front engine reseal question

[long tall eta]

guys, i'm doing my t-belt and was wondering, while i'm in there how much extra labor time will it be to replace the front engine seals? i wana do crank, i think it's 2 cam, and the timing cover gasket. i only ask cause i have a guy helping me and he thinks it will double the labor time from only doing the belt, pump, and tensioner.

[E30_fiend]

I'm a huge fan of "while you're in there" work. So my vote is yes. The only gaskt that really doeant need to be replaced from your list is the timing cover gasket. Only reason I say that is because it doesn't seal anything out but dirt.

Good luck

[long tall eta]

I'm a huge fan of "while you're in there" work. So my vote is yes. The only gaskt that really doeant need to be replaced from your list is the timing cover gasket. Only reason I say that is because it doesn't seal anything out but dirt.

Good luck

i subscribe to the while your're in there theory too but how much extra time are we talking about? i'm a shade tree guy and need want to have a wrench with me when i do it. thats costing me a couple bucks to compensate him and he says it will take twice as long to do the seals along with the belt. is he correct?

[Eddie Haskell]

It's not too bad. You will need a gear puller to remove #8 in diagram.

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=1254&mospid=47308&btnr=11_0278&hg=11&fg=20

Buy OE seals at dealer if able. Some do and some don't. They seem to seal better from past experience. Erling and Hecho en China have had a few problems and the cost verses labor involved is small. Set seal in different depth approx. 1 to 2mm than old seal in the front cover per Bentley. Don't lose the location dowel in #8 above if its loose by chance.

I have had good luck applying a very small amount of Locktight to the last couple of threads of crank snout nut. If you smear a large amount on the nut it will be a nightmare to remove in future. You can use a little heat in the future without screwing the pooch if you use very little on the last threads which grip. Most folks just crank the nut as tight as possible with a 1/2" breaker with a 4' cheater.

If you don't have a Bentley get one. The R/R is described in detail page 52, Engine section.

[jeffnhiscars]

Changing the cam seal and oring and the IM gear seal are a good best practice and fall under the "low hanging fruit" dept of the while-you-are-in-there school (in other words change them)

The crank seal is another animal though since its torqued to 300lbs. It also generally calls for the crank holding tool and a front pan gasket mod/repair since the lower timing cover (that the seal presses in to) mounts to the pan.

I would say that unless you have an obvious leak or an abundance of ambition and based on your guidelines, you may want to leave that one alone.

[jeffnhiscars]

HI....
I have an 87 944S that had the routine timing belt, rollers, tensioner, and enging reseal done at 58,000 mi.; retentioned at 60,000, checked at 73,000mi (small oil leak noted and was told to keep an eye on it) At 75000mi the small leak turned into a major one.
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classified website

1st post and from India. I would strongly discourage anyone from hitting that link :-)

[bmwstudent]

It's not a lot of work if you know what your doing and you have the tools. However, if you don't know what your doing and you don't have the tools (something to hold the crank still and a torque wrench capable of 300 lb ft of torque), you may be opening a can of worms you don't want to eat.

[sweet6e30]

x2^^ just did this. what a PITA.