
2010 Honda Accord EX, 4-cyl, auto-tranny (her car)
2000 BMW 540i Auto, TiSilver, Sport/Prem Package (my car)

Retired/sold:
2006 Dodge Charger Daytona - Top Banana
2005 BMW 330i Auto, Premium Package
2002 M3 Coupe with SMG
1995 525i auto
1991 535i 5-speed manual

Re: 540i Valve Cover Gasket Replacement (with pics!)

Good to hear. I think what helped you was using paint instead of powder coat. I believe magnesium doesn't react to it like in my case.
By the way, I did the same thing with my CAI heat shield. That was a lot room for hot air form radiator to get sucked in the intake.
I've used stuff from this company and I should've measured the intake air temp. before and after to see the difference.

http://www.designengineering.com/cat...er/heat-screen



1998 BMW 540i 6 speed
Arctic silver, M sport suspension (euro delivery), prod. date 05/98, non VANOS
Staggered 18" style 32 OEM wheels
3.15 open differential
Remus exhaust
AFE CAI with improved heat shield
Z3 shifter
VDO oil pressure and temperature gauges in place of headlight/fog switches
Powder coated valve covers-satin black
CDV delete
Debadged
AEA DRL module (aftermarket daytime running lights)

1997 BMW 528iA
Alpine white, premium package, prod. date 04/97, single VANOS
Staggered 17" style 32 OEM wheels
Debadged
AEA DRL module
Custom made sun blinds for rear seating area

2000 Nissan Frontier Desert Runner, AKA "The Work Horse"

Garage aids:
Direct Lift Pro Park 8
Campbell Hausfeld 28 gallon oil lubricated air compressor
Newair ACP-1400H portable air conditioner and heater
Auto Enginuity scan tool with BMW enhanced option
Actron 9135 scan tool-for quick readouts

Those are the gaskets for the Vanos solenoids (m)

Both of mine are original and showing sings of slightly leaking. I bought new ones last week and will probably change them today. $10 each. I wouldn't replace the solenoids unless t=you were getting codes, they aren't cheap.

Re: it has been several weeks now, and so far (m)

Great feedback on the paint.

On the sensor, I wouldn't change them until you have codes unless they are extremely difficult to access and they become a "while you're in there" for changing the #9s. Personally I'd just change the #9s and save the $$$ for something else that actually needs replacing. :)

it has been several weeks now, and so far (m)

So far there is no leak from the valvecovers, even using the "light" 0W European Mobil 1 synthetic oil. Also, it has only been 3-4 weeks of use, I have not seen "any" signs of the paint peeling off, neither outside nor inside (peeking through the oil fill hole). The highest temps I have measured on the valve covers were near the top of them, right after turning the engine off, at about 198-200 F, and the primer and paint were rated to 500 F, but I will keep checking for the foreseeable future.

The bad news, now that I got the valve cover gasket area cleaned and dry, it is allowing me to find another minor oil leak that I need to look into, specifically it looks like it is coming from the crank sensor gasket, picture #9 in this image, on both sides of the engine:
link

By the way, I don't have any codes/problems, but should I replace the sensors anyway (car has 129K miles, and those are probably original).

So making progress, but still some work ahead of me :-)
William
Richardson, Texas
2010 Honda Accord EX, 4-cyl, auto-tranny (her car)
2000 BMW 540i Auto, TiSilver, Sport/Prem Package (my car)

Retired/sold:
2006 Dodge Charger Daytona - Top Banana
2005 BMW 330i Auto, Premium Package
2002 M3 Coupe with SMG
1995 525i auto
1991 535i 5-speed manual

Excellent.. Plan to do mine in the spring....

Re: I agree. BMW did a lousy job painting the inside

Dunno why BMW chose to paint the inside of the valve cover. Not necessary. In fact, the covers could be simply bead blasted and left raw. If you need a decent high temp paint I like POR15 engine enamel. Just used it on an engine rebuild project last winter and it works really nicely. It is in a can, you have to brush it on, but it flows out and dries very smooth. Works well. RT

Wow - thanks much for the great details :-)

William
Richardson, Texas
2010 Honda Accord EX, 4-cyl, auto-tranny (her car)
2000 BMW 540i Auto, TiSilver, Sport/Prem Package (my car)

Retired/sold:
2006 Dodge Charger Daytona - Top Banana
2005 BMW 330i Auto, Premium Package
2002 M3 Coupe with SMG
1995 525i auto
1991 535i 5-speed manual

Wire brush to remove all flaking paint (m)

and a screwdriver to fish out crap/crud from within the gasket channel on the valve cover (the same channel I later put on some RTV to improve the seal). Some of the original paint is still tenaciously good, so I just concentrated on everything loose, and of course all of the rust/flakes on the inside.

If I had a lot more time, I would have probably taken the valve covers to have them sandblasted really good, to remove everything down to bare metal, but so far (about a week) I have gotten the engine to full temp several times and I still have not seen any bubbling/peeling outside, nor inside (when looking through the oil fill hole on the passenger side). I will keep checking about every couple of weeks to see how it holds up.

Will
William
Richardson, Texas
2010 Honda Accord EX, 4-cyl, auto-tranny (her car)
2000 BMW 540i Auto, TiSilver, Sport/Prem Package (my car)

Retired/sold:
2006 Dodge Charger Daytona - Top Banana
2005 BMW 330i Auto, Premium Package
2002 M3 Coupe with SMG
1995 525i auto
1991 535i 5-speed manual

Painted?? Come on...powder coated. To remove (m

all of the old valve cover paint I used paint stripper that I got at the local hardware store. I think each VC took about 2.5 hours to get it ready for the powder.

The first few shots look just like JimLev's car

all you need was a few of them doodads painted blue!

Seriously, a very nice writeup on this job and the photos are extremely helpful. Getting that paint off the VCs (whatever is left) is a real pain. After a week of part-time scraping I gave up and found a company that blasted and PC'd them for $85.

Probably a crazy question but what did u use

to sand them i.e, tools and supplies?

Thanks





K-Bud ([email protected])
Baltimore, MD
Join the BMW E39 / 5 Series Group here: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=347966936053

99' BMW E39 540iA Sp. (Prod. 11/98)
Titanium Silver/Black
06' Range Rover HSE (Prod. 6/22/05)
Giverny Green/Aspen-Aspen-Ivory
04' Lexus GX470 (Prod. 10/03)
Ash Blue Mica/Dark Gray

Roadfly Member #71563 est. 06/03
BMWCCA Member #312125 est. 04/03

****Disclaimer: Down the page alot farther after all the absurd amount of pictures & vids I've posted of my current rides you'll find the "mods" for my BMW****




Lil K-Bud's Ride




Mods to Date:
DINAN Stage II, DINAN Tranny SW, DINAN Fr. Strut Bar, RevHigh CAI w/ PC'd Gunmetal Metallic Pipe, Breyton Fr. Lip Spoiler, Fr. Lip RaceMesh Grill 5/8" PC'd Black, Hella Celis Clear Rears, Clear Fronts, Clear Sides, 19" RDSport S4's w/ Gunmetal Metallic PC'd Centers 19x9 et18 Fr. & 19x10 et20 Rr., Toyo T1R's 245/35 Fr. & 275/30 Rr., Eisenmann Sport Quad Exhaust w/Resonator Removed, McGard Wheel Locks, Rolled Rr. Fenders, ///M5 Rr. Wheel Liners, H&R Sp. Springs, Koni Adj. Sp. Struts, Energy Suspension Polyurethane Bushings, ///M5 Fr. Brakes w/ SS Lines, Brembo Rr. Brakes w/SS Lines, Axxis Deluxe Brake Pads, ///M5 Fr. & Rr. Swaybars, ///M5 Kidney Grills, ///M5 Brushed Gauge Rings, 2.25" Magnaflow High Flow Cats, ///M-Tech Rr. Bumper, ///M5 Trunk Lip Spoiler, ///M5 Style Side Mirrors ,DDE Xenon Match Angel Eyes, Xenon Match H7 Fog Bulbs, AC Schnitzer Alum. Pedals, Denso Iridium Plugs, In-Dash Business CD Player, Blk. Metallic Int. Trim, Brushed Alum. & Blk. Lthr. Shift Selector Knob, 35% Window Tint, Homelink UGDO, Trunk Storage Bin, Carbon Fiber Roundels, Black ///M Logo Oil Cap, Fr. Plate Delete, Black BMW Rr. Tag Holder, & Debadged

Don't worry about it too much, the change in (m)

fuel pressure was minimal. A little increase in vacuum at this line lowered the fuel pressure a few PSI.
The regulator sets the base fuel pressure and this vac line adjusts it slightly. If your connection comes apart I think the worse thing would be a little extra air being sucked in past the MAF. The O2 sensors could partially compensate for this, you could get a lean CEL once the Long Term adjustment got past 10%.

Re: I wound up with a hole the size of a half dollar

I can't blame you for not going back. They redid mine for free, but I do agree with you, I wasn't really impressed with the place. I was still out set of gaskets and my time to remove and reinstall the covers, so that's not really free.
I don't know if Jimlev would be interested, but we both know he would do superb job and charge you fair price.
I really need to join BMW CCA as I'm interested to meet few gearheads. President, like you said, need to be somebody who knows people and is kind of politician alike, so definitely not me. I got to run but if you ever need me, drop me an e mail @[email protected] and we can exchange cell numbers and meet if you're interested.



1998 BMW 540i 6 speed
Arctic silver, M sport suspension (euro delivery), prod. date 05/98, non VANOS
Staggered 18" style 32 OEM wheels
3.15 open differential
Remus exhaust
AFE CAI with improved heat shield
Z3 shifter
VDO oil pressure and temperature gauges in place of headlight/fog switches
Powder coated valve covers-satin black
CDV delete
Debadged
AEA DRL module (aftermarket daytime running lights)

1997 BMW 528iA
Alpine white, premium package, prod. date 04/97, single VANOS
Staggered 17" style 32 OEM wheels
Debadged
AEA DRL module
Custom made sun blinds for rear seating area

2000 Nissan Frontier Desert Runner, AKA "The Work Horse"

Garage aids:
Direct Lift Pro Park 8
Campbell Hausfeld 28 gallon oil lubricated air compressor
Newair ACP-1400H portable air conditioner and heater
Auto Enginuity scan tool with BMW enhanced option
Actron 9135 scan tool-for quick readouts

I wound up with a hole the size of a half dollar

and tears everywhere. The guy said that the casting were full of "air pockets" causing blow through.

I bought new ones at the dealer for 375.00, 2 years later they were leaking and bubbling and flaking. I sandblasted them inside and out. While the castings are far from smooth, I found no "air pockets" that resulted in holes in the covers. The reason for the thick original primer was to cover up all the imperfections.

I used JB Weld slow curing to smooth out any imperfections, sanded that down for a smooth surface, primed with high temp (Outside only)then painted with hi temp paint. Result 2 years later they need painting again.

I will look for another coater in town or Dalton to attempt the next coating but I will prepare them myself before dropping them off.

My experience with the same coater was not a good one in any way, he would have to do them for free and warranty the results before I would do it again.

Dont know why BMW chose magnesium for these parts.

The president is mostly a smuuuuzer, inviting interesting people to meetings, selecting locations for meetings (usually fine eateries around town), selecting the seasonal drive routs, solisiting for the Christmas party location and such. Currently the club is mostly a social event but many including my son would like to see it more technical with events at the dealer and other local repair facilities. Unfortunately many of the members are too well off to bother with wrenching. Several have motorcycles and do wrench. 3 years ago, we joined up with the Smokey Mountain Chapter and had a ball that ended in a large picknic. I think the job is coming available if you might be interested. Energy, time, experiemce, desire, love of BMWs highly desireable.

Michael
00 540 Sport 6 speed

thanks Jim!

William
Richardson, Texas
2010 Honda Accord EX, 4-cyl, auto-tranny (her car)
2000 BMW 540i Auto, TiSilver, Sport/Prem Package (my car)

Retired/sold:
2006 Dodge Charger Daytona - Top Banana
2005 BMW 330i Auto, Premium Package
2002 M3 Coupe with SMG
1995 525i auto
1991 535i 5-speed manual