OFH Leak Repair Cost

Ok, I need the OFH gasket done. I do all my own work but having to tear back into the front of the engine doesn't look appealing.


Dealer # 1 $435 OTD
Dealer # 2 $600+++
Euro Indy ?? Waiting to hear back.


I know I can do the job, CCV was cake walk. done the entire cooling system, belts etc. That was the time to do the OFH gasket!!!! What is a fair price to have the OFH Leak done? If I do it myself looks like I need to take the belt off, remove the alternator and bunch of other crap right. Hate to part with $435 over a $20 gasket. If I decide to do it myself, it will be done the same day I do the P/S hoses.

You are a DIYer, so what is the purpose of this thread?

The OFH Gasket is $6. Info in forum.
Just be careful with M54 to avoid stripping the block hole, even with the correct torque on the 6 bolts.

Purpose? Uh, I've got a lazy bone thinking about this damn problem. I don't know.... Just figured I could at least pay to have one task done and save me a saturday. Probably going to do it myself... See what the indy comes back with.

Anyway, info on M52 engine is below. About 2-3h job:

http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=414315

If you were able to handle the ccv you will have no problem with this job. Its simple I did it while I did ccv and vanos. The money spent on labor for a six dollar part makes no sense to me. take the money you save and blow it on the next Saturday. You don't have to remove alternator, just swing it back.

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Your not going to leak a lot of oil out of this anyway--why don't you just wait until the weather changes and you can do it on a calm Saturday and just call it a chore

I have some oil dripping on the driveway. It's either the OFH gasket or the oil pan gasket. As noted by cn90, most of the leak is from the OFH. So I decide to do that first and see what happens.
I had it done the past Sat, in less than 4 hrs. I managed without removing the fan. The old hasket feels like plastic, not rubber gasket. There's evident of oil leak from it for sure, on the engine block.
The feeling of saving over $400 is great. I followed cn90's write-up.

Mine is leaking as well, will tackle it when spring arrives. If you have done the other DIY projects mentioned this should be a breeze. I see no point in paying someone to do this job, because they will leak again anyways.

I'll do it for $100 worth of London Broil.

damn it... ok, i'm gonna do it. Now the shifter bushings is another issue. Every DIY says it's a PITA.

Just tackled mine this weekend. It was pretty easy just time consuming.

My started as a drip but got worse and rained oil all over. My advice is tackle it asap rather then wait. Avoid oil getting all over. I wish i did it sooner. Theres tiny amounts leaking today but i think its residual. Purple powering all the oil off today.

Only pita part for me was i bolted my ofh back on first and couldnt get the banjo bolt back on for like 20 mins. Not sure if the diy said to bolt that up first or not. But if i was to do it again id probably loosely bolt that back on first then do the ofh.

^ 10-4 fellers. yeah I know when I'm done I'll feel good about it. Gasket should be coming with this weeks's online order. From what I searched around there are two camps when it comes to the RTV Sealant. The BMW doesn't call for it crowd and the it's extra insurance crowd. IMO, it's obvoius BMW's design sucks. Leaks at 50K? I'm using a BMW gasket/O-ring and what I'll do is swing by the Toyota dealer and get a tube of blk RTV. That stuff is phenominal. I'll put a thin thin coat on each mating surface and then coat the gasket with a thin coat of it. Basically put on my gloves and smear a thin coat all over the gasket. I'm betting that will fix that sucker up for life. Toyota knew how to make some HD stuff back in it's day. And no the permatex blk is not the same. I've used both extensively. the toyota blk will eat permatex' lunch.



Edit: Toyota 103 FIPG is what I am going to use. $9/tube on Ebay. I'll see what the local toyoter stealer wants. Might just pick it up on the way home tomorrow.

Originally Posted by cn90

You are a DIYer, so what is the purpose of this thread?

The OFH Gasket is $6. Info in forum.
Just be careful with M54 to avoid stripping the block hole, even with the correct torque on the 6 bolts.

Cost me $3.74 for the gasket from autohausaz with free shipping since I bought other parts too. I did it in 4hrs(1st time taking my time) with replacement of belts and tensioners along the way. Just do it!

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Originally Posted by daytradeoil

...Not sure if the diy said to bolt that up first or not. But if i was to do it again id probably loosely bolt that back on first then do the ofh.

I was lucky, when I did the OFH gasket, just prior to install, I paused for a minute and look at the whole OFH assembly and said to myself: "how the heck can I tighten the banjo bolt in the back of the OFH once it is in the car". Only then I realized that I needed to tighten banjo bolt before re-installing the OFH back in the car. Just make sure the orientation of the oil line is correct when you tighten the banjo bolt.

^or disconnect the banjo bolt on the front of the engine so you don't mess with the one on the OFH. What is the torque values for the oil line banjo bolts?

^ From Beisan Procedure to replace Vanos seals.
"32 Nm (24 ft-lb) (19mm combo wrench / by feel)"

WOW! a Saturday worth $600! Hope you're getting laid several times!

Time = money.

^exactly. Hence why I bought the $6 BMW seal.

Damn bay area prices!! I paid 13 for the ofh gasket which was the same price they sell the gasket for my power steering cap. Fml

Do this job on your next oil change. The filter housing has to be drained otherwise oil will leak everywhere(ask how I know) there's enough room to not remove the fan and the job is very straight forward. If you can do the CCV then this job by comparison is a cake walk

^ good point.