525i Head

Originally Posted by robertobaggio20

What do you mean by magnafluxing the head?

And pressure testing is something done with the head off, the head is sent to a machine shop with a pressure tester that feeds in warm water at high pressure at one end of the water jacket. The other end of the water jacket is stoppered up. Then they watch to see if water escapes from anywhere.

Roberto,
He's referring to magnetizing the head then spraying a metallic powder which will determine cracks under an ultraviolet light. Perhaps you're wondering if aluminum can be magnetized. I'm not sure myself by whatever I do, I'll certainly have the machine shop check for cracks, both internal & external.

just replace the head. Then while you are at it, if money allows replace/clean/fix all of the things Roberto mentioned. After all, you will have easy access to those parts.

Roberto::::empty out your pm box *please* so that I can pm you.

Sorry, I'm not trading my blinged out bimmer for anything! Not even for a full set of Ford Racing spark plugs.

i'm crossing my fingers that your head is not cracked........if it is though, just pick up a new one like Roberto suggested.

If you did not make the mistake of pouring cold water into a hot engine after it has overheated or while it is still hot, and perhaps doing so several times, it is unlikely that you've cracked your head.

Please don't ask me how I know this. I'm still in therapy. lol

Inspect your head gasket for tears....remove your head carefully so as not to laterally damage the HG in the process.

Originally Posted by bmwjen

just replace the head. Then while you are at it, if money allows replace/clean/fix all of the things Roberto mentioned. After all, you will have easy access to those parts.

Roberto::::empty out your pm box *please* so that I can pm you.

Sorry, I'm not trading my blinged out bimmer for anything! Not even for a full set of Ford Racing spark plugs.

i'm crossing my fingers that your head is not cracked........if it is though, just pick up a new one like Roberto suggested.

That's a serious consideration if the head turns out to be cracked. Tools arrived yesterday, locked the flywheel and inserted the chain tensioner so the head will be ready to be removed by midday. I just need to call upon someone to help me lift it out, hopefully be the end of the day so I can finally take it to the machine shop tomorrow.
And yes, have been doing nearly everything Roberto and others have suggested since everything is exposed.

Thanks for keeping your fingers crossed.

Originally Posted by robertobaggio20

If you did not make the mistake of pouring cold water into a hot engine after it has overheated or while it is still hot, and perhaps doing so several times, it is unlikely that you've cracked your head.

Please don't ask me how I know this. I'm still in therapy. lol

Inspect your head gasket for tears....remove your head carefully so as not to laterally damage the HG in the process.

lol, understood!

Yes, will try not to damage the HG so I can tell if it was actually breached. Hopefully it was.

Rick...i'm sorry to tell you this. I had a no start situation last friday. The car cranked but did not fire up. It got mysteriously resolved about 5 minutes later. I've been driving with no problems ever since. I pulled the codes on my car a short while ago via carsoft.....and the news is not good. Please see attached.



Yes, CAMshaft sensor. **** this man.

I've bought a new cam sensor and will be fixing it up soon.

My advise to you now is as follows, considering that cash needs to be conserved. The cam sensor is in an even more awkward position than the crank sensor as it is threaded through a metal loop thing fastened to the vanos unit. It is the uber bitch to change out and is too short to reroute anywhere. You absolutely must do this right now while everything has been dismantled. It doesn't matter if it ohms out good.....change it, and to a brand new one.

The CRank sensor....follow what I suggested earlier and merely loop it out to the dipstick area and cable tie it there for easy access in future. You can change it out down the road fairly easily thereafter.

Here's a picture of how the looped crank sensor looks on my car. The cable tie was looped through the crank sensor's harness connector's wire clasp (i actually pulled that sentence off correctly jesus). The arrow is pointing to the sensor...the harness connector is behind it and can't be seen in the picture.



Keep all the used sensors you've changed out as working spares.

Originally Posted by robertobaggio20

Rick...i'm sorry to tell you this. I had a no start situation last friday. The car cranked but did not fire up. It got mysteriously resolved about 5 minutes later. I've been driving with no problems ever since. I pulled the codes on my car a short while ago via carsoft.....and the news is not good. Please see attached.

Attachment 264719

Yes, CAMshaft sensor. **** this man.

I've bought a new cam sensor and will be fixing it up soon.

My advise to you now is as follows, considering that cash needs to be conserved. The crank sensor is in an even more awkward position than the crank sensor as it is threaded through a metal loop thing fastened to the vanos unit. It is the uber bitch to change out and is too short to reroute anywhere. You absolutely must do this right now while everything has been dismantled. It doesn't matter if it ohms out good.....change it, and to a brand new one.

The CRank sensor....follow what I suggested earlier and merely loop it out to the dipstick area and cable tie it there for easy access in future. You can change it out down the road fairly easily thereafter.

Here's a picture of how the looped crank sensor looks on my car. The cable tie was looped through the crank sensor's harness connector's wire clasp (i actually pulled that sentence off correctly jesus). The arrow is pointing to the sensor...the harness connector is behind it and can't be seen in the picture.

Attachment 264720

Keep all the used sensors you've changed out as working spares.

Sorry Roberto, your labeling is a bit confusing. Which sensor should I absolutely change at this time, crank or cam sensor?

Change the Camshaft sensor to a new one. Loop and cable tie your existing cRankshaft sensor to the dipstick.

You did not look at the attachments that I sent you and you read through my post quickly. You are not focused. You need to be focused else you're going to screw up the head job ahead of you or perform inefficiently in some way.

Originally Posted by robertobaggio20

Change the Camshaft sensor to a new one. Loop and cable tie your existing cRankshaft sensor to the dipstick.

You did not look at the attachments that I sent you and you read through my post quickly. You are not focused. You need to be focused else you're going to screw up the head job ahead of you or perform inefficiently in some way.

Thanks Roberto, I'll add the cam sensor to my list and tie off the crank sensors lead.

Focused, lol, don't worry I'm very focused (why I asked you to make certain), in fact my wife thinks I'm overly obsessed on how methodical I'm being with this project. I've got every little bolt and part cleaned, packed, labeled, and stored in bins.

You are taking pics for a full, detailed write up after you complete your project aren't you?

Originally Posted by bmr_lvr

you are taking pics for a full, detailed write up after you complete your project aren't you? :d

+1

Originally Posted by robertobaggio20

The cable tie was looped through the crank sensor's harness connector's wire clasp (i actually pulled that sentence off correctly jesus).

Technically, there should be a period after the word clasp. Then, the sentence that you have in parentheses should have the period inside the parentheses. <3 However, you looked darn good attempting to pull that sentence off.

Gosh, it makes me sad that you had a "no start" situation the other day. Last week I gave the 525i the "ugly look", & told it that if it started acting up that I was going to kick it.

Originally Posted by BMR_LVR

You are taking pics for a full, detailed write up after you complete your project aren't you?

I have been taking pictures and will add to what others have written such as different ways to remove or approach a situation which I found better suited to myself. Perhaps others will benefit.
One thing I strongly recommend is to study the Bentley manual as well as various write ups until you attain a full visual in your head as to how everything operates. At first it all seems complicated and intimidating but don't give up, keep reading and visualizing and before you know it it begins to make sense. Oh, and the help I've received from forum members is just priceless.

Originally Posted by bmwjen

Technically, there should be a period after the word clasp. Then, the sentence that you have in parentheses should have the period inside the parentheses. <3 However, you looked darn good attempting to pull that sentence off.

So i needed two periods? ok....you know something? I've actually wanted to confirm that for quite some time now. I use alot of brackets in my posts here and always wondered what the correct form ought to be. Thanks hotlilly

Originally Posted by bmwjen

Gosh, it makes me sad that you had a "no start" situation the other day. Last week I gave the 525i the "ugly look", & told it that if it started acting up that I was going to kick it.

I'm going to try that on mine. Have had too many no start situations for comfort.

Jen, you need to change the following to new parts, or at least purchase them and keep them, crankshaft sensor, fuel pump, fuel pump relay, o2 sensor relay, dme relay, camshaft sensor. The fuel filter needs to be kept clean (wash it out once every 12-18 months) and the fuel system needs to be cleaned with diesel (1-2 gallons added to a full tank of regular gasoline, once every 3 months or more frequently than that, do three consecutive treatments the first time you do this on any car). Also, purchase and change out the radiator cap and radiator bleed screw. Keep the old bleed screw in your coin compartment or something, it needs to be nearby in case the one you're using breaks off. Keep a printed copy of the Bentley manual in your trunk at all times, and read it at least twice, highly recommended. Switch to cheap, non-original, sweet smelling, luminescent green or yellow coolant immediately to activate your Mark IV nostrils-and-eyeballs coolant leakage warning. (this can be added to your existing mix without compatability issues.)

[ Switch to cheap, non-original, sweet smelling, luminescent green or yellow coolant immediately to activate your Mark IV nostrils-and-eyeballs coolant leakage warning (this can be added to your existing mix without compatability issues.) Jen this somehow looks better, one full-stop instead of two. Could you verify? As an aside, the above sentence bears repetition ]

We've got an old car and must acknowledge that reality and stay ahead of the curve. There's a whole list of anal and semi-anal maintenance and semi-anal upgrades that I've compiled. Its not for the faint hearted. What you see above covers the emergency essentials. Cheers and thanks for the EL tip.


rgds,
Roberto

Ok, everything is disconnected and ready for removal tonight, Hopefully my bro-in-law is able to stop by and help me lift it off. Luckily the head separated very easily with the gasket remaining on the block. The gasket should be able to tell me a lot.

Rick, a suggestion that helps me alot in situations similar to this. Make a written list of all the things that you have to do, no matter how minor. Group the actions into appropriate categories and connect each group to the other via time-based sequence of activity. Tick off the items on the list as you go through it at each appropriate stage. Take note of items that you can KIV safely if you run short of resources (time/cash/assistance/energy).

The reason is not so that you won't forget something. This helps you remember stuff. I may have 10 things in my head before I start on my list, but by the time I've finished writing it all down, I think of another 6-7 items....the process of writing things down stimulates the mind in such a way....so my list grows to nearly 70% larger than I had originally assumed, but at least I've not forgotten anything I might regret not remembering later.

Its best to do this in a bound notebook of sorts instead of loose scraps of paper...a lesson learnt from experience.

Good luck and if you can manage them yes yes yes pictures pictures pictures please sir remember clear sharp well lit shots reshoot them if its not good enough !

I'm sure its your head gasket. Start sourcing for a hot cam.

I just disconnected the cam sensor on my car. The engine started up fine and revved ok. Let it go for a few minutes...there didn't seem to be anything wrong.

Sorry Rick and hotlilly gave you guys the wrong info earlier, I should've disconnected it to double check...guess i'm too jumpy. Rick please keep that cam sensor and focus on the crank sensor, its good of course to change the cam sensor to a new one especially since its in a very awkward location and in terms of long term care for your car, but its failure is not a no start event and you don't have to allocate limited resources to this especially at the expense of a hot cam. cheers.

Originally Posted by robertobaggio20

Rick, a suggestion that helps me alot in situations similar to this. Make a list of all the things that you have to do, no matter how minor. Groups the actions into appropriate categories and connect each group to the other via time-based sequence of activity. Tick off the items on the list as you go through it at each appropriate stage. Take note of items that you can KIV safely if you run short of resources (time/cash/assistance/energy).

The reason is not so that you won't forget something. This helps you remember stuff. I may have 10 things in my head that before I start on my list, but by the time I've finished writing it all down, I think of another 6-7 items....so my list grows to nearly 70% larger than I had originally assumed, but at least I've not forgotten anything I might regret not remembering later.

Its best to do this in a bound notebook of sorts instead of loose scraps of paper...a lesson learnt from experience.

Good luck and if you can manage them yes yes yes pictures pictures pictures please sir remember clear sharp well lit shots reshoot them if its not good enough !

I'm sure its your head gasket. Start sourcing for a hot cam.

+1

Well everyone, turns out there is a small crack in the head. Water passage to combustion chamber at #3 cylinder. Not what I wanted to here. I'm sooo bummed.

Originally Posted by ricks5series

Sorry Roberto, your labeling is a bit confusing. Which sensor should I absolutely change at this time, crank or cam sensor?

Originally Posted by ricks5series

Well everyone, turns out there is a small crack in the head. Water passage to combustion chamber at #3 cylinder. Not what I wanted to here. I'm sooo bummed.

Sorry to hear that man. I hope you can find a good used one. How did you determine it, visually, magnaflux, etc.

Is the crack visable enough to see in a photo? Did you take a pic?

Steve

Rick please check your pm.

Take a break for today sir, even mentally...don't think about it. And yes there are worse things that can happen to this car. Importantly, remind yourself of the car you'll have shortly, after the head has been fixed and everything's been replaced. You're breathing new life into this machine which will be its own reward.

Originally Posted by BMR_LVR

Sorry to hear that man. I hope you can find a good used one. How did you determine it, visually, magnaflux, etc.

Is the crack visable enough to see in a photo? Did you take a pic?

Steve

Well Steve,
I was hoping for better news. I did take a picture and I think you'll be able to see it on the right side.

Well i can't make it out even under high zoom.....how did you discover this crack? Visual observation or did you have it tested at a machine shop?

Originally Posted by robertobaggio20

Well i can't make it out even under high zoom.....how did you discover this crack? Visual observation or did you have it tested at a machine shop?

It's hard to see with this photo but evident with the naked one. I didn't see it at first until the machinist pointed right to it. He also has a BMW, and even has the same head in the shop for a customer. Then his assistant walked out and even before looking at it stated that it must be one of the center cylinders because it's common on these heads. So no, it wasn't pressure tested just visually, it's there believe me.

Is that the crack(s) at the 2 and 3 o'clock positions on the combustion chamber? If not, would you be able to edit the photo with a red circle or arrow pointing to the crack?

Have you decided what you plan to do regarding repair (doubtfull this could be done where the crack is ) vs. replacement?

Steve

PS: This scenario is one of the reasons I did the full coolant system overhaul. I was afraid of a catastrophic failure resulting in a rapid overheat and blown HG or cracked head

PPS: Sorry if you've already explained this (I reviewed your first post), but was this due to an overheat situation? If so, what were the circumstances?