Hey guys, new to this forum but had plenty help here in the past, I've read a few forums on similar situations to mine, but would also like some opinions, I'm not the most knowledgeable on cars have owned a 98 328i for 6 months now has 127000 miles on it. Few months ago, it ran fine on the way to work but on the way home when I accelerated rpms would actually drop then engine would shake, and car would bog down, when coming to a stop car would occasionally stall, however when the temp gage got anywhere out of the blue it would run fine, but there was a noticeable loss of power. Originally I thought exhaust because a mount on the muffler snapped, I thought the rattling either loosened something up or cracked it, got under it a few days ago and exhaust was fine, my second guess was a blown head gasket as that would lead to loss of power and oil. (Oil leak seems it is coming out where the exhaust manifold meets the header) loosing about a quart every 1-2 months. still haven't ruled that out but also read a lot about the maf, sparkplugs and camshaft sensor. Thank you for reading any input will help.
Your oil leak may be from the valve cover. Some of those can deceptively seem to be hg issues. Can you confirm that your vcg (valve cover gasket) is not leaking at all ? You need to either eyeball this or put your fingers or some clean cloth around the perimeter, when its not hot.
Secondly, hg oil issues will almost never cause a loss of power. In fact, hg and cracked head issues (both oil and water) will almost never cause any issues in terms of performance and power - it would have to be ridiculously damaged for that to happen and that doesn't happen in reality. What you'll see is overheating, rapid loss of coolant, the loss of oil, milkshake on your dipstick, white smoke out the tailpipe, stuff like that. Anyway, they are easily fixed with a block sealer for almost all the cases where only a coolant barrier is involved.
You seem to have a fuel starvation issue. It could also be driveability sensor problems. Your icv could also be dirty, and you may have a vacuum leak that only manifests when the engine heats up (yes, possible), and there is an outside possibility that your air filter is clogged.
What have you checked and ruled out ? And have you checked for error codes ?
I strongly recommend that this advice be disregarded. Using head gasket sealer causes all kinds of new problems and rarely fixes the head gasket breech.
OP, Just read through it and form your own opinion. No need to restart the debate again as this thread (and previous others) have proven it's a topic that will not converge to agreement by the participants.
Particularly since we're a long way from this being determine to be a HG issue. Needs to be verified, but I agree with Al that based on your description of where the leak is and the oil usage rate, the valve cover gasket is the likely culprit as it's a very common issue on the M5X series engines. Roughly every 50K miles or so they start to weep oil and need to be changed.
I also agree on getting the codes checked. (Imagine that! Al and I have agreed on two things in the same thread! )
Most big box parts stores will do it for free and reporting back the codes will be very helpful to us in helping you diagnose this issue.
You didn't mention if your Check Engine Light (CEL) is on or not? Most faults captured by the engine computer (the DME) will also cause the CEL to be set on. Also, is your CEL working? We've seen cases where unscrupulous sellers have used various means to hide the CEL so that it doesn't flag to the buyer that there's an issue. To test the CEL, just turn the ignition to the on position and it and the other warning lamps will illuminate for a few seconds so you can verify they're functional and then they'll go out.
Particularly since we're a long way from this being determine to be a HG issue. Needs to be verified, but I agree with Al that based on your description of where the leak is and the oil usage rate, the valve cover gasket is the likely culprit as it's a very common issue on the M5X series engines. Roughly every 50K miles or so they start to weep oil and need to be changed.
That only happens if it was installed poorly to begin with. Yes, some forms of poor installation will take 50k to be revealed. You don't torque things down, don't know correct torque settings, don't follow the correct pattern, don't retorque with a degree wheel after a short while - these are the typical causes for very slow leaks for all kinds of gaskets.
Thanks for the reply, the head gasket issue you brought up makes sense as I haven't had any trouble with loosing coolant or overheating, I changed the oil 2 days ago and there was no sign of an issue other than being low, I've heard lots about the fuel system being the culprit, any tips on how to inspect it, I have been skeptical about additives but I'm wondering if you had any recommendations to clean it out? I have a cold air intake, the mount snapped so it hangs low into the engine I usually just steel wire it tight, but I'm wondering if it clogged up or messed with the intake or MAF. As for the oil leak I'm pretty limited on tools as well as time and money, how would you recommend checking the valve cover? I will have the check engine light pop up here and there mostly while cruising in 4th or 5th for an extended period of time, however when I slow to a stop or am driving more city roads it will turn off, I think it is the O2 sensor going off because the whole exhaust system was modified by the last owner, and certified by bmw (he had all the paperwork) but I will go get codes pulled and get back with some.
Thank you. What does prc and dpfe stand for? Please post the full descriptions, they are not generally known.
When was the last time you changed the fuel filter ?
Your misfires are related to your vacuum leaks, and could also be related to fuel starvation issues, and you may have sensor problems unreflected in the code that were pulled. All that put together can be responsible for your underpowered engine. You have a long troubleshooting phase ahead of you, that cannot be rushed if you wish to be accurate considering that you're a noob. It is best to do this all at one go. Can you put aside 2 hours anytime soon ?
And download the E36 Bentley manual. Look at the chapters on engines. Look up the troubleshooting charts there. Study them.
Pressure Regulator control, differential pressure feedback EGR, I've owned the car for about 9 months know put 10,000 just starting to cause me trouble, I haven't done any work yet and besides some mods I don't believe the previous owner changed anything, I did a homemade smoke test with the intake today found one small leak, where could I get to a vacuum hose to try it again? I can put some time aside to work on it, however I don't have any access to a lift, I do work at an oil change and lube shop so I have access to some tools and can at least get under the car but I don't think getting to the fuel filter is realistic, other things I'll be working on like new spark plugs, and a new valve cover gasket
And if you've done that, you can skip using a hose to check for vacuum. The smoke test is the best test for vacuum leaks.
And I don't understand why you find getting to the fuel filter unrealistic if you can jack the car up. Gosh its just a breeze.
Most people don't change their fuel filter for 10 years, which is dumb. Get a new fuel filter and change it immediately. Put the month and year on the fuel filter before installation. Its a $15 product.
Your vcg issue could be responsible for the misfire. Oil might be in your plug chambers.
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