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1

General Topics / Am I Being Crazy?

« on: June 06, 2012, 04:10:14 PM »

Dave,

Thanks for the response.

Pulling the cam cover is something I'm not entirely comfortable with at this time, although I'd love to have a peek. My thinking behind having the oil pan pulled an inspected was to search for metal bits (from what I understand, bits of the timing chain / gears disintegrating), of which there apparently wasn't any.

My mechanic did say he saw one very small piece of plastic, and that was it.

Am I on the right track here? My thinking was that since the metal bits aren't present, that a timing chain tensioner would be all that is needed. However, you're not the first person who has cautioned against replacing the tensioner when timing components are worn.

What if I simply replaced the timing chain tensioner, and see if that resolves the rattle? And if not, then have the timing gears / chain / idler bearing inspected?

I found a bunch of E30 guys that build track cars in my neighborhood. Maybe I'll just bring a bunch of beer and see if they can give me a hand

2

General Topics / Am I Being Crazy?

« on: June 04, 2012, 07:14:21 PM »

What sort of timing chain noises are you hearing? It is a noisy motor by nature. If you are hearing any sort of "diesel" or grinding noises, then you have problems. If in doubt, spend the $40 on a new tensioner piston & 5 minutes changing it. Make sure to pop/expand it before installation.

The noise is just kind of a rattle. When it's cold during the winter, it sounds like a diesel. It's not a grinding sound. There's definitely some chain noise happening around 2500 - 3k RPM.

I didn't realize the tensioner was so easy to do - I'll just take care of that and see what happens.

3

General Topics / Am I Being Crazy?

« on: June 04, 2012, 06:15:30 PM »

Hey, new member here - I've been reading up on this forum for quite a while. Finally decided to register and contribute.

Basically, I have a '91 318is, Alpine White w/ LSD, with about 226k on it. It's my first bimmer, and I love it.

Now, about a year ago, I bought this for a good price - it was a bit banged up, had been through 4 owners, and I didn't get any maintenance records. I took a bit of a gamble on it, but it hasn't given me any issues at all in the year that I've owned it. It never overheats or anything - the hottest the temp gauge will read is 50%. It does have some chain rattle, and I plan to have the tensioner looked at.

As of late, I've been putting some money in to it. Just did the rear subframe bushings (they were GONE), rear shock tower mounts, and checked the oil pan for bits / loose screws (no metal bits, one small plastic piece, and one screw in the pan). The shocks are fine - the last thing to do is the front control arms.

This has really transformed how the car rides and drives.

I've been driving Japanese cars all my life (Mazdas & Hondas), and I don't really "trust" the e30 yet. I'm just afraid of destroying something, and getting stuck on the side of the road.

However, it hasn't given me any reason to not trust it - the chain noise worries me a bit, but due to the fact that there weren't any metal bits in the oil pan (and the screws have been taken care of), that eases my mind.

Do you think I'm being crazy? Should I just man up, and take it on a 300 mile road trip and see what happens?

I'm not the most mechanically inclined person in the world - I'm fine at diagnosing things, but when it comes time to turn wrenches, I feel a bit over my head.

Would appreciate your input, guys.