[najin23]

Done. NOt a bad job, but time consuming. I didn't drain all the coolant, so some amount spelt when the OFH was loosened. Yes, it was a messy job, and I used quite amount of shop paper towels. Bled the coolant later and the job completed. I didn't remove the coolant hose that goes into the engine block, but just used a 12point 8mm ratcheting wrench to loosen the bottom torx bolt. Overall, not bad and I felt pretty good for finishing it and saving my wallet also.

[parabmw]

do you need to put a sealant on gasket?

[najin23]

I didn't cuz bentley didn't say about it. It wouldn't hurt I presume. I am about to do the valve cover w/n next week or so, and Rob recommended putting some RTV stuff esp around the breathing holes. It was just a recommendation.

[parabmw]

hi temp rtv gasket maker? http://m.autozone.com/autozone-mobil...25a0?id=526939

or this one. http://m.autozone.com/autozone-mobil...25a0?id=554048

[EJ_3]

Is removing the oil filter housing 100% necessary just to change the gasket? From other DIY and pictures I've found online, you just remove the oil cooler lines and thermostat housing.

For reference:
https://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=626113

[Augster]

Originally Posted by Manny_World

Is removing the oil filter housing 100% necessary just to change the gasket? From other DIY and pictures I've found online, you just remove the oil cooler lines and thermostat housing.

No, not necessary if all you need to change is the oil thermostat housing gasket.

[EJ_3]

Originally Posted by Augster

No, not necessary if all you need to change is the oil thermostat housing gasket.

So for the oil filter housing gasket you must take the oil filter housing completely off?

[Augster]

Originally Posted by Manny_World

So for the oil filter housing gasket you must take the oil filter housing completely off?

For the OFHG, between the OFH and cylinder head, yes, there is no other way.

[purin]

thanks OP for the DIY. I replaced my OFHG and finally removed the cooler. Waiting for the gasket to arrive sometime this coming week. Wasn't a hard DIY but angles were tricky.

The bottom bolt of the H-clamp oil lines to the cooler for my 535 was a 6mm hex. I ended up removing the 2 entire hoses from the radiator because I couldn't angle my tools with sufficient torque before actually getting to remove them.

Once that was off, a 12pt wrench kept slipping off the 3rd cooler bolt so I went with a socket.

thanks again!

[purin]

Thanks for the diy augster. I ended up removing the oil lines from the radiator because I couldn't get my tool into the h bracket. Everything else was spot on. Thanks again!

[BeastMode335i]

Thanks for this! I'm doing this next weekend..

[jvidamins]

Just finished this and the OFHG. Wasn't too bad. Went ahead and did a few "drain n' fills" to "flush" the coolant. Was probably the original stuff and was nasty looking! Be careful when your putting the coolant line back in the engine block (if you removed it). I didn't have it seated right and ripped my o-ring in half causing a leak when I fired everything back up. Do yourself a favor and run to the BMW dealership and drop $8 on a new o-ring.

[Donutz]

I managed to get this done yesterday. Like others, I agree this isn't too bad. It took me around 4.5 hours, but 2 of those hours were spent cleaning caked on oil. I didn't drain the coolant or oil, and I didn'tremove the fan. I would echo some of the tips others have suggested; do yourself a favour and remove the fan. In total I must have spent 20 mins removing / reinstalling the lower bolt on the OFH due to the limited space and the fact that I was working with an 8mm wrench. I think spending 5 mins removing the fan would have netted me some time savings. Also, the fastener on my H-plate was 13mm (2008 e90).

Thanks to everyone before me who has added tips to this thread. It's time consuming but really quite easy.

[jason0]

If the gasket between the filter housing and oil cooler is leaking, its possible for oil and coolant to intermix, right?

How much is too much?

I have oil in my coolant reservoir right now, need to know if its got into the oil as well...

[weq92f]

Just finished using this ( and the other DIY mentioned ) DIY on my:

'07 E90 sport 335i 6mt w/factory oil cooler

The intake absolutely had to be lifted nearly completely off to access the OFH bolt. No other way.

The OFCH gasket was also leaking badly, both were toast really. The gaskets did come out/off as a single unit in both cases though.

I wanted to remove/clean the OFH/OFCH on the bench so to avoid a complete coolant flush I pulled out the fan assembly. Using that extra room, just break the top coolant hose free at the OFH and direct the spillage directly down to a container. This drains the top part of the engine, including the OFH. Once it's drained, proceed on without any more coolant spillage. Then just top up with the proper mixture at the end and bleed.

Even with the oil all drained out of the engine, busting the OFCH off the OFH still released a good amount of oil. Again, I directed the oil down to a container on the floor through the gap available below. I took a trash bag, kitchen size, and placed it below the OFH/OFCH ( jammed it under the OFH/OFCH mounting plate, over the alternator to cover belt and pulleys ). Worked like a charm. Turned that same trash bag inside-out and used it again when the OFH was busted loose. No mess at all!!!

Excellent writeup,

-weq

[benton0311]

Excellent DIY! I just finished this over the weekend on my 08 6MT with oil cooler.

A couple things I noticed:

It would be a good idea to flush your coolant while doing this repair. Once the OFHG and/or OCHG begin to leak internally, oil will begin to mix with the coolant. Once I had everything off, I found traces of oil in the coolant and coolant in the oil. This leak can happen at either gasket and both gaskets were leaking on my car. Coolant in the oil is bad for lubrication as well as gaskets that were only designed to seal for oil and oil in the coolant can cause problems with the water pump and heater core, not to mention diminished cooling ability.

My OCHG was leaking as bad or worse than my OFHG. I wouldn't skip replacing the OCHG while doing this repair. Even it's not leaking visibly on the outside, the inner part of the gasket can leak and allow coolant and oil to mix.

I was able to get to the hidden bolt by only slightly lifting the intake manifold but it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to have an intake manifold gasket handy when you do this repair. I wish I would have replaced mine but didn't have one so now I'm crossing my fingers I don't develop boost leaks at the manifold.

Some have reported that the connector for the coolant hose that runs to the cylinder head can deteriorate or crack over time. I ordered a billet aluminum replacement off of ebay and it's an excellent fit although my OEM connector seemed to be fine.

[DaZuc]

Just wanted to say thanks for this, follow your writeup retrofitting oem factory oil cooler.

[bmwjed162]

So is it possible to change the OCHG on it's own, without having to go through the full process of the OFH?

[BM335M]

Im in the process of doing mine at the moment and i didn't have to remove the coolant outlet hose by following procedure using a 8mm 12pt socket wrench on the bottom bolt. Not sure if i will able to torque it to spec without removing the hose though.

The OFH needs to come out but you dont need to remove any of the coolant hoses or drain coolant. A little bit of coolant will come out once the OFH is loose, have lots of rugs under and around the ofh to catch oil and coolant leaking out of it.

Replace both OFH and OFC gaskets as it will leak from both.

[mifesto]

is there a way with extension to reach the bottom bolt for OFH without completely removing OFCH? I don't mind splitting the OFCH from OFH to replace gasket but I don't want to disconnect the oil lines or the H-plate. Is this possible?

[TemjinX2]

Originally Posted by mifesto

is there a way with extension to reach the bottom bolt for OFH without completely removing OFCH? I don't mind splitting the OFCH from OFH to replace gasket but I don't want to disconnect the oil lines or the H-plate. Is this possible?

you can if you have a e10 wrench. Removing the oil cooling lines give you move room so can move more of the bolt before you have to re-adjust.

Its possible but it'll take longer and you need small hands.

I removed the oil cooling lines and just used a e10 wrench to take off the bottom bolt of the OFH without removing the radiator fan or coolant hose.

[Fro826]

Thanks for the DIY, excellent job! I just did this on my F10 535. Took about 3.5 hours including cleaning things. One trick i found: once i crack loose the intake plenum nuts they spin easily so I used 4-claw grabber tool to clasp the nut and finish taking it off with just that. Same thing in reverse when reinstalling the nuts: put them in the 4-claw, spin them onto the studs until they snug up - the 4-claw just pops itself off the nut at that point.