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      07-24-2019, 10:16 AM   #1
rcharles30
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Leaking valve cover ‘15 M4

It appears that I have a small leak from my valve cover on my 2015 M5. I’m just under 60k miles. By small, I mean I can see some amount of oil on the passenger side below the valve cover and drips off the rear of the motor. May be 4-5 drops a day on to my exhaust. I found it because I could smell burning oil in the morning when I left for work. By the time I get to work, the small that had dripped had burned off so I couldn’t smell it any more until I let it sit over night. At no time have I ever found oil on my garage floor.

No to drag this out, I have only found one walk through of changing the valve cover gasket but it did not seem that difficult. Is it worth doing this work on myself or is it really a dealership job?

If I do this myself, any tips or tricks i should know about? Anything else I should plan on doing while I have parts off?

Thanks in advance for any info,
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      07-26-2019, 10:25 AM   #2
rcharles30
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Will definitely look in to changing the valve cover gasket myself. Took it to the dealer to get an estimate and they confirmed it was gasket weeping. Quoted $3400 to replace. Really? Also said that 58,000 was the normal life expectancy of the gasket. So looking for any tips and tricks or insight.
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      07-26-2019, 03:39 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rcharles30 View Post
Will definitely look in to changing the valve cover gasket myself. Took it to the dealer to get an estimate and they confirmed it was gasket weeping. Quoted $3400 to replace. Really? Also said that 58,000 was the normal life expectancy of the gasket. So looking for any tips and tricks or insight.
$3400? That’s an insane amount to pay for a gasket replacement. Here are the TIS instructions: https://www.newtis.info/tisv2/a/en/f...lid/1VnXOgIU1H

You can look up the part numbers on realoem.com using the past 7 digits of your VIN. So far, it has been 100% accurate for me and I’ve ordered a ton of stuff.
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      07-26-2019, 06:20 PM   #4
rcharles30
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Originally Posted by FlyingLow78 View Post
$3400? That’s an insane amount to pay for a gasket replacement. Here are the TIS instructions: https://www.newtis.info/tisv2/a/en/f...lid/1VnXOgIU1H

You can look up the part numbers on realoem.com using the past 7 digits of your VIN. So far, it has been 100% accurate for me and I’ve ordered a ton of stuff.
Thanks, yup had all the instructions ready to go. Doesn’t seem to difficult. Definitely not $3400 difficult. Just wanted to make sure there weren’t any “gottcha’s“ I should be ready for.

Thanks for the info.
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      07-27-2019, 06:05 PM   #5
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There not too bad to do, I've just done mine. Just got to be careful to seat the new gasket in the valve cover firmly, it's very flimsy so you don't want it to drop down on reassembly. Have a cloth wrapped round the fuel pipes when undoing the unions to catch excess fuel. You don't have to disconnect the intercooler completely you can leave the coolant pipes on and just lift it to one side.
Hope this helps, good luck.
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      07-29-2019, 07:54 PM   #6
rcharles30
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jimbob123 View Post
There not too bad to do, I've just done mine. Just got to be careful to seat the new gasket in the valve cover firmly, it's very flimsy so you don't want it to drop down on reassembly. Have a cloth wrapped round the fuel pipes when undoing the unions to catch excess fuel. You don't have to disconnect the intercooler completely you can leave the coolant pipes on and just lift it to one side.
Hope this helps, good luck.
Thanks for the info. Did you use any of the RV gasket maker on the sealing surfaces. Didn’t see a mention of it in the instructions but have seen a couple of how-to’s that said put a bead on the 4 corners and put a bead on the front, rear and passenger side surfaces before assembly.
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      07-31-2019, 01:35 AM   #7
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don't use any extra to help sealing.

maybe some adhesive to hold the VC gasket in place as you fumble to install onto head.
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      07-31-2019, 05:03 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rcharles30 View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by jimbob123 View Post
There not too bad to do, I've just done mine. Just got to be careful to seat the new gasket in the valve cover firmly, it's very flimsy so you don't want it to drop down on reassembly. Have a cloth wrapped round the fuel pipes when undoing the unions to catch excess fuel. You don't have to disconnect the intercooler completely you can leave the coolant pipes on and just lift it to one side.
Hope this helps, good luck.
Thanks for the info. Did you use any of the RV gasket maker on the sealing surfaces. Didn’t see a mention of it in the instructions but have seen a couple of how-to’s that said put a bead on the 4 corners and put a bead on the front, rear and passenger side surfaces before assembly.
Didn't use any sealant on mine and it's been fine so far.
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      08-02-2019, 06:22 PM   #9
rcharles30
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So before I break anything. How do these wires disconnect?
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      08-02-2019, 06:48 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rcharles30 View Post
So before I break anything. How do these wires disconnect?
I use a 1/4" screwdriver in between the plug and the clip and twist it slightly, then pull straight up on the wires gently
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      08-02-2019, 07:23 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by chetrickerman View Post
I use a 1/4" screwdriver in between the plug and the clip and twist it slightly, then pull straight up on the wires gently
Thanks. Thats what I thought looking at pictures of replacement coils, just wanted to make sure before I started pulling on it. I can see the small tab on the side a figured that had to be pulled out to unlock it.
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      08-03-2019, 09:48 AM   #12
rcharles30
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Hopefully last question. Main power wire that goes across the top of the cover. Not sure how to move that out of the way and can't see any way to pull the valve cover through under it.
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      08-03-2019, 02:47 PM   #13
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The big wire that goes to the valvetronic motor? Unplug it and set it to the side. The valve cover comes off with just the big wire unplugged
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      08-03-2019, 06:40 PM   #14
rcharles30
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I was talking about the main 12v power that run across the top. Didn’t realize it popped out of the holder on the passenger side.

Thanks for all the help. Just finished up so hopefully test drive tomorrow will be successful.
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      08-24-2019, 10:09 PM   #15
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Did you make sure to check that the valve cover wasn't cracked? Wouldn't be surprised as the n54 had a plague of cracked valve covers
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