[vilord]

Would it still crank in that case? I suppose it could have cracked the cam in two when it seized while still spinning...

[Igor_M5]

Impatiently waiting for results.

I actually did the same thing once on my N52 E91, but only for about 15 seconds, still running strong till this day.

15 minutes is a whole lot of time, I'd say at best case scenario is you'll have lower compression in one cylinder outside the 10% range of the others, but should still "run" fine.

If you do a compression test, start from cyl 6, good chance cyl 5 is going to be below 160psi.

[Andystobbs]

Originally Posted by tlow98

Sounds plausible. They spin twice as fast as the crank and gravity is not helping the oil stay in the journals at the top of the motor...

Half as fast. Graviry doesn't do much for a cam journal. A camshaft journal has upward loading, a crankshaft has downward loading.

[Andystobbs]

Not much point compression testing until you restore oil pressure. The lifters could be low on oil from extended running with no oil pressure. If they are very low then the valves won't open fully.

[IBellassai]

Originally Posted by Igor_M5

Impatiently waiting for results.

I actually did the same thing once on my N52 E91, but only for about 15 seconds, still running strong till this day.

15 minutes is a whole lot of time, I'd say at best case scenario is you'll have lower compression in one cylinder outside the 10% range of the others, but should still "run" fine.

If you do a compression test, start from cyl 6, good chance cyl 5 is going to be below 160psi.

It was only for 2-3 mins

[John 070]

Still hoping for the best outcome. And reiterating, a dumb yellow sticky reminding one to add oil isn't a bad idea, whatever works. As mentioned, I am always rushed today by my wife and son (6 y.o.) whenever I am working on a car. To be fair we only have a one car garage and the car is blocking.

Long ago, a college roommate told me, I have never been locked out, you know why? I always hold the door key in my hand and glance at it. Guess what? I've done that for decades (but I did get locked out once)!

[CTinline-six]

Originally Posted by John 070

Still hoping for the best outcome. And reiterating, a dumb yellow sticky reminding one to add oil isn't a bad idea, whatever works. As mentioned, I am always rushed today by my wife and son (6 y.o.) whenever I am working on a car. To be fair we only have a one car garage and the car is blocking.

Long ago, a college roommate told me, I have never been locked out, you know why? I always hold the door key in my hand and glance at it. Guess what? I've done that for decades (but I did get locked out once)!

Never rush when working on cars, it WILL bite you in the ass at some point. Hopefully by just a dumb mistake and not something like a jack falling on you.

[John 070]

Originally Posted by CTinline-six

Never rush when working on cars, it WILL bite you in the ass at some point. Hopefully by just a dumb mistake and not something like a jack falling on you.

I know I hate rushing. No lie I was doing 4 brakes on the 335 back in 2016. My wife says put the tires back on, we gotta go. I said huh? She said I told you, the Easter Egg hunt is this morning.

I thought dag, I gotta put all 4 tires back on the car and move it. To be fair she did tell me. It was pretty amazing though the front rotors fell off when I simply hit them with the palm of my hand--they were on the car 9 1/2 years.

I just rushed the other car's oil/snow tires, and no idea what I did wrong the lug nuts would not stay tight. reloosened all, retorqued, been good.

[tlow98]

Originally Posted by Andystobbs

Half as fast. Graviry doesn't do much for a cam journal. A camshaft journal has upward loading, a crankshaft has downward loading.

D’oh good catch! Been I while a since I thought about the true meaning of four stroke!

[Andystobbs]

I have the advantage of being around them every day in work
Usually in advanced stages of dissasembly and/or brokeness.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by IBellassai

It was only for 2-3 mins

Okay... but have you added the oil and tried to start the engine? It's been a few days now, what is taking so long?

[IBellassai]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

Okay... but have you added the oil and tried to start the engine? It's been a few days now, what is taking so long?

I added oil and tried starting before I even posted.

Have to get some mass airflow sensor cleaner to clean out the VANOS sensors as a KIND (what would you know about that?) fellow who privately messaged me suggested.

Not that I have to answer to you 🤷🏽*♂️. Sheesh. Troll much?

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by IBellassai

I added oil and tried starting before I even posted.

Have to get some mass airflow sensor cleaner to clean out the VANOS sensors as a KIND (what would you know about that?) fellow who privately messaged me suggested.

Not that I have to answer to you 🤷🏽*♂️. Sheesh. Troll much?

Easy now, I'm not being a dick about anything. I'm not the one who forgot to add oil after an oil change and ran the engine until it shut off, you did that. We are all just trying to help you.

You don't need MAF cleaner for the solenoids, just use brake clean, gasoline, or any solvent. You may want to just unplug the MAF and see if the engine will start. It's an old trick a BMW mechanic taught me; when all else fails, pull the MAF and see if it will run...

And BTW, speaking of KIND... how many DIYs have you posted to E90 Post?

[IBellassai]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

Easy now, I'm not being a dick about anything. I'm not the one who forgot to add oil after an oil change and ran the engine until it shut off, you did that. We are all just trying to help you.

You don't need MAF cleaner for the solenoids, just use brake clean, gasoline, or any solvent. You may want to just unplug the MAF and see if the engine will start. It's an old trick a BMW mechanic taught me; when all else fails, pull the MAF and see if it will run...

And BTW, speaking of KIND... how many DIYs have you posted to E90 Post?

😑

[iqraceworks]

If it was me, I would just put oil in it....fire it up, and drive it. The damage (if any) has already been done. At 3,000 miles, change the oil again and send a sample to Blackstone Labs.....they will be able to tell you if you have any abnormal levels of contaminants in the oil from bearing wear, or other metal on metal contact.

2-3 minutes idling with no oil "probably" isn't going to hurt anything as long as there was no load on the motor.

[IBellassai]

Originally Posted by iqraceworks

If it was me, I would just put oil in it....fire it up, and drive it. The damage (if any) has already been done. At 3,000 miles, change the oil again and send a sample to Blackstone Labs.....they will be able to tell you if you have any abnormal levels of contaminants in the oil from bearing wear, or other metal on metal contact.

2-3 minutes idling with no oil "probably" isn't going to hurt anything as long as there was no load on the motor.

It won't start. That's my problem.

[CTinline-six]

Is there any knocking when it's cranking? I would pull the spark plugs and do a compression test. Even with vanos not adjusted right from no oil pressure it should still try to start or putter a few times if it has spark, compression, and fuel.

2-3 minutes is plenty long enough to cause catastrophic damage, even if it was just idling. Given the vanos codes I'm thinking something in the top end was damaged.

[IBellassai]

Originally Posted by CTinline-six

Is there any knocking when it's cranking? I would pull the spark plugs and do a compression test. Even with vanos not adjusted right from no oil pressure it should still try to start or putter a few times if it has spark, compression, and fuel.

2-3 minutes is plenty long enough to cause catastrophic damage, even if it was just idling. Given the vanos codes I'm thinking something in the top end was damaged.

There is no knocking sound. It just cranks real good but doesn't sound like it is even attempting to actually start. The battery is also quite dead once I used the air pump, which could have been what actually shut the car down. I am hoping that it was a blessing in disguise- if I actually took it out of park I would be much more worried. So I am trying to stay positive.

Here is my issue. I have people telling me my engine is toast. Others tell me it should be totally fine. And then there is everything between.

I'm going to try the solenoid cleaning today or tomorrow. I have to have faith it could work. I really wish I had the resources to acquire an actual dealer code, but I don't and don't want to tow if I can figure it out myself. I have been instructed by my favorite e90 YouTube channel that the MAF cleaner is safer than brake cleaner or anything else. So to be safe I am going to stick with that. If that doesn't work, I may try the spark plug route. I'm not in a rush to get it going because I don't really drive much anymore. Sorry to anyone who feels like I am figuring this out too slow for them 😂.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by IBellassai

There is no knocking sound. It just cranks real good but doesn't sound like it is even attempting to actually start. The battery is also quite dead once I used the air pump, which could have been what actually shut the car down. I am hoping that it was a blessing in disguise- if I actually took it out of park I would be much more worried. So I am trying to stay positive.

Here is my issue. I have people telling me my engine is toast. Others tell me it should be totally fine. And then there is everything between.

I'm going to try the solenoid cleaning today or tomorrow. I have to have faith it could work. I really wish I had the resources to acquire an actual dealer code, but I don't and don't want to tow if I can figure it out myself. I have been instructed by my favorite e90 YouTube channel that the MAF cleaner is safer than brake cleaner or anything else. So to be safe I am going to stick with that. If that doesn't work, I may try the spark plug route. I'm not in a rush to get it going because I don't really drive much anymore. Sorry to anyone who feels like I am figuring this out too slow for them ��.

An internal combustion engine needs four conditions present to run: (1) air and (2) fuel in the correct ratio, (3) electrical spark, and (4) cylinder compression. Lack of oil lubrication most likely did not affect the fuel delivery system nor the ignition system. Considering lack of oil lubrication in an N52 can affect valve operation, and cylinder bore health, it's most logical to consider the cylinders are not creating enough compression to create an ignition of the fuel/air mixture, or the valves are not operating correctly to create the correct fuel/air ratio. VANOS does control the valvetrain, but for creation of engine power related to engine load. Valvetronic controls the air/fuel ratio. A damaged valvetrain can affect cylinder compression and in the N52, the fuel/air ratio mixture. Improper oil lubrication can easily and quickly damage the valvetrain in any engine. The N52 is designed to quickly warm up to prevent cold-start emissions, which means the cylinderhead heats up very quickly while the bottom end (crank bearings) do not. A hot, unlubricated valvetrain is not good for engine health. As George suggested a few days ago, a compression test is the first order of diagnosis.

[IBellassai]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

An internal combustion engine needs four conditions to run: (1) air, (2) fuel, (3) electrical spark, and (4) cylinder compression. Lack of oil lubrication most likely did not affect the fuel delivery system nor the ignition system. Considering lack of oil lubrication in an N52 can affect valve operation, and cylinder bore health, it's most logical to consider the cylinders are not creating enough compression to create an ignition of the fuel/air mixture. As George suggested a few days ago, a compression test is the first order of diagnosis.

I will try the compression test if cleaning the solenoids doesn't work. I am not very handy (thus my lack of DIY contributions and general know how) so I will probably have to outsource help.

[vilord]

Originally Posted by IBellassai

There is no knocking sound. It just cranks real good but doesn't sound like it is even attempting to actually start. The battery is also quite dead once I used the air pump, which could have been what actually shut the car down. I am hoping that it was a blessing in disguise- if I actually took it out of park I would be much more worried. So I am trying to stay positive.

Here is my issue. I have people telling me my engine is toast. Others tell me it should be totally fine. And then there is everything between.

I'm going to try the solenoid cleaning today or tomorrow. I have to have faith it could work. I really wish I had the resources to acquire an actual dealer code, but I don't and don't want to tow if I can figure it out myself. I have been instructed by my favorite e90 YouTube channel that the MAF cleaner is safer than brake cleaner or anything else. So to be safe I am going to stick with that. If that doesn't work, I may try the spark plug route. I'm not in a rush to get it going because I don't really drive much anymore. Sorry to anyone who feels like I am figuring this out too slow for them 😂.

There is a chance the engine is fine, and a chance the engine is toast.
It would not have shut down because of a dead battery unless the alternator is also shot.

I think the compression test is your best bet, and you can get a compression tester at AutoZone/Napa/etc as a tool loan. That'll tell you where to go next, i.e. if compression is good, look at engine controls. If compression is bad, figure out if it is valves or pistons/rings.

[vilord]

Where abouts are you? Maybe someone on here could swing by on a weekend and help out with a DCAN cable etc.