[Rokatare325i]

Hello, first of all sorry for my not so great English
I need help with my 2007 e92 325i 218hp with the N52K engine
Error 2A87 VANOS exhaust mechanical
Symptoms were:
Rough idle, very high fuel consumption 25l/100km (9.4 US MPG) in city and 15l/100km outside the city and rarely when starting car the throttle was very laggy and could hear the air sucking when pushing the throttle and no power(limp mode I think).
I took it to a service and they discovered the “bearing ledge” wear (attached pictures) and replaced the camshaft and the bearing ledge with OE BMW parts. They also replaced the spark plugs because they were worn.
Now the fuel consumtion in city is 17l/100km or 13.8MPG.
The limp mode and the 2A87 error came back.
I swapped the solenoids and the non return valves (exhaust to intake and intake to exhaust)
What should I try next? I also looked at the vanos and I could not see the ISA screws to see if they snapped because the vanos has a black plastic cap in the direction of the camshaft.
Sorry if this post was hard to read, English is not my native language.
Any suggestions appreciated.

[Rokatare325i]

Europe car

[PhaceN52]

Is 2A87 the only code you have scanning the car?
Aside from normal things that could increase oil consuption like sticking brakes, seized bearings and so on, since your car too apears to have a MAF take a look at this topic
https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1304563
At least try to just spray the connector with some contact cleaner and then start the car, if you feel even a little difference that could be one culprit for the insane fuel consumption; back to vanos, bolts are on the inward side, weren't units like this?



edit: hook up INPA to your car, you can see vanos values in real-time and see if they hit the target or are off

[Rokatare325i]

I put a photo with the error on the car and the vanos inward to the cam look like the following photo and the front has a metal plate.
The MAF sensor and it’s connector are cleaned and never had a fault code for that.
And about the real time values, I did that with ista and inpa and the target values are achieved. And there is one more test that increase the rpm to 1200 and after that it says that the vanos solenoids are ok. I did not try to see the target values in limp mode, will wait for it.
Also forgot to mention on cold starts there is fuel smell from the exhaust am the rpm stumbles and there is a sound “marbles in a can” that doesn’t increase with the rpm
I did change the oil and an oem oil filter and the oil filter insert is intact and oem

[PhaceN52]

Mmmh if marbles in a can isn't rpm related so no timing chain or something like that but still can be heard from the engine I'd likely double check the vanos actuators, maybe the return spring hidden behind that black plate broke; since you swapped solenoids and the code didn't move from exhaust to intake and you changed the bearing ledge it's probably that, maybe it can't properly regulate the timing and you have a lot of unburnt fuel in the exhaust...
Regarding the MAF I never had codes too, but simply reseating the connector makes a huge difference in power, low rpm hesitation and fuel consumption, give it a try, it's likely 5 seconds.
Just for excluding things change the air temp sensor inside the front bumper, 65816936953, maybe the car sees some absurd temp and it dumps fuel.

edit. ps if you diy changing a vanos actuator is really not that bad

[Rokatare325i]

I checked the temp sensor in ista and it showed 20C and in the cluster showed 3C which was correct
I will double check the MAF sensor and will reply

[Rokatare325i]

The MAF sensor and the connector are clean and I don’t want to throw more parts at it

[PhaceN52]

Originally Posted by Rokatare325i

The MAF sensor and the connector are clean and I don’t want to throw more parts at it

They may appear clean but early E90s had a low voltage signal going through the maf so even a small discrepance (slight corrosion on pins) can cause problems but whatever, it was just for ruling out a contributing factor on that insane fuel consumption.
Oil pressure -> check valves -> vanos solenoids -> vanos actuators -> bearing ledges losing pressure, that's it.
Since you ruled out the worst case (ledges), you say check valves and solenoids are ok, I'd check your actuators at least with inpa live while driving to see if timing corrections falls off the target values

[Rokatare325i]

Thanks, I didn’t know I could see those values while driving, I’ll try tomorrow and report back

[Rokatare325i]

Hello, I drove with inpa live data for 25 minutes and the vanos position and setpoint were fine all the time. After the drive I turned off engine and started again and it started in that limp
mode I talked about earlier (sound of sucking air and very laggy throttle) and the error 2A87 came again.
Also I have a question, can it be an oil pressure problem if the error was always on the exhaust side and never on the intake? My oil filter case and the filter are oem. Also the oil filter might have some metal shavings from the old bearing ledge and camshaft, maybe that limits the oil pressure? I changed the oil (liquid moly 5w30) and after 1000-2000 km I changed the bearing ledge.
Here is the freeze frame for the error and some exclamation mark that I have no idea what is it.
Thank you for your time!