possible oil leak

[we350z]

Just talked to the indy mech he said this is a bigger job on the 4.4i vs. 3.0i b/c you have to take apart the intake manifold to get to the replace the oil seperator and the lines. He said they usually change PCV filter during this job too. He said it runs $725 on 4.4i vs. $425 on 3.0i model. Does this make sense?

Supersteve - did you replace oil sender and lines or just the lines?

Originally Posted by supersteve

If the lines on top of the engine are bad, they will be more like putty than rubber. If those lines are bad it's also a good idea to replace the line that goes form the oil sep back into the engine. That is the hard one because it's behind the engine. You'll want to do it when the engine is stone cold (first thing in the morning).

It's not really that bad. I did it without taking the firewall out (didn't realize it came off at the time) so it was tight; but, I got it done.

[weasel56]

yeah, unfortuneately it does... it is on the back or the manifold of the 4.4i and required manifold removal, as opposed to the 3.0i which is just under the manifold. It is a bigger job on the V8. And if it hasn't been done yet, I would rec. changing the valley pan also while the intake is off, just preventative maintenance. Because that is a point that will eventually leak over time, and is just another 5-10 minutes of labor once the intake is removed.

[supersteve]

Originally Posted by we350z

Just talked to the indy mech he said this is a bigger job on the 4.4i vs. 3.0i b/c you have to take apart the intake manifold to get to the replace the oil seperator and the lines. He said they usually change PCV filter during this job too. He said it runs $725 on 4.4i vs. $425 on 3.0i model. Does this make sense?

Supersteve - did you replace oil sender and lines or just the lines?

I didn't replace anything other than the lines to and from the oil seperator on my 2001 4.4. I don't think there is a "PVC Filter" on these engines.

As I understand it, there are a lot of differences in the earlier 4.4 and the newest generation 4.4. One being the earlier 4.4 has the oil seperator and lines on top and back of the intake manifold which means the intake manifold stays put on 2000 4.4 as it did on my 2001. The new generation has the lines running under the intake (more work) as it is on my 2006 4.4. To be quite honest, I haven't done much work on my 2006 yet. I just got it in April and it's still covered by the factory warrentee. I love working on my cars; but, I'm not going to let BMW (or any other company) get out of there share of my enjoyment.

I believe Weasel56 is a BMW mech and would know better than I do; but, he may not realize its the older version we are talking about.

[we350z]

Woops I meant Positive Crankcase Ventilation (PCV) valve(s). So I imagine your '01 and my '00 should be the same setup (older). So I would imagine the mechanic was probably thinking newer model.

Originally Posted by supersteve

I didn't replace anything other than the lines to and from the oil seperator on my 2001 4.4. I don't think there is a "PVC Filter" on these engines.

As I understand it, there are a lot of differences in the earlier 4.4 and the newest generation 4.4. One being the earlier 4.4 has the oil seperator and lines on top and back of the intake manifold which means the intake manifold stays put on 2000 4.4 as it did on my 2001. The new generation has the lines running under the intake (more work) as it is on my 2006 4.4. To be quite honest, I haven't done much work on my 2006 yet. I just got it in April and it's still covered by the factory warrentee. I love working on my cars; but, I'm not going to let BMW (or any other company) get out of there share of my enjoyment.

I believe Weasel56 is a BMW mech and would know better than I do; but, he may not realize its the older version we are talking about.

[weasel56]

Yeah, the 1st year or 2 4.4i had the separate oil valve, probably the one you have. The next few years have it built into the rear plate/cover of the manifold... then the newer, valvetronic v8 has a completely different system. You have the one with the 2 hoses that essentially turn to modeling clay after years of use. Which unfortunately is the bigger pain in the a$$ to change. You just gotta have long, thin arms and good fingervision... and being a contortionist helps also.

[we350z]

Hmm. I have short thick arms but and blind fingering vision lol. Well supposedly you can dismantle part of the firewall to make it easier according to someone's post earlier in this thread. Anyway I have yet to remove the plastic cover on the engine and check haha. That's just my commitment to pure laziness and my speculatory nature.

Originally Posted by weasel56

Yeah, the 1st year or 2 4.4i had the separate oil valve, probably the one you have. The next few years have it built into the rear plate/cover of the manifold... then the newer, valvetronic v8 has a completely different system. You have the one with the 2 hoses that essentially turn to modeling clay after years of use. Which unfortunately is the bigger pain in the a$$ to change. You just gotta have long, thin arms and good fingervision... and being a contortionist helps also.

[we350z]

Ok so I took the engine cover off. I don't think it's ever been off before, it was pretty dusty down there so I cleaned it up with the air compressor and some shop towels. I didn't see any visible oil leaks around the valve covers... just a little grit and grime. I felt the two oil seperator lines in the rear and they are definately a little on the soft side. I didn't see any visible leaks there either but I think I will need to take the in-cabin microfilter out to get a better look down there.

[weasel56]

Originally Posted by we350z

Ok so I took the engine cover off. I don't think it's ever been off before, it was pretty dusty down there so I cleaned it up with the air compressor and some shop towels. I didn't see any visible oil leaks around the valve covers... just a little grit and grime. I felt the two oil seperator lines in the rear and they are definately a little on the soft side. I didn't see any visible leaks there either but I think I will need to take the in-cabin microfilter out to get a better look down there.

Yeah, I think the microfilter is the section of "firewall" people are referring to... it's just a filter bulkhead... easy to remove though.

[we350z]

Cool, I was envisioning something acutally part of the firewall itself...

Originally Posted by weasel56

Yeah, I think the microfilter is the section of "firewall" people are referring to... it's just a filter bulkhead... easy to remove though.

[supersteve]

Looking from the front of the engine, behind the engine you'll see two gaskets for the hood. The rearward most one is the fire wall (at the base of the windshield). The forward one is on the filter bulkhead. That big piece of plastic which sits right behind the engine has three pieces. The center one comes out to look at the back of the engine.