[RKP]

Just got a oil change from Mt Laurel BMW, went in for a $80 oil change and walked out with a $1500+ service required receipt. Don't know what to do. I looked on these forums and people said the parts run you under $150. Anyone know how hard the DIY is or if anyone is in the NJ/NY/PA area that is willing to do it for me for cheaper. Let me know, Thanks.

[Supreme214]

Originally Posted by RKP

Just got a oil change from Mt Laurel BMW, went in for a $80 oil change and walked out with a $1500+ service required receipt. Don't know what to do. I looked on these forums and people said the parts run you under $150. Anyone know how hard the DIY is or if anyone is in the NJ/NY/PA area that is willing to do it for me for cheaper. Let me know, Thanks.

oil filter gasket shouldn't be that hard....

[Varjo]

What you should do is find a good BMW indi mechanic. Don't just replace the valve cover gasket, replace the entire cover while you're at it. Should walk out for under $800 installed with a good indi.

[Bamaben]

Yep you can do it yourself.

[RKP]

Really, is it necessary to drain the oil or anything for either repair? Also I heard you have to get new type of screws? Any idea?

[Spacecpe]

No both repairs are pretty DIYable if you have some basic mechanic knowledge.. the rear bolts on the VC are a Bitch.. Oil filter housing is cake.

[NGEE]

Originally Posted by RKP

Anyone know how hard the DIY is :

Oil Filter Gasket DIY

Valve Cover Gasket DIY

[Bent_remy]

Originally Posted by NGEE

Oil Filter Gasket DIY

Valve Cover Gasket DIY

[ctuna]

Pelican Parts , ECS tuning or Turner Motor sports .
Read the DIY's here in the DIY and maintenance section.
Lots of stuff to remove on the VCG also Pelican parts has
some DIY's.

OFG is pretty easy the VCG is more involved.
You should be able to find and Indy to cut the cost down.
Also a second opinion never hurts.

[stanlalee]

That's what it cost at the dealer: $1000-1200 for the valve cover and usually $500-600 for the oil filter housing (unless you happen to use my price gouging dealer which charges $1300 for the valve cover and $700 for the oil filter housing). The parts are cheap, neither job that difficult. Either do it yourself or find an independent which will at least save you $500.

edit: if you have a 328 valve cover gasket should be MUCH cheaper (even at my price gouging dealer).

[Shotputted]

I had the same thing happen last time I got an oil change at BMW. Not sure when I'll get it done, over the year I've had the car I haven't had to add a drop of oil to it and I haven't seen a ton of oil around the engine. Can't be that bad right? Where should I look specifically for oil to see if it's a problem? Got a quote for VCG, OFHG and spark plugs for $1050 from an Indy, seems like a fair price.

[Vitalität]

Originally Posted by RKP

Really, is it necessary to drain the oil or anything for either repair? Also I heard you have to get new type of screws? Any idea?

Don't pay the dealer that, it is super easy. Parts I paid totaled to $106.00 for the gaskets and bolts, and $250 for the oil housing or you may need to replace the gasket only? which will save you tons of money. Spare a whole day for it. I recently did that and I did not even have experience but I was able to

[3.1L Z]

You are going to need a complete set of tools, extensions, Torx and wobble head/extension before you start. I have a feeling you don't have these...

[fazman]

Originally Posted by RKP

Just got a oil change from Mt Laurel BMW, went in for a $80 oil change and walked out with a $1500+ service required receipt. Don't know what to do. I looked on these forums and people said the parts run you under $150. Anyone know how hard the DIY is or if anyone is in the NJ/NY/PA area that is willing to do it for me for cheaper. Let me know, Thanks.

PichaDis11

[vandalbob]

Originally Posted by 3.1L Z

You are going to need a complete set of tools, extensions, Torx and wobble head/extension before you start. I have a feeling you don't have these...

This was me before doing the VCG, OFHG, accessory belt and tensioner, vanos solenoids. NOW I have an awesome set of tools with all the tools you listed above. The VCG was the only difficult one for me and time consuming. Now 3 months later it is leaking again, sigh.....must've done something wrong. The other repairs are holding up great, so partial success.

To the OP, lots of DIY threads with really good advice on these DIY repairs. Study up and go for it.

[3.1L Z]

Had to...

[dannyjones]

Can't comment on valve cover, but I did my oil filter housing gasket. Was a little challenging and time consuming, but so glad I did it instead of wasting $500 on labour for a $25 gasket. Read the DIYs over and over. Try to understand the tools and skills you'll need.
Find a reputable indy and get a quote for both jobs and both combined. In no circumstances go to the dealer.

My best advise would be to read up on it and if you want a challenge, try to do it yourself. You can save a lot of money. If you fail, worst case, get it towed to an indy (knowing the quote beforehand). But it all depends on if you have another mode of transport whilst you attempt it as well.

Also, if the oil isn't dripping out under your car, and is not getting on your belt (which can be problematic), take your time to make a decision about what to do. Don't rush thinking your car is about to die. Once I knew my OFHG was leaking, I took 2-3 months to prepare with tools/reading. But it was a slow leak, no drips, nothing on the belt etc.

[Efthreeoh]

It sounds like you don't have the mechanical experience, work area, or tools to get either of these jobs done DIY. On a second note, you went to a dealer, and they gave you a laundry list of repairs to make, so take it with a grain of salt. Both of these repairs are common to the N52 engine in your car, but it doesn't mean you even have either of the problems for real. What you should do is take a few pics of the valve cover near the exhaust side, and of the OFH. See if you can get a shot of the engine block underneath the intake manifold. Post the pictures here so we can take a look and verify the issues. The dealer may be looking for some free work. He could be throwing these to repairs out at you thinking you'll research them on the Net, you'll affirm the repairs are common and then come back to the dealership for the work.

Neither leak is catastrophic in the near term. The OFHG leak if real bad can on rare occasions mix oil into the cooling system, which is a situation that is needed to be repaired quickly, but if it were that bad the dealer would have told you so and not have done the oil change in the first place. The valve cover gasket leak will eventually provide a whiff of burned oil occasionally. Keep in mind 90% of all cars on the road have some type of oil leak on the engine somewhere and are never repaired.

If you have never DIY'd before (if you have you'd not have taken your car to a dealer to get the oil changed I suspect) then starting with a BMW and two somewhat complex repairs is in my opinion not the place to start learning how to DIY. Repairing BMWs takes some mechanical skill and knowledge and a good set of tools. The OFHG repair is best done with the coolant and oil drained and the cooling hoses removed from it. I would say, and I'm not trying to flame you, but if you do not have the necessary tools in your tool box right now to affect the OFHG repair, which are Torx sockets and a 1/4-drive extension and universal, then your skill level is probably not high enough to take on the job without the possibility of completing it correctly. Meaning you would have done other similar repairs of similar difficulty that would have required the same set of tools.

My advice is post the pics, get some feedback from some of us, then find an Indy that will quote both jobs, and then wait until your next oil change and have both repairs made. Now on the other hand, if you are planning to get a new car within the next year or two, you probably could hold off all together.

[Nitrousbird]

Originally Posted by Varjo

What you should do is find a good BMW indi mechanic. Don't just replace the valve cover gasket, replace the entire cover while you're at it. Should walk out for under $800 installed with a good indi.

What he should do is sack up and DIY.

[Varjo]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

It sounds like you don't have the mechanical experience, work area, or tools to get either of these jobs done DIY. On a second note, you went to a dealer, and they gave you a laundry list of repairs to make, so take it with a grain of salt. Both of these repairs are common to the N52 engine in your car, but it doesn't mean you even have either of the problems for real. What you should do is take a few pics of the valve cover near the exhaust side, and of the OFH. See if you can get a shot of the engine block underneath the intake manifold. Post the pictures here so we can take a look and verify the issues. The dealer may be looking for some free work. He could be throwing these to repairs out at you thinking you'll research them on the Net, you'll affirm the repairs are common and then come back to the dealership for the work.

Neither leak is catastrophic in the near term. The OFHG leak if real bad can on rare occasions mix oil into the cooling system, which is a situation that is needed to be repaired quickly, but if it were that bad the dealer would have told you so and not have done the oil change in the first place. The valve cover gasket leak will eventually provide a whiff of burned oil occasionally. Keep in mind 90% of all cars on the road have some type of oil leak on the engine somewhere and are never repaired.

If you have never DIY'd before (if you have you'd not have taken your car to a dealer to get the oil changed I suspect) then starting with a BMW and two somewhat complex repairs is in my opinion not the place to start learning how to DIY. Repairing BMWs takes some mechanical skill and knowledge and a good set of tools. The OFHG repair is best done with the coolant and oil drained and the cooling hoses removed from it. I would say, and I'm not trying to flame you, but if you do not have the necessary tools in your tool box right now to affect the OFHG repair, which are Torx sockets and a 1/4-drive extension and universal, then your skill level is probably not high enough to take on the job without the possibility of completing it correctly. Meaning you would have done other similar repairs of similar difficulty that would have required the same set of tools.

My advice is post the pics, get some feedback from some of us, then find an Indy that will quote both jobs, and then wait until your next oil change and have both repairs made. Now on the other hand, if you are planning to get a new car within the next year or two, you probably could hold off all together.

Agreed.

Originally Posted by Nitrousbird

What he should do is sack up and DIY.

I mean it's easy to say that... but if the guy has no tools, no area to work in, and no experience DIYing this really may not be viable.

[FL335]

I have a trusted Indy who is great. I just had both of these done within the last year:

VCG and oil change: $740, OTD. OFHG, $249. Go to bimrs.org and find an Indy and do it that way. You will know its done properly and save big $$. GL

[RKP]

Thanks for the advice guys. I have a garage so working area is not a problem. Tools I will probably need to order. I have some tools as I just recently replace my headlights with depo v2. I am not professionally experienced but I think the OFHG repair should be within my limits. I'm still trying to learn how to do the valve cover. I will post pics as soon as I get home from work.