Front crank seal replacement

[kprocyk]

Hi Folks

Can anyone outline the procedure for replacing the front crank seal or direct me to a source of information for reference on this? The vehicle is a 95 318ti

Thanks in advance

[Mopho]

You need to post your mileage, if it is over 100K you probably need to change the oil filter housing o-rings and gasket on the block.

http://www.318ti.org/forum/attachmen...achmentid=5227

There is probably nothing wrong with your front seal. (thank goodness, that is WAY too much work).
Looking through the forum, I used this one to fix what I thought was a front crankshaft seal.......
Take car by a car wash or if you have access to a pressure washer, you can clean the left (drivers side) of the engine around the oil filter, block, and housing before tearing into it.
If you have someone do it, you are looking at $400-600 bucks.
The parts cost about 12 bucks. Even from Bimmer dealer.
2 O rings, and a gasket.
That's it.
Good luck.

[projekt EPiK]

awesome DIY how-to.. thanks to all who advised me that it may not be the crank seal. i started the car and looked from the TOP this time and it definitely was the housing seal. Heading to the dealer now..

The ti will be leak free in a few hours..

[projekt EPiK]

heading over to the dealer to pick up the bushing and gasket.. NOW the driveway will be free of oil leaks in a few more hours.

[Mopho]

Originally Posted by projekt EPiK

heading over to the dealer to pick up the bushing and gasket.. NOW the driveway will be free of oil leaks in a few more hours.

The instructions here will really help if you are doing it yourself. I still referred to my Bentley Manual for details and torque specs. Torquing different bolts and nuts is crucial to a good repair job. Too tight, you got problems later. Too loose, is self explanitory.. stuff falls off, etc.

I was gonna do my '96 Greenie this weekend, but ended up with doing a full tuneup, spark plug wires, plugs, and now I am going to get out my pressure washer, or......maybe go by the local car wash and leave the mess there.

Make sure you clean the drivers side of the motor before you start, it is a messy job even when cleaned.

Good luck.
Mo

[projekt EPiK]

took me about 2 hrs, start to finish.. i simplegreened the engine and brackets as i was working on it, and once i got the housing back on i soaked it and the block down good again. then took it down the road to the car wash and sprayed the gunk off. still a little on the top of the steering rack, but it'll be off there soon.

no leaks!

the DIY was great.

[Mopho]

Great!
Nuttin tu it, eh?

[projekt EPiK]

i'm new to the bimmer game, but have been mechanickin' for over 15 yrs.. so yes, nuttin tu it. nice writeup though the bentley manual that i downloaded didnt have much detail.. is there another version?

[Mopho]

Originally Posted by projekt EPiK

i'm new to the bimmer game, but have been mechanickin' for over 15 yrs.. so yes, nuttin tu it. nice writeup though the bentley manual that i downloaded didnt have much detail.. is there another version?

Not really... there is generic service manuals like Haynes and Chilton, but usually they are very generic and try to put too many models in the same manual, which can be confusing.
Bentley is the best for Bimmers.
I also had one for my wife's 2002 Passat, and like doing the brakes, etc. it was very good. When I sold the Passat, I sold the manual for 60 bucks on craigslist.

[projekt EPiK]

yes, i was just referring to the 3 series manual i dl'd from a link on this site. it was pretty generic, covering the 6 and 4 cyl, and didnt have much detail about this procedure.. etc. i'm use to FSMs that are almost 4" thick..LOL full teardowns.. etc.

[Mopho]

Originally Posted by projekt EPiK

yes, i was just referring to the 3 series manual i dl'd from a link on this site. it was pretty generic, covering the 6 and 4 cyl, and didnt have much detail about this procedure.. etc. i'm use to FSMs that are almost 4" thick..LOL full teardowns.. etc.

Most Bentley manuals will cover all the engines for a certain chassis, like the E-36.
Helpful in locating parts on vehicle, just not that helpful in replacing them,
LOL

[projekt EPiK]

exactly.. so they are the main source people use, or are there others i can find for the future? knowing me i'll pick up a spare motor down the road just to dig into and see what i can get out of it if anything happens to the one in the car

[cooljess76]

I actually did replace the front crank seal on my S52. Removal of the lower timing cover, vanos and cam sprockets is required. It's a royal PITA even with the engine out of the car. The Bentley has several mistakes that almost caused me to seriously damage my engine. For instance, there's a torx bolt hidden underneath the cam sprockets that attaches the lower timing cover to the bottom of the cylinder head. The bentley manual does not mention this bolt. In fact, it even says to pry the cover off after you remove the other bolts, but no mention of the hidden torx bolt. So if I would have listened to the bentley and just pryed on the cover instead of following my instinct that something was wrong, I'd be replacing my head and timing cover as they're made of aluminum and a grade 8 steel bolt would have surely cracked them both. There was a couple other mistakes in the bentley I encountered during my build (bolt sizes and torques). While the Bentley is a good way to get aquainted with your project, it's not a reliable source of information IMO.

[spidertri]

I was surprised with the quality of the E36 Bentley manual. I have the bentley for the MkIV Volkswagens and it is much more accurate and detailed than the E36 bentley. I've also come across a few things that were just plain wrong in the E36 bentley.

[projekt EPiK]

hmm.. nice to know. i'll have to check out the chilton/haynes library