[kaydillast]

Hey guys, looking for some advice and help, I have a 07 328i coupe. Couple of months ago my mechanic told me that my oil is leaking and I need a "valve cover gasket" replacement and asked $480, which I think is way too much.

About an hour ago I started smelling something from the engine so I popped open the hood and saw smoke coming from underneath the engine which makes think that what if it catches on fire (knock on wood!). Should I not drive till its fixed?

I saw DIY for E46 on ebay and looks pretty easy, if I am new to this should I shop around or do it myself?

Here are the part #'s I found on the OEM WEBSITE:

1.)

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...37&hg=11&fg=15

#2 PROFILE-GASKET PART# 11127582245

OR IS IT

2.)

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...34&hg=11&fg=10

#4 PROFILE-GASKET PART# 11137548031

Any advice would be great, thanks!!

[ENINTY]

What do you mean by "new to this"? Have you worked on cars before and to what level? The valve cover is not the easiest thing to remove because of the Valvetroninc motor. It requires new bolts, angle-torqued correctly. It's a very specific procedure.

Do you have a set of e-torx sockets, extension bar, a torque wrench, and angle indicator? If you don't know what any of those are then have a shop do it for you. Also, it may be leaking because of broken valve cover bolts, which means you might need a stud extraction tool too.

If you are close to 100,000 miles, then get a set of spark plugs and install them while you are in there since all the stuff you need to remove to get to the valve cover needs to come off for the spark plugs as well.

[BamaBeamer]

THE VALVETRONIC MOTOR IS THE EASIEST PART. It's getting the valve cover wiggled out that is the hard part. There is a coil pack wiring harness with plastic conduit around back that will hold you up. This is a job better left to the dealer or Eurospecialist IMO.