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Thread: Crankcase Under Pressure

  1. #26
    Join Date
    Dec 2013
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    Chicagoland area
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    I understand.
    Weird but true, we all seem to have time to help everyone else,
    but never seem to have enough time to help ourselves, when in the same situation!

  2. #27
    Join Date
    Jun 2018
    Location
    Cincinnati
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    42
    My Cars
    2003 BMW 325i
    Almost sold my trophy wife tonight but couldn't go through with it, although I'm getting some decent offers.

    I've made "progress" on the car. Got her a new oil filler cap to replace the hacked up one. I have reason to believe that one of the many problems is electrical. For example when the car is surging, my scanner is unable to communicate with the ECU. The precursor to this state is always an oil level light, although the level is fine when checked on the dipstick. First thing I did was inspect the engine grounding cable. I disconnected, measured resistance, wire brushed the contacts. No improvement. I disconnected (yes, my go to) the oil level sensor, as a test, after watching this video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZFXQMldUSE

    Strangely enough, the oil level light does not come on in my car when the sensor is disconnected. (I know the bulb is good, its come on many times before.) I drove the car roughly 30 miles. Still misfires, and it still stalls. The difference is no surging, and no hard starts after stalling. when it does stall, it can be immediately restarted and driven, and surprisingly no EML light.

    I'm going to focus my efforts, and my wallet on the intake next. New DISA, new MAF and a smoke test. CCV and oil level sensor are on the back burner for now.
    Last edited by Yeti325; 06-28-2018 at 01:08 AM.

  3. #28
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    New York
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    2,108
    My Cars
    1974 2002, 2009 128i
    I'm frankly shocked that I'm devoting any more time to this thread, but like a train wreck, I'm finding hard to look away in spite of my horror.

    You are throwing parts at a car in the hope they will fix your still-undiagnosed problem. It is clear that you do not understand how the parts you are considering interact with the overall engine system, nor indeed the basic necessities of operation. This is just silly. The CCV you report butchering must be corrected or you will have a massive vacuum leak and a build-up of pressure in the crankcase. Fix that, smoke test, fix whatever other vacuum leaks you find, and then move to the next step. Good diagnosis requires methodical work and clear understanding; you're running around like a dog on fire chasing a squirrel.





    Life's tough. It's tougher when you're stupid.
    -John Wayne

  4. #29
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    Dec 2013
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    Yes, like attempting to use a shotgun as a sniper rifle!

    #1.Install complete CCV kit:https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw...-m54b25coldkit
    #2.Complete a professional smoke test.
    #3.Post back here with results.

  5. #30
    Join Date
    Jun 2018
    Location
    Cincinnati
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    My Cars
    2003 BMW 325i
    Thanks for all the replies! If anything its fun to talk about a shared interest.

    I'm seriously thinking about taking a step back, I need to know the cause of no compression in cylinder 5, before I throw more money at the engine. I will rent leak down test equipment this Saturday. Also considering taking her to the dealer, or a BMW repair shop while she still runs, just to get a prognosis on the engine. Maybe I can pay someone to program the dead cylinder to stop injecting fuel, and just keep on driving it.

    I disagree about the CCV being top priority, but maybe you're right! At heart I like to keep things OEM, so I will replace it rather than a catch can. I disconnected the line to the dipstick, and plugged it, if anyone was curious.

    My MAF is confirmed dead. Long story short, through my butchery I accidently destroyed it... Gets a reading of 0 when viewing live data. Planning on buying a used siemens on ebay.

    DISA membrane blown. (For anyone that takes sick enjoyment following this thread for the butchery, waiting for my engine to explode - I replaced the DISA with a large cork and the car runs even worse, re-installing the broken DISA today.) I had to find out the hard way that a broken DISA is much better than no DISA at all.
    Last edited by Yeti325; 06-28-2018 at 10:25 AM.

  6. #31
    Join Date
    Jun 2018
    Location
    Cincinnati
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    42
    My Cars
    2003 BMW 325i
    I also have located a second 325i almost identical to mine. 185k, new clutch, needs a cooling fan. $700. I could take two and make one, this would also be less labor than an engine swap at about the same price. Thoughts?

    I've also been thinking about the outlook of the e46 as a classic car. I know it's more of a hobby than an investment. Any ideas on what these cars will be worth 10-15 years down the road?
    Last edited by Yeti325; 06-28-2018 at 10:47 AM.

  7. #32
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    St. Joseph, Mo.
    Posts
    3,000
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    95 m3+, 03 ZHP, Mk4 Tdi
    other than maybe the e46 m3 - the rest of the e46 line is gonna be dirt cheap long before 10-15 years (if not already).
    '95 325iS - auto to manual swap done!

  8. #33
    Join Date
    Jun 2018
    Location
    Cincinnati
    Posts
    42
    My Cars
    2003 BMW 325i
    DISA re-installed, pretty clear that there is a misfire on cylinders 456. Looks like bank 2 catalytic converter is causing the misfires on cylinders 4 and 6. No lean codes.

  9. #34
    Join Date
    Jun 2018
    Location
    Cincinnati
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    My Cars
    2003 BMW 325i
    Say an exhaust valve is bent open, and a cat is clogged. No point in replacing the CCV just yet, because it will probably fail quickly given the current state of the motor.

  10. #35
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    Try this before you toss your engine:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Vo4fm0JDPY

  11. #36
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    St. Joseph, Mo.
    Posts
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    My Cars
    95 m3+, 03 ZHP, Mk4 Tdi
    if you truly have no compression in a cylinder, you need to figure out why.
    '95 325iS - auto to manual swap done!

  12. #37
    Join Date
    Jun 2018
    Location
    Cincinnati
    Posts
    42
    My Cars
    2003 BMW 325i
    I finally got to the bottom of the problem. Drilled several holes in bank 2 converter, and emptied out the dusty material that was clogging it. Going to patch over these holes by welding on a piece, or pulling replacement headers from the junkyard. It's damn loud. She runs better than ever, lots of power restored and holds a steady idle at about 700 rpm. My low rev torque has improved especially. I discovered that it's pretty much time for an alignment as well, it was swaying a bit on the interstate.

    I have tried cylinder soaks with Marvel Mystery Oil and had limited success. Currently it makes no where near the pressure that it should be. Every other cylinder is 170psi-190psi. I'm guessing around 20psi right now, but its low enough that I can't get a reading on my 30 year old compression tester. It misses every time, if you unplug its coil there is no difference in the sound of the engine. Leak down test will be my next step. I may have reached a stopping point if it's something that can't be easily remedied without disassembling the engine. I would rather get some extra miles out of it, and disable the bad cylinder. Only once the engine is completely dead will I consider putting in that much labor.

  13. #38
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    Dec 2013
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    Quote Originally Posted by MIKYZZ4 View Post
    Try this before you toss your engine:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Vo4fm0JDPY
    At least consider this, beats the $#!¶ out of that damn mystery oil!!

  14. #39
    Join Date
    Jun 2018
    Location
    Cincinnati
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    My Cars
    2003 BMW 325i
    Great thanks for the suggestion! It can't hurt anything at this point. When I inspected the dead cylinder with a borescope, nothing visible was mechanically broken, but the piston head is completely filthy and caked with carbon from all of the unburned fuel. A more aggressive cleaner is probably a good idea.

    This weekend: Swap the headers, leak down test, top end cleaner piston soak, and an alignment!

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