M42club.com - Home of the BMW E30/E36 318i/iS
FAQ / REFERENCE => How-To's => Topic started by: sheepdog on September 21, 2006, 07:51:25 PM
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Easy method for installing the profile gasket WiTHOUT removing the head.
Well as easy as can be expected considering.
The upper pan needs to be dropped. To do this you will need to jack up the right side (passenger) motor mount. use a 2x2x6in long block of wood and a jack under the motor mount after unbolting from underneath.
Buy some spray on gasket adhesive/silicone (that is what the red is you see). It will hold the gasket behind the case in place and improve the sealing of it all.
Once started and onto the crank snout and the oil pump is partially engaged, insert feeler guages along the width of the profile gasket to keep the head from pushing the profile gasket out of place. Be VERY carefull in making sure the pump is properly indexed, you will need to use a mirror and a screwdriver to align it once onto the snout as the crank will bump and change its possition, a firm whack will destroy the entire assembly if it is wrong.
Give it a few taps with a soft mallet around the water pump mount and then insert the upper most bolts. These will draw the timing case into position. The large hex will need to be done first then the other side. Should slide into place nicely. See photo below.
Be sure to insert feeler guages along as much as possible, especially corners. Also make sure they come from the front all the way to the back of the water pump assembly. I tried going from inside first with bad results. Snug the top 2 bolts, lossen them up and then remove the guages. Put the rest of the bolts in but leave everything loose.
Re-install the lower pan, then put a jack (with a board to protect things) underneath and lift the upper pan, this should put a bit of pressure on the profile gasket. Just a little is all that should be needed, it just needs some pressure, not lift the engine. While doing this, torque all of the bolts for the timing assembly.
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Awesome man! I wish I had used those...the 2 putty knives were a real pain! Silicone adhesive FTW.
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Got any more pictures? I have never worked on the timing chain before, so I would like to be as clear as possible about what I am about to do.
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Got any more pictures? I have never worked on the timing chain before, so I would like to be as clear as possible about what I am about to do.
My advice just start in on it.
Study the pictures http://www.realoem.com and work your way in.
It is actually rather simple. The problem is the tools for the crank bolt, and removing the A/C bracket. Nothing complex, just a lot of work, contortion and bashed knuckles.
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the picture seems to be no longer hosted, anyone got this picture? gonna tackle this this weekend
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Same question here, anyone has those pictures anymore?
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hey guys, is it true that the non-us bmw dealers garanty that problem and will fix it for free? id like to, got a e36 waiting for the job to be done
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hey guys, is it true that the non-us bmw dealers garanty that problem and will fix it for free? id like to, got a e36 waiting for the job to be done
As far as I know BMW (UK) would replace the profile gasket under warranty for free up to 5 years. So, all E30's are now way out of warranty but on the up side, the majority of cars will have had the job done.
The gaskets would normally fail at around the 50k mile mark, few lasted more than that so if your car has done more than 50k and you're not sure if it's been done, chances are that it probably has!
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Great tip with using the feeler gauges. The Bentley mentions using a thin sheet of metal, but I could see that not working as well because when you try to remove the metal, you'd have to fight the friction across the entire gasket, instead of being able to pull out feeler gauges one at a time.
I had trouble viewing the photo too, but managed to figure it out - thankfully before the sealant cured! Did anyone use oil to ease the removal of the feeler gauges? Would that harm anything?
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one other point of note.
Remove the thermostat so that you can actually look down to see that the profile gasket is correctly in position.
I was able to do this procedure, but the first time the gasket was not in place and caused overheating.
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Apparently, at 346k the profile gasket is failing...
Anybody got pictures as I would rather not pull the head to swap it out.
Thanks
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Heres where I'm at right now. Just removed the lower timing case.
(http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c57/m42sport/m42/A01A86C1-B6D0-4C29-AAAB-5B1C50BC4AA4_zpsa8djufmp.jpg) (http://s25.photobucket.com/user/m42sport/media/m42/A01A86C1-B6D0-4C29-AAAB-5B1C50BC4AA4_zpsa8djufmp.jpg.html)
(http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c57/m42sport/m42/6864376F-069C-4E3C-9FC6-F03EA4D31460_zpsctffnqxr.jpg) (http://s25.photobucket.com/user/m42sport/media/m42/6864376F-069C-4E3C-9FC6-F03EA4D31460_zpsctffnqxr.jpg.html)
profile gasket was still pliable and intact...I had to replace the timing case for another reason.
(http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c57/m42sport/m42/7FC1E334-0400-4CCE-A973-9F697619E9C1_zpsnvadlgoa.jpg) (http://s25.photobucket.com/user/m42sport/media/m42/7FC1E334-0400-4CCE-A973-9F697619E9C1_zpsnvadlgoa.jpg.html)
mating surface of the profile gasket looks like its in good shape
(http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c57/m42sport/m42/69F17F8F-404F-4D4D-BBDE-068144CE5B6C_zpslmaoltjk.jpg) (http://s25.photobucket.com/user/m42sport/media/m42/69F17F8F-404F-4D4D-BBDE-068144CE5B6C_zpslmaoltjk.jpg.html)
cleaned up the block
I think I'll try the feeler gauges and see how it goes. Will post updates as I go.
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I did the same thing. But in my case it was for the crankcase gasket. My advise is that you have to have
a jack to compress the profile gasket because if you don't the crankcase does not align with the engine
and you can get leakage from the upper oil pan.
http://www.m42club.com/forum/index.php?topic=18208.15