Date: Thu, 04 Mar 1999 15:37:41 -0500
From: Peter Stickney <stickney_at_grove.ufl.edu>
Subject: Re: [e36] Re: Uh-oh, running rough- SOLVED

Did this myself last summer - easy as pie to replace the three (yep, three) gaskets for the cam cover. Remove the outer plastic shields, each coil, pull the top cover off the electronic feed to the coils (the long black plastic box that is on the intake side of the head, over the intake runners

• - this will let you get the coil connectors further out of the way), then remove the bolts for the cover (something like 20 of them or so).

The cover lifts off with a little help from some prying apparatus (=use a putty knife CAREFULLY)...

Clean up the top of the head and the bottom of the cam cover (take a moment to gaze at the cams and all the workings....)

The new gaskets fit tightly to the cover - apply them to the cover (no adhesives necessary) and carefully replace the cover.

Torque the cover bolts down a little at a time - go opposite sides and ends (top/front --> bottom/back, etc...) don't apply full torque immediately - you'll probably warp the cover - and don't overtorque them, they break (ask me how I know...ugh..)

*note: be sure to take appropriate beer breaks during this process...should be about a 3 pint job...

• -Pete '92 325is sharked et al '93 Ducati 900 ss/sp

At 04:43 PM 3/4/99 +0000, Sean Murphy wrote: >
>Hi All,
>
>Thanks to all of you who replied to my question regarding the rough running
>my 325 was experiencing. I have solved the mystery today and thought that I
>would offer the solution in case anyone else was having a similar
>experience.
>
>I removed the spark plugs to replace them and found that number 6 plug was
>covered in oil! The cause is that the seals around the plug-tube are
>leaking and allowing engine oil to collect around the top of the plug
>causing an intermittent short. Result = no spark momentarily on one
>cylinder!
>
>No guesses as to what I will be doing this weekend! For those of you that
>have been under the cam-cover on the E36, are there any nasties that I
>should know of or is it plain-sailing?
>
>Thanks again for all the help.
>
>Regards
>
>Sean
>
.com> >http://homepages.tcp.co.uk/~scm1/bmw.htm
>
>'93 E36 325i SE (24v VaNoS, firing on all 6 cyls again.....)
>(E36 ///M3 next...)
>
>Southampton, UK