E39 540 Vanos Repair

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pietern740il
Posts: 123
Joined: Mon Jan 17, 2005 3:19 pm

E39 540 Vanos Repair

Post by pietern740il »

Does anyone have an idea what it cost to repair vanos for these engines?

Timing chain and guides were replaced last summer, now I'm getting noise from the vanos.

Thanks

MrMCoupe
Posts: 187
Joined: Tue Jul 08, 2008 8:17 am

Re: E39 540 Vanos Repair

Post by MrMCoupe »

It depends. If you do it yourself, and the Beisan Systems seal kit works, the parts are less than $100. If you buy new Vanos units they may be around $400 each plus all of the other parts you should change while they are out (gaskets, check valves, etc.).

Check back here if you decide to do it yourself. I can help you with the special tools.

Mark M.

pietern740il
Posts: 123
Joined: Mon Jan 17, 2005 3:19 pm

Re: E39 540 Vanos Repair

Post by pietern740il »

Mark,

Thank you for the information. Your are correct, parts are about $60, this car had the timing chain and guides replaced last summer. So I'm going to get this repair done myself.

MrMCoupe
Posts: 187
Joined: Tue Jul 08, 2008 8:17 am

Re: E39 540 Vanos Repair

Post by MrMCoupe »

Check out the thread on Bimmer Board. Good luck!

sgoatley2001e46
Posts: 391
Joined: Thu Jan 10, 2008 4:49 pm

Re: E39 540 Vanos Repair

Post by sgoatley2001e46 »

Handful of questions related to the timing chain repair from an inquiring mind.... If you don't mind humoring my questions.

1) Was it a preventative or required repair?
2) How many miles on the motor when done?
3) Where did you have it done?
4) How much did it cost?

This has been the one major reason I've been too chicken to buy a V8 - but I'm frequently tempted by clean cars.

Thanks,
Scott

pietern740il
Posts: 123
Joined: Mon Jan 17, 2005 3:19 pm

Re: E39 540 Vanos Repair

Post by pietern740il »

Post by sgoatley2001e46 » 27 Feb 2017 23:36

Handful of questions related to the timing chain repair from an inquiring mind.... If you don't mind humoring my questions.

1) Was it a preventative or required repair?
2) How many miles on the motor when done?
3) Where did you have it done?
4) How much did it cost?

This has been the one major reason I've been too chicken to buy a V8 - but I'm frequently tempted by clean cars.
Scott these are all good questions:
1) It's a required repair, this car had the timing chain and guides replaced last summer at 170K miles. Not sure why the vanos was not service at the time of this major repair. A few months later the vanos started to make noise. I would suggest getting all these items repaired at the same time. (Timing chain, timing chain guides, gaskets, valley pan, valve cover gaskets, PVC and it's gaskets. The vanos repair, I'm planning to get it done myself with the help a couple friends.

Once you've driven the V8 you will have a difficult time with the V6s.

MrMCoupe
Posts: 187
Joined: Tue Jul 08, 2008 8:17 am

Re: E39 540 Vanos Repair

Post by MrMCoupe »

1) Most of the time this is required. The guides fail or the Vanos starts making noise. Many times only the main tensioner needs replacing. If you do replace the Vanos don't forget the check valves. When you change the chain; double check the oil pump pickup and mounting bolts. This pickup gets clogged with the broken guide bits.

2) I did one at around 144k and another around 180k. Lucky for me I didn't have to do the Vanos; just the guides and tensioners.

3) My Driveway!

4) ECS had a kit which included most parts for under $1000. You'll still need a few odd parts for the chain replacement. Dealer was about 50% more with our club discount.

The V8 are nice. They make a great sound too. The V12's are even better!

sgoatley2001e46
Posts: 391
Joined: Thu Jan 10, 2008 4:49 pm

Re: E39 540 Vanos Repair

Post by sgoatley2001e46 »

Thanks guys! Yeah, I can understand the interest in the bigger motors. I've had American V8's, and while impressive, the silky smooth feel of the BMW was unreal. I had a chance to test drive Dave Chow's e39 540i M Sport about 4-5 years ago, and gave serious consideration to buying it when he got the e90 M3, but chickened out. I've regretted it since.

I consider myself handy under the hood, but the timing chain repair isn't something I would try alone. We had this same repair on our Nissan Xterra about 2-3 years ago, and it was a big job. The plastic guides were barely holding the chain on and you could hear it slapping around in there. Do you guys know why they'd use plastic instead of metal or say a sprocket?

pietern740il
Posts: 123
Joined: Mon Jan 17, 2005 3:19 pm

Re: E39 540 Vanos Repair

Post by pietern740il »

Last night I pulled the following code from DME on my 540. I purchased this car recently, previous owner had timing chain, guides and other parts replaced last summer. But the times I saw the car before purchasing the vanos was making noise. So I figured the vanos would need servicing. So I had the car towed to my home and parked, but last night I started it up and the vanos noise was no more. Check engine light was not on, but I pulled the errors below.

Activation map cooling
Function, inlet-camshaft control bank 2
AUC Sensor

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