N52 - Particles in oil filter

J0shTN · 10-25-2023, 08:45 AM

My 128i with 123k miles that I recently acquired shows, 1 previous owner and regular maintenance history at the BMW service center. I’m posting here since this forum has more activity than the 1addicts forum.

I drove it over the weekend and the car started making a whine and would stall at stops with a CEL. On restart the CEL would clear. I was able to drive it home and pulled the oil filter. There I noticed the filer was collapsed a bit so I installed a new Mann filter. I cut open the old filter and noticed a large amount of brown and black particles.

I did start the car and ran it for a few minutes with the new filter. No issues, CEL, or abnormal sounds/vibration. I pulled the new oil filter after that startup and noticed no similar particles.

I am thinking this is guide material since I see brown. The pieces are easily broken and not magnetic.

What else could it be? I didn’t think guides were a problem on the n52 but plastic isn’t going to last forever.

I was soon to start the oil pan gasket replacement. The contents of the oil pan may tell the full story. What other scope items would you add to further investigate this?

J0shTN · 11-08-2023, 06:38 PM

I lowered the oil pan and looked inside the timing chain area where I found the interior wall coating is peeling off. Has anybody else on these forums seen this?

What’s the purpose of the coating on an oil soaked block? How many parts are coated?

What would you do? Part of me is saying remove what I can access with the oil pan and valve cover removed and then trust the oil filter to do its job. Then inspect the oil filter religiously for a while.

The Nightman · 11-09-2023, 12:15 PM

That is really strange. Definitely looks like some kind of coating or varnish flaking off, but the engine internals should be bare metal? I wonder if the previous owner used some aftermarket stop leak product or something similar.

I found another person with the same problem on their X3. Maybe you can reach out to them for a solution: https://xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-forums/...il-filter.html

And another thread, but I see you already posted in it: https://www.bimmerfest.com/threads/b...-328i.1450471/

Might be worth posting on the bobistheoilguy forums to see what their consensus is.

NZE90 · 11-12-2023, 02:48 AM

It looks like someone has done a sump gasket and gone way overboard with sealant.

10-25-2023, 08:45 AM	#1
J0shTN New Member 6 Rep 27 Posts Drives: BMW 128i 6MT Join Date: Sep 2022 Location: TN iTrader: (0)	N52 - Particles in oil filter - timing chain guides? My 128i with 123k miles that I recently acquired shows, 1 previous owner and regular maintenance history at the BMW service center. I’m posting here since this forum has more activity than the 1addicts forum. I drove it over the weekend and the car started making a whine and would stall at stops with a CEL. On restart the CEL would clear. I was able to drive it home and pulled the oil filter. There I noticed the filer was collapsed a bit so I installed a new Mann filter. I cut open the old filter and noticed a large amount of brown and black particles. I did start the car and ran it for a few minutes with the new filter. No issues, CEL, or abnormal sounds/vibration. I pulled the new oil filter after that startup and noticed no similar particles. I am thinking this is guide material since I see brown. The pieces are easily broken and not magnetic. What else could it be? I didn’t think guides were a problem on the n52 but plastic isn’t going to last forever. I was soon to start the oil pan gasket replacement. The contents of the oil pan may tell the full story. What other scope items would you add to further investigate this? Attached Images Last edited by J0shTN; 10-25-2023 at 08:47 AM.. Reason: photos missing
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11-08-2023, 06:38 PM	#2
J0shTN New Member 6 Rep 27 Posts Drives: BMW 128i 6MT Join Date: Sep 2022 Location: TN iTrader: (0)	I lowered the oil pan and looked inside the timing chain area where I found the interior wall coating is peeling off. Has anybody else on these forums seen this? What’s the purpose of the coating on an oil soaked block? How many parts are coated? What would you do? Part of me is saying remove what I can access with the oil pan and valve cover removed and then trust the oil filter to do its job. Then inspect the oil filter religiously for a while. Attached Images
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11-09-2023, 12:15 PM	#3
The Nightman Cometh 1092 Rep 1,308 Posts Drives: Boy's Soul Join Date: Jul 2016 Location: Boy's Hole iTrader: (4) Garage List E90 LCI "330i& ... [10.00]	That is really strange. Definitely looks like some kind of coating or varnish flaking off, but the engine internals should be bare metal? I wonder if the previous owner used some aftermarket stop leak product or something similar. I found another person with the same problem on their X3. Maybe you can reach out to them for a solution: https://xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-forums/...il-filter.html And another thread, but I see you already posted in it: https://www.bimmerfest.com/threads/b...-328i.1450471/ Might be worth posting on the bobistheoilguy forums to see what their consensus is.
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11-12-2023, 02:48 AM	#4
NZE90 Lieutenant 277 Rep 426 Posts Drives: 325i Join Date: Nov 2022 Location: Mars iTrader: (0)	It looks like someone has done a sump gasket and gone way overboard with sealant.
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