The most loved car among auto journalists – Ever dream of owning one? Think again. Carquestions checks out a complaint about an 06 BMW 325i leaking oil and f…
How To Fix Your BMW Oil Leak
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My ’06 535xi wagon had exactly the same problem (2 years ago). And of course it happened right after the warranty ran out. Three broken bolts — and there was never any work done to the engine. The dealer charged me $1100 to pull the cover, extract the 3 bolts, and put everything back together. I asked if they had ever seen this before and they said every once in a while.
Agree there should have been a recall.
Love BMW’s but after this experience, sold the car (and bought another).
I have a 2006 325i although my issue is not as drastic as the gasket. My issue is a faulty filler cap but i have replaced this twice in the last 12 months of owning the car yet the issue persists. I have spent a fortune on keeping the engine topped up with oil about 1L every month. If i knew these cars had this issue i would never of bought it.
I had the exact same thing happen to me. Only for me it was only one bolt. Very expensive if you go to the dealer to get a new gasket cover replaced. I ended up doing it myself. Oil was dripping on the side of the engine and sometimes I would see smoke coming from around the hood, sometimes if the smoke was bad enough it came into the cabin through the air vents. BMW 330I 2006
I don’t disagree BMW ought to fix this problem. It seems like some kind of manufacturing defect as you claim.
But is it really reasonable to fear an engine fire? An oil leak is bad enough, because it’s not just messy, you can end up breathing the fumes from the oil burning off hot engine parts, and that’s a health issue.
But I think an actual fire is very unlikely. It doesn’t seem to happen to the vast majority of cars with engine leaks. I think you are overstating this.
I have a 325 I . So my car has been leaking oil a lot.. I had it taken in to get fixed and still leaks.. help what is the problem
I got a crap warranty…..but the pull from my335i was lusty enough that I dove in head first. fingers crossed
This will never become a recall issue because it just never happens to these particular engines. The aluminum bolts are meant to be replaced even if they are just broken loose once. What most likely happened is someone didn’t replace the bolts. I’ve worked on hundreds of these vehicles with this exact engine (N52). I have yet to see this happen. I will agree this is a dangerous issue to ignore with this vehicle but the point is for it to be a recall issue it has to be overwhelmingly common.
Its not a recall yet but please feel free to go to NHTSA and file a complaint – they may investigate and that may lead to a recall – this problem could lead to a possible fire – please file a complaint
I have recently notice oil on the garage floor from my 2007 525i. Now it’s quite extensive. Happened across this video in a web search and when i lefted the cover enought to expose the corner bolt like the one in the video it too could be easliy lefted out. Does any one know if this as ever been acknowledged by BMW as a recall issue?
That’s a far more plausible explanation than the BMW factory overtightening head cover bolts. Although some of the bimmers are made in S.C. now, so you never know any more 😉
This car has a chain, not a belt. Do you really think a guy whose channel called “carquestions” wouldn’t have thought of that? Just sayin’ 🙂
BMW in San Diego charges $185 an hour. The problem isn’t 2 losse bolts…the problem as clearly stated in the video is 2 broken bolts.
Have you ever extracted a bolt before? It can start as a bad day and turn into a nightmare real fast.
Like how they say in the movie fight club ,”If the cost of lawsuits out weigh the cost of a recall, then they do a recall. But if it doesn’t then you’ll never know.”
Funny how BMW’s warranty is only 3-5 years. The warranty is the reason I didn’t buy a 335i. It looked great and an inline 6 twin turbo was enough pull to make me want it. But when I saw the warranty I walked away.
I have to poop
The car was in original factory condition. The owner is a close friend and never had it in for any work other than oil changes. BMW forums have mentioned this problem many times
Ok so it looks like the valve cover gasket was replaced, and the guy who replaced i didnt know that you have to use new aluminum bolts, the one with a blue marking on top are one time use. You have to torque it to a certain amount.
engine is really dirty for a 06.
no way they would be just loose someone had to break those bolts !
You dummy. The broken stud needs to be removed. gasket or seal replaced. £98 / hr labour charge at BMW dealers in the uk. Its not just the price of bolts, as was said in the vid and other comments. LOOK and LISTEN
The price of the bolts isn’t the problem, it’s the price of the labor to fix this issue that costs serious dough. And a 6 year old car isn’t that old, recalls happen all the time for cars that are older.
How many miles were on the car? At 6 years old it may have had service done to replace the timing belt which would require removing the valve cover. If that service was not done properly the bolts could have been overtightened and caused the broken bolt.
1000$ for bolts? 😀 Right….
Bolt cost 5$ tops. So, it sums up to 10$ for 2 loose bolts.
also this car is 6 years old. It should be a recall if you found out it in new car, but 6 years is not a new car.
Still, i dont like BMW, just dont tell that 2 bolts cost 1000$. Think real!
From what i understand cars like these are expensive to own ill stick with my prius c lol