Valve Adjustment

[GIANUCCI E30]

Hey guys,
The new E34 535i arrived at the house today. Very happy considering the tragedy of my old one....( see Bad weather tragedy- I hate atlanta!!! (http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1376711) for the story)
The guy who I bought it from stated it needs a valve adjustment. However he said he tried it and the belts are not tight enough to cycle the cylinders via fan bolt. What can I do to get around this or should I crawl under and tighten the tensioners? Any suggestions?

[thesixerkid]

If you want to pop off the spark plugs (and maybe even change them) then I would recommend using a 36mm socket on the crank hub.

The belts can certainly be within spec and not be able to turn the motor over. You can also jump the motor using the starter.

[Stir Fry A Lot]

Get some speaker wire or an extension cord and strip the ends. Plug one end into the number 11 and 14 holes in the obc port. Make sure the cord is long enough to reach to the other side of the car. If you touch the other ends together it will crank the engine and turn the cam. Don't try to "bump" it into place if you miss the first time around. Let it do at least one full rotation.

[GIANUCCI E30]

Get some speaker wire or an extension cord and strip the ends. Plug one end into the number 11 and 14 holes in the obc port. Make sure the cord is long enough to reach to the other side of the car. If you touch the other ends together it will crank the engine and turn the cam. Don't try to "bump" it into place if you miss the first time around. Let it do at least one full rotation.

I read Gene's version of the V.A and I thought that's what it meant by a jumper. But I wasn't too sure. Okay so place one end of the speaker wire on points 11 and 14 on the OBC and it should turn once I touch them together. Good I have plenty spools of speaker wire laying around so length should be a problem. Thanks bro.

[BavarianFanatic]

I can't say I've ever heard of someone trying to spin the motor via the fan clutch. I use the crank bolt. I wouldn't bump it with the starter myself. You need to have pretty fine control of the positioning of the rockers on the cams when adjusting the valves. I doubt you could ever achieve that with the starter. Just my .02. Your results may vary.

[Stir Fry A Lot]

My buddy who's an indy says I do great valve adjustments and I've used this method with my last 3 e30's and my current M30. Definitely not knocking your reasoning though, you're level of knowledge surpasses mine a thousand fold.

[GIANUCCI E30]

My buddy who's an indy says I do great valve adjustments and I've used this method with my last 3 e30's and my current M30. Definitely not knocking your reasoning though, you're level of knowledge surpasses mine a thousand fold.



I can't say I've ever heard of someone trying to spin the motor via the fan clutch. I use the crank bolt. I wouldn't bump it with the starter myself. You need to have pretty fine control of the positioning of the rockers on the cams when adjusting the valves. I doubt you could ever achieve that with the starter. Just my .02. Your results may vary.

Well thank you both for the input. I found the articles. Using the fan clutch bolt and using a jumper on points 11 & 14 on the OBC are both documented ways to do the job without tearing down the entire front of the car.

36mm socket or pipe wrench to the fan bolt http://www.bmwe34.net/Wiki/tiki-index.php?page=Valve+adjustment

Oops sorry Gale I mean Gale's method to the valve adjustment
http://www.nmia.com/~dgnrg/page_5.htm

So hopefully that ends the confusion. Again thanks guys

[moroza]

I used 5th gear and a big pipe jammed between lugnuts to cycle the engine. The main crank bolt is accessible by removing the fan, and it's the best way to turn the engine.

[paanta]

I'm with Moroza. Remove plugs (good time to do them anyway and they're cheap) and put it in 5th ON LEVEL GROUND or the car will roll away. I just use my hand on the passenger front wheel to move the car back and forth and then lock it in place by letting the car stop against my foot. :)

[BavarianFanatic]

Well thank you both for the input. I found the articles. Using the fan clutch bolt and using a jumper on points 11 & 14 on the OBC are both documented ways to do the job without tearing down the entire front of the car.

36mm socket or pipe wrench to the fan bolt http://www.bmwe34.net/Wiki/tiki-index.php?page=Valve+adjustment

Oops sorry Gale I mean Gale's method to the valve adjustment
http://www.nmia.com/~dgnrg/page_5.htm

So hopefully that ends the confusion. Again thanks guys


No problem. As mentioned, if you DO use the fan clutch, I would definitely pull the plugs to ditch the compression. No need to stress the water pump and belts more than necessary. It's just such a simple matter to pull the fan and use the crank bolt that I've always done it that way. Plus, if you use a nice long handled ratchet you can literally move the crank a degree at a time without much effort.