[Serf27]

Rip.

[tlow98]

Shame. Sorry to hear.

Well, another n52 based car can be had quite cheap!

[jmnew911]

sucks

[ricx]

Originally Posted by IBellassai

Did a compression test. Looks like psi readings are about 45 all the way down the line. It appears she is dead Jim.

"appears" no, stick a fork in it. If 135 is the min your only 1/3 of the way there. Its up to you if it makes sense to replace the engine, use it for spare parts or junk yard. If the car has lower miles and ran great, drop an engine in and keep driving. If the car has lots of other costly in need of repairs just put it out its misery.

[iqraceworks]

Originally Posted by IBellassai

Did a compression test. Looks like psi readings are about 45 all the way down the line. It appears she is dead Jim.

Buy an eBay or junkyard N54 for $1500 or less....and toss it in your car 👍.

[IBellassai]

Apparently a guy who sold me a door a while back who lives 10 mins away has an n51 with 80k on it. He is going to swap it for me.

I'll be gaining about 9k miles back as mine has over 88k on it now.

Seems like It will be okay. Thanks for everyone's concerns and time willing to help a n00b out.

[vilord]

Awesome! Glad to hear yours will live again.

[Joebie]

Originally Posted by IBellassai

Apparently a guy who sold me a door a while back who lives 10 mins away has an n51 with 80k on it. He is going to swap it for me.

I'll be gaining about 9k miles back as mine has over 88k on it now.

Seems like It will be okay. Thanks for everyone's concerns and time willing to help a n00b out.

Was yours an N51 or an N52?

I think if you swap an N51 into an N52 car you'd need some extra programming work as the N51 requires a 3-stage intake manifold to make up for its lower compression ratio compared to the N52 right?

Hopefully your door guy knows this.

Also if you want to read about it I documented my N52 engine replacement pretty well here after I over-revved and blew my own engine in my e90:

https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1567315

Good luck!

[IBellassai]

Originally Posted by Joester

Was yours an N51 or an N52?

I think if you swap an N51 into an N52 car you'd need some extra programming work as the N51 requires a 3-stage intake manifold to make up for its lower compression ratio compared to the N52 right?

Hopefully your door guy knows this.

Also if you want to read about it I documented my N52 engine replacement pretty well here after I over-revved and blew my own engine in my e90:

https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1567315

Good luck!

Mine is the n51 SULEV with the secondary air pump. THANK YOU for making sure I am careful. I learned the difference a while back when I couldn't get a cheap radiator replacement haha.

[Joebie]

Originally Posted by IBellassai

Mine is the n51 SULEV with the secondary air pump. THANK YOU for making sure I am careful. I learned the difference a while back when I couldn't get a cheap radiator replacement haha.

Gotcha, for some reason I was thinking you had an N52. Best of luck with the swap! PM me if you have any questions. My one tip: a garage heater is worth the investment.

[IBellassai]

Originally Posted by Joester

Gotcha, for some reason I was thinking you had an N52. Best of luck with the swap! PM me if you have any questions. My one tip: a garage heater is worth the investment.

This guy has a nice set up. I would love to heat mine. Insulation would be necessary first probably.

[smass]

Originally Posted by IBellassai

Did a compression test. Looks like psi readings are about 45 all the way down the line. It appears she is dead Jim.

You or your mechanic probably did this correctly but I have to ask.... how many revolutions did the engine make for each cyl test? I could see a single compression stroke on a cold engine making 45. There are a lot of variable that affect compression. Even compression is generally considered a good thing.

[IBellassai]

Originally Posted by smassey321

You or your mechanic probably did this correctly but I have to ask.... how many revolutions did the engine make for each cyl test? I could see a single compression stroke on a cold engine making 45. There are a lot of variable that affect compression. Even compression is generally considered a good thing.

We turned the engine over for 5-10 seconds per cylinder. Pressure plateaud at 35-40ish psi each cylinder dry. Retried it with some oil in the cylinders and we got 45

[smass]

Originally Posted by IBellassai

We turned the engine over for 5-10 seconds per cylinder. Pressure plateaud at 35-40ish psi each cylinder dry. Retried it with some oil in the cylinders and we got 45

Well you did it right then. Good luck you you new N51. Make sure to sell the intake manifold off the bad motor. Those have value to N52 people.

If I were replacing my motor I would put on a new oil pan gasket prior to install. Those are no fun to change while the engine is in the car.

[IBellassai]

Originally Posted by smassey321

Well you did it right then. Good luck you you new N51. Make sure to sell the intake manifold off the bad motor. Those have value to N52 people.

If I were replacing my motor I would put on a new oil pan gasket prior to install. Those are no fun to change while the engine is in the car.

I'm going to have my mechanic replace the oil pan gasket and the valve cover gasket also.

Might as well 🤷🏽*♂️

[tlow98]

good vibes ITT

[S65Hunter]

F

[Kaz26]

Once again, do a leakdown test to find out where it's losing compression. If it's the rings you will head air coming out through the oil drain plug I believe. Air leaking through exhaust valve will be heard in exhaust pipe, etc. It might just be the top of the engine that needs to be serviced. If it's not the rings then you might not need a new engine, just a new head. The rings are probably shot, but it's possible they aren't, and a leakdown test will help you identify that.

[vilord]

Replacing a complete used N51/N52 is cheaper than a top end rebuild

[Kaz26]

Ya, I also didn't read the part where the compression numbers went up when they added oil to the cylinder, the rings are toast, as are the cylinders. The engine could still be sold to someone who wants to bore it out and rebuild it.

[IBellassai]

Originally Posted by Kaz26

Ya, I also didn't read the part where the compression numbers went up when they added oil to the cylinder, the rings are toast, as are the cylinders. The engine could still be sold to someone who wants to bore it out and rebuild it.

I am giving it to the guy who is swapping it. He is charging me a very fair rate.

[oVeRdOsE.]

Originally Posted by vilord

Replacing a complete used N51/N52 is cheaper than a top end rebuild

+1 . Near my place, a complete engine from a ''you pull yard'' is 300$ cad.

Went on their web site the other day for a wheel bearing, and they had 7 E90 in their yard, and one of them got 90k km on it...

its fun to own a common car sometimes.