[AngelFarelli]

I fucking hate plastic so much that as soon as my new valve cover comes in the mail I'm going to smash this cover to pieces with the biggest set of channel locks I got !!!


Pretty sure my valve cover just broke since they give you no room to remove this thing! The small plastic piece that leads to the pcv must have gotten caught on something and popped right off. Wouldn't fit back on. The only solution is to smash everything to pieces. Any thoughts ? Will it work without that little plastic piece? If it's possible to avoid buying a whole new cover that would be great

[tlow98]

You’re getting a new valve cover, so yeah doesn’t matter.

Just come to terms with the fact that this is a disposable part every 100k rinse and repeat.

Also, most people just glue that back on. No biggie. Mentioned in every video tutorial.

[AngelFarelli]

What type of plastic is the Valve cover made of? https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=666987

Valve cover gasket replacement, plastic broke off, what to do? https://www.zpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1326615

Must be common because I already found two people who have attempted to repair with jb weld . And I haven't ordered the new cover yet I wanted to see if I had any other solutions

[tlow98]

Yes, people just glue it on.

Let’s keep these plastics threads to one thread maybe? In 2009 this was a thing. We’re a decade on now.

[AngelFarelli]

Originally Posted by tlow98

Yes, people just glue it on.

Let's keep these plastics threads to one thread maybe? In 2009 this was a thing. We're a decade on now.

Wow well shit you can say that about every issue really! Almost every topic has been long discussed. When people look for an answer it's usually on this same forum but from years ago.

I'm not just simply complaining about things breaking . I'm asking whether or not it's safe to glue this and if it's needed . This question has not been long discussed so I think it deserves its own thread however , if I could change the title to be more specific I would but I can't . Thank you for your advice !

[Brandoch]

Originally Posted by AngelFarelli

Wow well shit you can say that about every issue really! Almost every topic has been long discussed. When people look for an answer it's usually on this same forum but from years ago.

I'm not just simply complaining about things breaking . I'm asking whether or not it's safe to glue this and if it's needed . This question has not been long discussed so I think it deserves its own thread however , if I could change the title to be more specific I would but I can't . Thank you for your advice !

Maybe it's time to sell the BMW and get yourself a 2000 Honda civic.

[nsjames]

it's the baffle that keeps the pcv system from simply sucking up oil out of the valve cover.
yes you need it.

yes, you could probably just glue it on.
no, I don't know if it will fail and wipe out your engine later.

and I managed to take mine apart without breaking the old cover, even though I had a new cover sitting right next to it because literally every DIY on the internet says tha tyou're probably going to break the old cover.

7p's.

[AngelFarelli]

Originally Posted by nsjames

it's the baffle that keeps the pcv system from simply sucking up oil out of the valve cover.
yes you need it.

yes, you could probably just glue it on.
no, I don't know if it will fail and wipe out your engine later.

and I managed to take mine apart without breaking the old cover, even though I had a new cover sitting right next to it because literally every DIY on the internet says tha tyou're probably going to break the old cover.

7p's.

Getting it off was not as hard as putting it back on to be honest. Trying to keep the gaskets seated and not hit the sensor was my goals so when it the other piece broke I was very upset. Had to vent a bit. I just ordered a new one so I won't have to worry about any pcv issues anytime soon. Might try selling the old one for dirt cheap to someone interested in fixing it with plastic welding. Cover only has 30k miles on it.

[nsjames]

you use a few dabs of RTV to keep the gasket in the cover.

[clegg]

Originally Posted by AngelFarelli

I fucking hate plastic so much that as soon as my new valve cover comes in the mail I'm going to smash this cover to pieces with the biggest set of channel locks I got !!!


Pretty sure my valve cover just broke since they give you no room to remove this thing! The small plastic piece that leads to the pcv must have gotten caught on something and popped right off. Wouldn't fit back on. The only solution is to smash everything to pieces. Any thoughts ? Will it work without that little plastic piece? If it's possible to avoid buying a whole new cover that would be great

I hear you on this. I just replaced the valve cover on an E90 328i. I originally was going to just do gaskets but, it is way better to just put an all new cover with the gaskets.

I did find that removing the center piece under the cowl that the strut braces run through facilitates lifting the cowl piece much higher for the rear of the valve cover to clear when removing. I would imagine that the F30 would still be similar.

[AngelFarelli]

Originally Posted by clegg

I did find that removing the center piece under the cowl that the strut braces run through facilitates lifting the cowl piece much higher for the rear of the valve cover to clear when removing.

+1 ^ this definitely. I could not get it off until I found out this trick

[clegg]

The worst part was, the VCG was not even leaking the oil on the exhaust manifold. It was the wonderful football shaped gasket at the valvetronic motor. I almost just took that gasket from the new VC and used it on the old cover but noticed that the sensor seal for the valvetronic was also seeping a bit.

[marvinstockman]

Of note, silicone isn't great for sensors, and I think they sell a sensor safe RTV (room temperature vulcanizing), which probably has very little silicone.

[Bob Shiftright]

Originally Posted by Brandoch

Maybe it's time to sell the BMW and get yourself a 2000 Honda civic.

They rust.

At least plastic won't rust.

[delmarco]

Originally Posted by Bob Shiftright

They rust.

At least plastic won't rust.

Is that why my BMW E46 metal water pump after 100k miles (10+ years) cost me $50 and 1 hour DIY time to replace (even then it was still working in the car) but my BMW E90 N55 all plastic waterpump exploded on me before 50k miles (5 years) and cost me $1500 at the dealership to replace?

Originally Posted by tlow98

Yes, people just glue it on.

Let’s keep these plastics threads to one thread maybe? In 2009 this was a thing. We’re a decade on now.

Yeah I was watching a documentary on "Plastics & Recycling".

Plastic as a material it is very homogeneous meaning the plastic in your BMW engine carries the same materials-value as the plastic on soda bottle cap (think of gold in a wedding ring versus gold in a dental filing - same value ounce for ounce.)

So ounce for ounce our fancy plastic laden BMW N5x engines are worth no more than your grocery story plastic bags.

You can argue it's the engineering and end product we pay for but then again most of the issues are from the engine materials failing.

[ryan stewart]

I kind of regret not replacing mine when I did all of the gaskets, Is such thick plastic I didn't anticipate any breakage and it was (and still is) in excellent shape.

Being said its rarely parked outside, in garage at home and parking garage at work. Not exposed to extreme cold in the south, etc.

[mainbearing]

When I put in a new Uro valve cover I RTV'ed that valvetronic motor "football" gasket. Whoever designed that likely never worked on cars.

Originally Posted by clegg

The worst part was, the VCG was not even leaking the oil on the exhaust manifold. It was the wonderful football shaped gasket at the valvetronic motor. I almost just took that gasket from the new VC and used it on the old cover but noticed that the sensor seal for the valvetronic was also seeping a bit.

[AngelFarelli]

The stupid part is that the valvetronic motor conveniently leaks directly onto the ignition coils . Maybe they could've at least designed a leek catch pan to collect running oil from dripping on coils. Meanwhile the valve cover gasket is tilted to the passenger side about 20 degrees so any leaks mostly come out of the lower side.

[tlow98]

Originally Posted by delmarco

Is that why my BMW E46 metal water pump after 100k miles (10+ years) cost me $50 and 1 hour DIY time to replace (even then it was still working in the car) but my BMW E90 N55 all plastic waterpump exploded on me before 50k miles (5 years) and cost me $1500 at the dealership to replace?





Yeah I was watching a documentary on "Plastics & Recycling".

Plastic as a material it is very homogeneous meaning the plastic in your BMW engine carries the same materials-value as the plastic on soda bottle cap (think of gold in a wedding ring versus gold in a dental filing - same value ounce for ounce.)

So ounce for ounce our fancy plastic laden BMW N5x engines are worth no more than your grocery story plastic bags.

You can argue it's the engineering and end product we pay for but then again most of the issues are from the engine materials failing.

You said a lot of stuff, but I'm confused about the meaning. The engine, traditionally, is the first thing to have problems in almost any car. It's where the controlled burning is happening thousands of times per minute with metal bits whirring on hydrodynamic bearings with thousandths of an inch of clearance.

Originally Posted by AngelFarelli

The stupid part is that the valvetronic motor conveniently leaks directly onto the ignition coils . Maybe they could've at least designed a leek catch pan to collect running oil from dripping on coils. Meanwhile the valve cover gasket is tilted to the passenger side about 20 degrees so any leaks mostly come out of the lower side.

Most products, at the end of the day, are designed to make money. Redirecting hot oil to the headers sounds like fire and lawsuits and dead people. I think the temporary failure of the motor is a safer solution.

I know you're frustrated, but if you wanted a reliable car a Toyota would have been a better choice. Expecting everything from one thing is pretty unreasonable.

All things considered, the E90 328i N52 is about as reliable as it gets for modern-ish german engineering. Far less troublesome than any BMW I've owned previously and if you add up all the touch points that even the vaunted E30 needs - price adjusted, the E90 328i wins by a long shot. There was never an e30,36 or 46 that could approach anywhere near a 100k mile tune-up. They all needed water pumps and pulleys and valve cover gaskets (which were far harder to seal with the damned half-moon cutouts on the BACK of the head). People bought these cars and did very little for a decade. That never happens in the German car world. For you to come along, buy the same car for 1/10th the cost and expect the same is unrealistic. If it were realistic they'd have higher resale values.

Yep, the E90 is slightly more of a pain to work on. I'll take the trade off - it's worth it, to me.