Messages

1

Engine + Driveline / E36 M42 Overheating after Head Gasket replacement

« on: April 26, 2011, 02:41:22 PM »

Cool I'll let you know if thats something I need to end up doing!

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Engine + Driveline / E36 M42 Overheating after Head Gasket replacement

« on: April 26, 2011, 11:00:03 AM »

Well when this first started I checked ebay and there were like 6 up there, some for cheap! Of course now that I need one, theres ONE, and its for $400 before shipping lol.

Not many BMWs in the junkyards around here... crossing my fingers.

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Engine + Driveline / E36 M42 Overheating after Head Gasket replacement

« on: April 26, 2011, 10:44:08 AM »

Thanks for the suggestions guys! In a fit of rage I pulled the head back off, and low-and-behold theres a nice crack from a water channel into cylinder 2.

yay

Now to find me a used head. Any suggestions on the best places to get one for cheap?

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Engine + Driveline / E36 M42 Overheating after Head Gasket replacement

« on: April 25, 2011, 04:40:18 PM »

Hey Guys... I'm not getting much love from 318ti.org, so I'm here begging for your help! Have mercy on an E36 guy! This is on a 1995 318ti M42 OBD1.

I have been trying for the past few weeks to get my car back on the road after a head gasket failure.

After all the work I've done, the car now starts right up and idles great. I can let it idle or even drive it, but eventually it will start overheating. The warmest it's gotten is to 3/4 on the gauge before I stopped it immediately. This has been only on trips around the block.

I've tried bleeding it at least 4 separate times at this point (using the instructions posted here, which include separate warm up and cool-down cycles on an incline), with and without water wetter. The coolant gets to a certain point, and just stays there.

Work Done So Far

Head Gasket change (this included new gasket, stretch bolts, other gaskets, etc. that go along with this)

Head taken to a reputable shop. Head was not cracked or warped, but did need a valve job.

New Water Pump and Thermostat (on my third thermostat at this point actually)

All new cooling hoses under the intake (including the plastic piece from the block)

Things to Note

The top coolant hose from the radiator to the thermostat is always hot, but the lower hose is cold. I tried removing the thermostat and running it, but it still wanted to overheat. With the stat out, the lower hose DID get much warmer.

There is NO smoke, and from what I can tell no oil in the coolant, and no coolant in the oil. I have pulled the spark plugs a few times and each time the cylinders were clean.

There were no obvious cracks on the block, but I did not have it professionally inspected.

I did have a stripped water pump bolt that I had to helicoil, and I was not able to tighten it QUITE as tight as the other bolts, but close. No leaking from the water pump.

There is a small amount of coolant coming out of the side of head/block directly above the plastic coolant piece and directly to the side of where one of the head bolts would be... this seems to leak only once the motor has gone to that 3/4 mark... until it gets to that point nothing leaks.

So off the top of your guys' heads... does this seem like a simple air trapping issue? A blockage in the coolant passages? Maybe the radiator? I'm honestly starting to get real stressed that maybe I cracked the block (perhaps I didn't manage to get all the liquid out of the head bolt holes?).

Any thoughts or advice from you guys would be great. I'm getting to the point where I'm about to call it a wash.

5

M42 Buyer's Guide / 91 318iS

« on: August 10, 2009, 10:22:48 PM »

I finally found a car today that I think may be my first official foray into the E30 universe, and I wanted to run it by you guys and see what you thought.

Asking price: $4000 (I'm very optimistic about being much lower than that)

1991 318iS 5-spd w/140,000 miles
2 Owners, the second one an old lady. She said the car always followed the BMW maintenance schedule, and oil was always changed with what the dealership sold.

The physical condition is fantastic. It has been repainted in original Metallic Black BMW Paint, no dents but some scratches. Upon my brief inspection I saw zero rust. All window trim looks great. Tan interior is perfect except for drivers seat and carpets. Seats are bucket type, and wheels are what you'd expect. The little computer display was wigging out the entire time, but other than that all electronics worked.

The car started up and idled without fluctuation at a hair less than 1000rpm... maybe 800? The engine bay looked very good, with no visible cracked rubber parts. The engine is making what possibly sounds like 2 clicking noises (what could this be? It's definitely coming from the head somewhere). The belts all looked good, and nothing seemed to be vibrating too violently. The AC had been completely replaced with an updated model only 4 months ago up to current code, so that works swimmingly.

The clutch and transmission felt worn in, but not near the end of its life (actually shifted smoother than my E46...). The brakes were new, and did not wobble under pressure. New tires all around.

The overall feel of the car was that nothing was "tight". By that I mean there was always a small bit of play in everything... the steering was a bit loose but not bad, the car slightly vibrated at highway speeds (alignment maybe, or something like control arms or tie rods?). It wasn't bad by any means, it was just sorta loose. The struts had been replaced very recently btw.

One other odd note of concern is that I could hear a sort of buzzing sound coming from the rear half of the car. I remember potentially reading about some sort of buzz like that from the diff area but I may be thinking of something else.

Overall the car looks to be in FANTASTIC shape for being so old, but I only looked at it and drove and listened.

Please give me your thoughts!