From digest.v7.n1214 Sat Feb 28 13:12:21 1998
From: Phil Marx <BMW_at_rlc.net>
Date: Sat, 28 Feb 1998 10:11:36 -0500
Subject: Re: E28 Cam Wear

Dana Earl wrote:
>Comment about cam wear from loose banjo bolts on oiling bar was right on the
>mark. Note that most late versions of M30 engines (most E34/E32) use a updated
>banjo bolt with Nylok style threads. Will easily retrofit and solve problem.
>Poor oiling, usually from loose bolts or from infrequent oil changes and
>clogged passages is why the cam wears.

Not to dispute the above but consider this:

E28 cam wear that I have seen is usually on automatic transmission cars driven in urban traffic. We posit that slow speed and poor oil delivery at low RPM are the probably causes. Could even be from starting the car and letting it idle to warm up. (remote starters should be illeal) Of course low, no or old oil help and the loose banjo bolt can contribute, but even without the loose bolt on the oil spray-rail, we've seen what can only be called premature wear in these cases. If you go back a little ways you might remember also to check that the plug in the end of the rocker shaft hasn't popped out. And also that you are not using Penzoil, the killer of most cams in the early '80s. Submitted as an example: My wife's 535iA, 1986 215,000 miles. Very irregular oil changes (the shoes of the shoemaker's children syndrome), same for valve adjustments. Driven in Central Virginia traffic, no warm-up, just drive-off. Never used Penzoil (or any synthetic). No cam wear. Last 2000 mile trip used less than 1/4 qt. Just snug-up that banjo bolt as part of your valve adjustment procedure.

• -Phil Marx BMWCCA #6021