[wrongmark]

Just recently spotted this code on my E90 (80k miles). Less than a year since last oil change (done at least annually by me with Castrol Edge 0w30).

No EML, I just spotted it by route fault code scan. Cleared it once and it came back. So I’m guessing it could be an issue. Really hoping it’s not bits of chain guide floating around (no timing chain issues to date but did replace the tensioner as a precaution after I got a bit of intermittent noise last year).

I found this: https://uk.autologic.com/news/bmw-n4...essure-control

Seems to suggest a possible faulty “oil pressure control valve” presumably part no 11417584990 (http://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/show...73#11417584990)

Anyone had this problem? Any help/advice welcome. I’ve not noticed any issues or new noises (apart from ac compressor as it doesn’t get much use usually).

[Dormermike]

What engine?

[wrongmark]

N43 (2011 320i E90 LCI)

[wrongmark]

Update: I cleared the codes again. After two days of commuting it hasn't come back. I've not done any motorway driving yet though. Also noticed that the oil level is at half way, so will top it up shortly.

I've read an opinion that after some motorway driving at steady speeds and then coming to a standstill, the oil pressure can drop causing the error code. This can be as a result of a faulty/worn hydraulic valve as mentioned in my earlier post.

Will update my findings for any future forum members searching in future.

[old grey steve]

If you've got this fault its likely to be one of several things the main one and I've seen over 100 of these cars would be disintegrating timing chain guides i.e. timing chain guide failure which is as common as muck on these other things perhaps to look at briefly would be oil filter has it been fitted correctly is it old is it sucking in on itself but best bet would be 100% a restriction on the suction pipe assembly that feeds the oil pump and usually its fragmented timing chain guide bits that cause the issue. And trust me you won't necessarily see a timing cam/crank related fault you'd ideally if you smell this sort of issue would need to remove the cam cover to inspect(usually the main support bar for the main chain guide separated drops down and is smashed to pieces by the rotating chain.

Mini's and the later spec N13 engined BMW's have this issue as well as we are doing a 118i at the moment re the valve I'm assuming we are talking about the hydraulic valve that sits on the side of the block usually when removed they are either caked in crap I've seen small particles of timing chain debris within the valve as well plus on at least 4 of these valves when removed they simply fall apart don't. Replacing the valve on its own for what its worth may lose the fault but not solve the problem. Look really carefully to see if there are underlying issues

[wrongmark]

Thanks for the advice. I'm hoping it's not the timing chain guides, but I know this is a likely cause as you say. My sparky mate has a bore scope which I'm thinking of borrowing. I was going to drain the oil and stick it up the sump hole (ahem ) to see what I can see. Am I wasting my time? Am I likely to see anything down the oil filler cap hole also?

Might take the hydraulic valve off and take a look also. Do I need to drain the oil first?

[old grey steve]

Originally Posted by wrongmark

Thanks for the advice. I'm hoping it's not the timing chain guides, but I know this is a likely cause as you say. My sparky mate has a bore scope which I'm thinking of borrowing. I was going to drain the oil and stick it up the sump hole (ahem ) to see what I can see. Am I wasting my time? Am I likely to see anything down the oil filler cap hole also?

Might take the hydraulic valve off and take a look also. Do I need to drain the oil first?

its not a bad move only issue I would say femme what I have seen re bore scope camera results is unless you’re 100% stable and take time to
check everything then you may not get the full picture usually we remove the rocker cover inspect for signs of guide famage(the main guide has a support or a slipper that maintains strength shall we say)usually this gets damaged drops down and it’s this that gets pummeld by the chain and ends up being loads of plastic debris laying in the sump that in tern gets caught in the pickup unit for the oil pump and the rest is well common on these I guess

We usually when we suspect anything end up removing the sump(1 gasket and 21 bolts)usually when you remove this you see the result

Sadly as photo bucket doesn’t work as it used too I cannot share photos burn I’ve got some horrors including huge guide debris and hydraulic valves that have literally broken apart when they are removed from the side of the block

If you have guide issues you’ll be replacing the guides all the bolts plus bottom sprocket crank bolt I would 100% as we do replace the oil pickup unit that connects to the oil pump plus don’t clean but replace the vanos solenoids timing of course would have to be undertaken but when done right when all the key parts bolts and timing is done when bolted back together the car goes on without any drama, we have seen guide jobs done more basically only replacing the basics only to once again have issues re oil pressure or chain related issue once again we cleared vanos solenoids before to help keep costs down after all the are £85+VAT each trouble is it’s not always long term successful and you could compromise the adjusters and at £316+VAT each the solenoids are the better option

Sounds hard but on these cars you seen to have to be too thorough to ensure nothing else takes place measure twice cut once seems the way forward but it’s never cheap

[AndyVR]

Originally Posted by old grey steve

its not a bad move only issue I would say femme what I have seen re bore scope camera results is unless you’re 100% stable and take time to
check everything then you may not get the full picture usually we remove the rocker cover inspect for signs of guide famage(the main guide has a support or a slipper that maintains strength shall we say)usually this gets damaged drops down and it’s this that gets pummeld by the chain and ends up being loads of plastic debris laying in the sump that in tern gets caught in the pickup unit for the oil pump and the rest is well common on these I guess

We usually when we suspect anything end up removing the sump(1 gasket and 21 bolts)usually when you remove this you see the result

Sadly as photo bucket doesn’t work as it used too I cannot share photos burn I’ve got some horrors including huge guide debris and hydraulic valves that have literally broken apart when they are removed from the side of the block

If you have guide issues you’ll be replacing the guides all the bolts plus bottom sprocket crank bolt I would 100% as we do replace the oil pickup unit that connects to the oil pump plus don’t clean but replace the vanos solenoids timing of course would have to be undertaken but when done right when all the key parts bolts and timing is done when bolted back together the car goes on without any drama, we have seen guide jobs done more basically only replacing the basics only to once again have issues re oil pressure or chain related issue once again we cleared vanos solenoids before to help keep costs down after all the are £85+VAT each trouble is it’s not always long term successful and you could compromise the adjusters and at £316+VAT each the solenoids are the better option

Sounds hard but on these cars you seen to have to be too thorough to ensure nothing else takes place measure twice cut once seems the way forward but it’s never cheap

Could you tell us more about the Vanos solenoids - why do you say replace them and not clean them? In your experience should they be inspected/replaced at a certain mileage? or just when replacing the timing chain?

I ask this because I have issues with hesitation/misfire/no power under 2000rpm at times, but it runs perfectly above 2000rpm, so I suspect the VANOS solenoids could potentially be the cause, but I've never had any VANOS or timing related fault codes.

[wrongmark]

Well the error code has come back again. There are no signs that anything is wrong. No EML, rough running or strange sounds at all. I was tempted to just replace the valve as discussed but now I'm thinking it might be worth booking it in with my local independent BMW specialist for them to check it out and potentially replace the timing chain anyway. Don't want to do irreparable damage if the engine is not getting sufficient oil.

[wrongmark]

Update:

The car has gone in to my local Sytner this morning for a "quality enhancement" or recall for the brake vacuum pump. The lady booking it in said that as a matter of course they will check the timing chain for any stretching or excess wear and will do a full replacement if necessary. I was surprised and quite impressed by this, especially as it's a 7 year old car with 80k miles on the clock and I've never taken it there for a service.

I'm not sure I trust that they will "check" it thoroughly enough though. I bet they just open the oil filler and prod it with a screwdriver. We'll see I guess.

Edit:

I stumbled across this when searching the forum: http://www.e90post.com/forums/attach...2&d=1461352721

It looks like the do a "Timing Chain Test" whatever that is.

[old grey steve]

Originally Posted by AndyVR

Could you tell us more about the Vanos solenoids - why do you say replace them and not clean them? In your experience should they be inspected/replaced at a certain mileage? or just when replacing the timing chain?

I ask this because I have issues with hesitation/misfire/no power under 2000rpm at times, but it runs perfectly above 2000rpm, so I suspect the VANOS solenoids could potentially be the cause, but I've never had any VANOS or timing related fault codes.

Logic for changing these solenoids is purely based on having seen nigh on 100 of these cars over the years with these faults, re the solenoids yes we have cleaned and refitted them in the distant past, mainly to help save customer some money, thing is post work some cars would come back with a fault and you ended up replacing the solenoids in any case and the fault would finally disappear and the customer didn't have to re visit the issue again, so for me/us you know what you have to do going forward, hence for me its belt and braces you replace them when you do one of these jobs and don't opt to clean and re fit, plus you have to ask if they are X state when removed how have they been effected by being contaminated.

Their a fair bit of money to buy (£84.17 each plus VAT) but as stated once I get one of these vehicles through the door and identify the issue say it s a chain and guide job everything gets done and guess what once its done never have any re call issues.

I've actually got a 1 series in here now having chain and guides done(no oil pressure issues)but both vanos solenoids were corrupt due to carbon and other deposits and when the rocker cover was removed it proved a point shall we say. The other thing is the potential to corrupt the adjusters if things are left too long and these ain't cheap at £317 or so each plus VAT. So 100% IMO get a sniff of an issue change the solenoids.

Sure there's people that report they've cleaned the solenoids re fitted them with no issues and I accept this finding but doing what I do seeing what I see I chose to replace

[wrongmark]

Another update: The car came back from Sytner with a completely clean bill of health. They must have done some kind of coding for the brake vacuum modification fitted as I lost most of my custom codings.

They apparently did the "timing chain test" (which they said involves no actual visual checks at all) and said that there is no stretching or other issues - don't know how they know this. They told me the car is not showing any error codes at all. I've driven it for a few days and done a couple of error code reads and still no error codes.

I don't really want to fix something that isn't broken, so unless someone comes on here suggesting otherwise, I'm planning to leave it for now and keep an eye out for the error code returning.

[old grey steve]

Originally Posted by wrongmark

They apparently did the "timing chain test" (which they said involves no actual visual checks at all) and said that there is no stretching or other issues - don't know how they know this. They told me the car is not showing any error codes at all. I've driven it for a few days and done a couple of error code reads and still no error codes.

The test they do is basically via diagnostic it's simple, gives info, but it ain't 100% accurate in terms of telling you everything, if you want to know how I've seen more than a couple where no correlation faults are recorded yet logic says you check as these engines are well known for issues and if you can pop the oil filler cap off and with a pick simply attempt to see if the chain can be lifted and you see this it backs up a theory that somethings going on, on a good few removing the rocker cover produces more proof of problems, either as stated some chain slack is present and it doesn't have to much to the main guide slipper being absent(meaning it's fragmented dropped down and been broken up by amongst other things the chains movement) and from there you can get 30C1 oil pressure static fails due to guide debris being lodged in the pick up for the oil pump plus debris finds it way in to the hydraulic valve unit) I see too many to ignore issues and if you see evidence like I've described you have some choices.

1/ rocker cover off inspect and timing tools on check timing but ultimately tackle the job in full once and for all
2/ after visual inspection fit a new rocker cover gasket refit the rocker cover and make a decision that's right for you once the inspection has been done
3/ your stated choice of wait and see what happens in the future
4/ leave everything as it is as a customer of ours did with a 56000 mile 1 series until serious things like the internals grenade themselves and punch a hole through the side of the block (still got that engine as a reminder)

The fact you've had that warning tells me somethings happening what it is will only be revealed by opting to check it out.

Trust me.....If it were me I'd have the rocker cover off to inspect.

[wrongmark]

Thanks Steve. I will heed the advice and get it looked at by local BMW specialist.

[wrongmark]

Originally Posted by old grey steve

If you have guide issues you’ll be replacing the guides all the bolts plus bottom sprocket crank bolt I would 100% as we do replace the oil pickup unit that connects to the oil pump plus don’t clean but replace the vanos solenoids timing of course would have to be undertaken but when done right when all the key parts bolts and timing is done when bolted back together the car goes on without any drama, we have seen guide jobs done more basically only replacing the basics only to once again have issues re oil pressure or chain related issue once again we cleared vanos solenoids before to help keep costs down after all the are £85+VAT each trouble is it’s not always long term successful and you could compromise the adjusters and at £316+VAT each the solenoids are the better option

Which bolts are you recommending are replaced? I'm looking here on RealOEM: http://bit.ly/2yGcVlp

I'm thinking numbers 15 and then not sure, any help appreciated.

[old grey steve]

Originally Posted by wrongmark

Which bolts are you recommending are replaced? I'm looking here on RealOEM: http://bit.ly/2yGcVlp

I'm thinking numbers 15 and then not sure, any help appreciated.

If you are to do a proper job that is get everything done right first time you will need a good few parts not just a couple of bolts and here's what we usually do when once the rocker cover gaskets removed timings checked and the guides are inspected we found a problem.. usually with these the main chain guides has separated(main frame part of the main guide breaks away and drops down gets smashed by the chain and ends up in the sump) and if timings out/jump a tooth of the chain appears slack.

http://bmwfans.info/parts-catalog/E9...ounting_parts/

on the above No8 and No12(13 you'll need but it comes with 12 from memory when ordered

http://bmwfans.info/parts-catalog/E9...vel_indicator/

on the above No4 which is the sump gasket and 20 of No5(sump bolts) reason for this is if debris is in the sump you'll need to drain the oil remove the sump and inspect the sump and clean debris out, plus you'll need to inspect and if necessary if found to be contaminated replace the oil pick up unit to oil pump

http://bmwfans.info/parts-catalog/E9...ng_shaft_unit/

On the above No2 ideally should be remove inspected and if in any dout replaced as this is the pick up tube for the oil pump and usually gets contaminate with minute chain guide debris and other stuff

http://bmwfans.info/parts-catalog/E9..._add_on_parts/

on the above you'll need No1 twice(solenoid valves the ones that you' usually see pulled out cleaned and re fitted

http://bmwfans.info/parts-catalog/E9...er_head_cover/

on the above you'll need No3 and No4(fuel pump gaskets) you'll need ideally 4 of No8 which are the spark plug tubs that ideally should be replaced when the rocker cover is removed)-oddly enough on this part if you do a rocker cover gasket replacement and these are not replaced should a warranty claim be bought forward re a re leaking gasket and these were not replaced there can be warranty issues so for the sake of less than £10 they are worth replacing. You'll also need No2 of course which is the rocker cover gasket

http://bmwfans.info/parts-catalog/E9...ration_damper/

on the above you'll need No3 which s the crank bolt as this will be coming off as part of the required work, as you'll be looking to replace the bottom sprocket which is on the next diagram.

http://bmwfans.info/parts-catalog/E9..._timing_chain/

on the above you'll be looking to replace No1 No2 No3 No6(which is the bottom sprocket) No7 which is the tensioner(comes with No8 the seal) No9 & No10 No11 & No16 are the same bolt so 2 of these and 2 of No15 which are the screws for the vanos adjusters

Parts wise this is about it if and I say if the jobs done thoroughly, sure you can cut corners here and there I've seen chain and guide jobs done without removing the sump yet if the guides have broken up how do you get a debris out as it doesn't come out by simply changing the oil otherwise when we remove the sumps we've removed why is there so much debris still sitting in the sump! When this sort of jobs done when everything in the above's tackled then post work we never have a problem when we have seen the job done elsewhere when the basics have been tacked yes after the basics have been sorted people have still had issues because of what I've explained above hence we cover all the bases.

It isn't cheap its fairly labour intensive but in my opinion with whats facing owners of these engines it seems the only way really to go forward to ensure debris is removed and the issue is resolved once and for all.

I'm not a mechanic I run front of house (i.e. deal with customers) but once I see pictures or see or hear of symptoms you find with these cars you'll usually end up with dealing with the above the static oil pressure code is a dead giveaway that somethings going on and I'll guess debris in the sump somewhere which is causing an oil pick up issue questions is whats the route cause hence usually the need to go to all this expense and time to rid the car of the fault once and for all

Hope this helps

[wrongmark]

Update: after panicing about the timing chain issues, I called around a few garages for quotes. These ranged from £830 to £1000+. I decided to attempt a fix myself, so I removed the hydraulic valve from the side of the engine and it seemed to be a bit sticky (shaking it made no noise) but no bits of plastic. Cleaned it as best I could with some carb cleaner, reinstalled it and I've not had the error come back yet (done at least a few hundred miles of motorway driving too). Cleaned the vanos valves too just for the sake of it.

I'm going to replace the valve anyway to be sure as it's a fairly easy job and will do the service myself at the same time.

I have borrowed an inspection camera and have tried to see if I can spot anything down the oil filler (the answer is not much - apart from everything looks pretty clean). I will see if I can see anything via the sump drain hole when I drain the oil.

[betinhoa]

Hi

Have your code reappeared?

I have de same code problem.

30c1 oil pressure control, static.

2 year with it, no problems, no noises in the car but the same code again and again.

On the web the only info is chain timing problems.

Please, some help here.

[wrongmark]

I just replaced the hydraulic valve at the bottom of the engine (11417584990 ). All has been fine since and the code has not reappeared. Easy job and fairly cheap DIY fix.

[venom_hvx]

Hi,

Wrongmark ive sended you a pm! Im having the same issue. From time to time i get this code but only if i scan for the error. No dashboard errors. Do you know if this is oil related? Or Just the hydraulic valve? Im using 0w30 castrol edge and the mechanic says that this oil its too thin for the engine.

Regards!

[wrongmark]

Assuming you have the N43, 0w30 Castrol Edge is ok (0w30 is the recommended oil). It’s possible it could be the hydraulic valve, as above, or it could be something blocking the oil pickup at the sump. You really ought to have the sump removed to check for bits of broken timing chain guide. You could also try removing the valve and clean it with some carb cleaner and give it a good shake until you can hear the valve opening/closing (clicking). Then clear the error codes and see if it comes back. IMO you need to solve it or you will do serious damage to the engine.

[Durai]

I had the same issues recently. Luckily it wasn't anything major.

There was oil leak (gasket) in the oil filter assembly and replaced the gasket and oil filter.

No issues so far (driven about 100 miles on the motorway and local roads). Code used to return after driving 2 - 3 miles after cleaning only Vanos sensors.

Please check for oil leaks and change the oil filter to see whether it makes it better.