Mrs Fb’s 650i...regret may be strong with this one!
Discussion
Well earlier this year I decided I wanted a BMW E63, I would have preferred the V8 version but all my research showed they are bottomless money pits with numerous expensive common oil leaks etc. I got all sensible and though I don’t enjoy being stuffed upside down under a car for hours in end any more, so went with the more sensible option of the 630i straight 6.
I found a super mint one with low miles , fsh, lovely options and everything I wanted . See thread below
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
Lately Mrs Fb has been giving me grief for selling her VXR8 5 years ago... yes they really do go on about stuff years later ! It was a cracking car but timing with family and young kids meant I didn’t want to see it ruined with food stuffed into the seats and kick marks up the front seats etc.
Browsing faceache on Thursday a chap listed a 2005 650i with 100k on the clock and all common leaks sorted including the famous N62 valve stem seals. Car was black with chateau leather and apart from engine and wheels, a carbon copy of my 630i.
Will continue post in a short while.. doing this on my phone and need to make a call now !
I found a super mint one with low miles , fsh, lovely options and everything I wanted . See thread below
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
Lately Mrs Fb has been giving me grief for selling her VXR8 5 years ago... yes they really do go on about stuff years later ! It was a cracking car but timing with family and young kids meant I didn’t want to see it ruined with food stuffed into the seats and kick marks up the front seats etc.
Browsing faceache on Thursday a chap listed a 2005 650i with 100k on the clock and all common leaks sorted including the famous N62 valve stem seals. Car was black with chateau leather and apart from engine and wheels, a carbon copy of my 630i.
Will continue post in a short while.. doing this on my phone and need to make a call now !
Ok, spoke to seller and arranged to view/buy the car on Saturday. Short version is we bought it and started the 140 mile trip home. I reset all the OBC stuff , filled the tank and headed for home. I drove the 650 for the first 15-20 miles just to be sure all was well, then pulled over and handed the keys to Mrs Fb. I jumped back in my 630 and followed her. It was this point I remembered she’s had plenty 400-500hp cars in the past and was very familiar with a little hoonage 
Trip home involved a pair of matching blacked out 6’ers abusing the BMW Lane all the way back, pace was err, plentiful ! Fuel consumption was quite a surprise from the 650, annoyingly I didn’t reset the 630’s OBC to get a comparison .
Once home my neighbour who’s also a car nut came out , looked at both cars absolutely filthy from trip home, shook his head laughing and walked back inside.... he approves
And this is the part where I was reminded why I avoided the N62 in the first place. Took the car out for a drive on Sunday, all seems well until I gave it a little boot full, car took off and sounded nice... however the smoke screen that followed literally made the 2 lane road behind me disappear! I’ve never seen so much white smoke in my life, immediately followed by lots of typical BMW dash bongs and warnings. My heart sank and I was convinced that was that. By some grace I was less then a mile from home so I’m the absence of bad running or noises I decided to limp it home quick.
Pulled up outside my house and lots of steam pouring out the bonnet. I was greeted by a top rad hose has popped off. Got the wife to grab me a watering can full of boiling water out the tap to avoid thermal shock, fitted hose in under a minute with new clamp and filled system back up while still running. Lots of testing yesterday and today seems to indicate all is well and it was just a fatigued hose clamp, happy days !
I should probably mention that on the way home from buying it on Saturday I had already placed my first parts order , which happened to arrive today
So car goes up on axle stands and under trays come off....oh cock !!! Feckin alternator gasket is starting to go ffs. I had hoped to avoid having to do this job but I guess I will soon be wedged under the car for a day while I sort the leak. It’s not mega and couldn’t be seen from above.
Anyways splitter is fitted which again is identical to my car... swap plates and you wouldn’t know lol
Before
After
And some pics of a very dirty 650i, the ceramic coating on it is actually doing a decent job of keeping dirt off it.
Trip home involved a pair of matching blacked out 6’ers abusing the BMW Lane all the way back, pace was err, plentiful ! Fuel consumption was quite a surprise from the 650, annoyingly I didn’t reset the 630’s OBC to get a comparison .
Once home my neighbour who’s also a car nut came out , looked at both cars absolutely filthy from trip home, shook his head laughing and walked back inside.... he approves
And this is the part where I was reminded why I avoided the N62 in the first place. Took the car out for a drive on Sunday, all seems well until I gave it a little boot full, car took off and sounded nice... however the smoke screen that followed literally made the 2 lane road behind me disappear! I’ve never seen so much white smoke in my life, immediately followed by lots of typical BMW dash bongs and warnings. My heart sank and I was convinced that was that. By some grace I was less then a mile from home so I’m the absence of bad running or noises I decided to limp it home quick.
Pulled up outside my house and lots of steam pouring out the bonnet. I was greeted by a top rad hose has popped off. Got the wife to grab me a watering can full of boiling water out the tap to avoid thermal shock, fitted hose in under a minute with new clamp and filled system back up while still running. Lots of testing yesterday and today seems to indicate all is well and it was just a fatigued hose clamp, happy days !
I should probably mention that on the way home from buying it on Saturday I had already placed my first parts order , which happened to arrive today
So car goes up on axle stands and under trays come off....oh cock !!! Feckin alternator gasket is starting to go ffs. I had hoped to avoid having to do this job but I guess I will soon be wedged under the car for a day while I sort the leak. It’s not mega and couldn’t be seen from above.
Anyways splitter is fitted which again is identical to my car... swap plates and you wouldn’t know lol
Before
After
And some pics of a very dirty 650i, the ceramic coating on it is actually doing a decent job of keeping dirt off it.
BrabusMog said:
Brilliant I’ll be looking forward to the updates. I like the interior colour, nice change from white / black on black.
I love the chateau interior, as you say it’s so nice and different to black . With the pano roof it makes it a cracking place to sit in summer I’ll be looking forward to the updates. I like the interior colour, nice change from white / black on black.
therealsamdailly said:
These are looking great nowadays, and they can be a proper bargain
Also, your Mrs sounds awesome!
They can be a bargain, or bite you... time will tell with this one Also, your Mrs sounds awesome!
Mrs Fb is a hoot, she’s a petrol head through and through and will always be found on the stag do’s rather than the Hen’s . She even beat me at the standing mile event in her VXR8
ops:LGriffiths88 said:
I’ve been looking a lot at these of late.
But not sure how I can accommodate by 2 kids (5 and 4 in the rear). Doesn’t seem like there’s much room for them.
Depending on how tall you are they are ok for kids , I’m 5’10 ish and don’t sit like a gangsta so there is an acceptable amount of space behind me. My girls are both 11 and they sit behind us fine. I can sit in the back with my drivers seat in position so even adults can fit... wouldn’t want to go too far though ! But not sure how I can accommodate by 2 kids (5 and 4 in the rear). Doesn’t seem like there’s much room for them.
LGriffiths88 said:
They’re about the size of a 6 year old. Youngest quite tall for age. Was looking at E61s but petrols seem to be unicorns.
What’s the boot like on these.
That shot with the pano roof looks awesome!
Boot is quite large to be fair, slightly narrow opening but not prohibitively small I can grab a pic tomorrow for you. 6 year old will fit perfectly fine in one of these, my girls are 145cm and they are fine in the back. Best do what I did and just find the nearest one regardless of spec or engine so you can go check it out and try it for size. If it’s for you then you can hunt down the right car.What’s the boot like on these.
That shot with the pano roof looks awesome!
That interior shot was taken on my iPhone , it really did come out well and show what a cracking place it is to sit
Tommie38 said:
Do you have an idea what the cost of the seals (especially valve stems) would be at a specialist?
Although very rare, the manual cars do look like an interesting way of getting into a manual V8.
Valve stem seals alone can be done for around £800ish now, however I would throw £1500 at it and do the lot at once while you are there. Valve stem seals, rocker cover gaskets, vacuum pump seals and alternator bracket seals. You could also do the coolant transfer pipe stent while it’s all apart too, that should pretty much future proof the car. Considering they can be had for as little as 4k now, it’s silly cheap for what it is. Although very rare, the manual cars do look like an interesting way of getting into a manual V8.
Thanks all, it does look good in the pics considering it’s 15 years old and has 110k on the clock.
I’ve not really given much info on the actual car so here is the advert
Spec wise it’s quite decent and has fsh with a mix of BMW and local garages. Proof off VSS’s being done circa 20k ago
Today Mrs Fb has given me a list ofdemands requests ...
She wants my alloys as they are better, but her tyres as they are new MPS4’s and mine have Bridgestone RF’s. She also wants to sort out the lack of aux which she worded along the lines of “why the f
k does it have a bloody HUD but no sodding Aux ?”
And finally... why the hell does it sound like a wet fart , make it loud, like LOUD.
Hahaha she’s a right gonad but I will sort it all for her. I’ve already had a little fettle with the rear boxes to make it just sound nice, I don’t want bd loud exhaust, just a bit more than the muted standard tone will do.
I’ve not really given much info on the actual car so here is the advert
advert said:
2005 (55) e63 650i Sport Auto
pre lci so low tax (£300pa)
Sapphire Black Metalic, Red leather interior, sun roof, heads up display, keyless start, memory seats, front cup holder , Pro nav
Work carried out
Valve stem seals - done
Rocket gaskets - done
Vacuum pump seals - done
New track rod ends
New front drop links
4x new Michelin PS4 tyres + full alignment
Fresh MOT only advisory was slight oil leak traced back to vacuum pump and now resolved.
Recently fitted front and rear drilled Mtec brake discs with minted pads
Rear handbrake shoes
ZF box service with ZF oil
Modifications
Machine polished and ceramic coated
Gloss Black style 218 alloys
Windows professionally tinted
Additional items
New set of Eibach lowering springs still in the box
Bluetooth audio module fitted
This is a well spec’d and maintained car with plenty of cash out into it over the years.
Now sitting on 110,000 miles
Chap said he was unsure as to value and said he wanted around 8k considering VSS and most issues were sorted. I replied saying no chance of 8k even all sorted, that’s double a non sorted one with under 2k needed to future proof them. We settled on 7k and after viewing car there were a few small blemishes and issues like Misty fog lamps etc so I stuck in an offer of 6500 or nowt. Seller was a very nice guy to deal with and accepted there were some small minor niggles so the deal was done at £6500. While doing the paperwork he handed me a few odds and ends he had accumulated like an LM2 light module, uprated angle eyes and Bluetooth receiver, at that point I thought I would get cheeky and said he could throw the Eibach springs in the boot too (remember I’ve already knocked £1500 off !) too which he said bugger it and did so , another £300 off basically pre lci so low tax (£300pa)
Sapphire Black Metalic, Red leather interior, sun roof, heads up display, keyless start, memory seats, front cup holder , Pro nav
Work carried out
Valve stem seals - done
Rocket gaskets - done
Vacuum pump seals - done
New track rod ends
New front drop links
4x new Michelin PS4 tyres + full alignment
Fresh MOT only advisory was slight oil leak traced back to vacuum pump and now resolved.
Recently fitted front and rear drilled Mtec brake discs with minted pads
Rear handbrake shoes
ZF box service with ZF oil
Modifications
Machine polished and ceramic coated
Gloss Black style 218 alloys
Windows professionally tinted
Additional items
New set of Eibach lowering springs still in the box
Bluetooth audio module fitted
This is a well spec’d and maintained car with plenty of cash out into it over the years.
Now sitting on 110,000 miles
Spec wise it’s quite decent and has fsh with a mix of BMW and local garages. Proof off VSS’s being done circa 20k ago
Today Mrs Fb has given me a list of
She wants my alloys as they are better, but her tyres as they are new MPS4’s and mine have Bridgestone RF’s. She also wants to sort out the lack of aux which she worded along the lines of “why the f
k does it have a bloody HUD but no sodding Aux ?” And finally... why the hell does it sound like a wet fart , make it loud, like LOUD.
Hahaha she’s a right gonad but I will sort it all for her. I’ve already had a little fettle with the rear boxes to make it just sound nice, I don’t want b
d loud exhaust, just a bit more than the muted standard tone will do. 
Spewed all it’s coolant down the motorway...
She had 2 lane closure trucks, a Highways officer and the recovery chap... she was mortified ! Thankfully the HO arranged free recovery to nearest services which conveniently were only 5 miles from where I was on a job. Her RAC breakdown cover proved to be fking useless as they only covered her Touareg rather than her in any car, which is what I bloody asked for in the first place.
Greeted at the services with a V8 BMW in its natural habitat
Thankfully she pulled over the second the warning flashed so car didn’t overheat or anything. Once unloaded I had a look around to see if I could find where all the coolant came from, no apparent issues but chassis leg was wet under expansion tank. Decided I would whip tank of quick and check for cracks or splits. That’s when I found this, it’s a very small indentation that get wet everytime I dried it off. Weird thing is there is nothing close enough to damage it
Being a heating engineer I was there in my van and wondered what Mac-giver move I could make to get her home again. Cut up some burner cover , used PVC glue and glued it closed.
Seems to have done the job as 20 miles later she’s home and coolant level has dropped about 200ml which could just be air from previous loss. New tank already ordered from BMW at £106 plus VAT which will be here tomorrow.
My concern is that’s two unrelated coolant issues on the last 2 drives, now either we are VERY unlucky, or we have an underlying issue like HG’s gone and over pressurising the system finding the next weakest link.
Roll on the next saga ... ps, we not even covered 200 miles yet
She had 2 lane closure trucks, a Highways officer and the recovery chap... she was mortified ! Thankfully the HO arranged free recovery to nearest services which conveniently were only 5 miles from where I was on a job. Her RAC breakdown cover proved to be f
king useless as they only covered her Touareg rather than her in any car, which is what I bloody asked for in the first place. Greeted at the services with a V8 BMW in its natural habitat
Thankfully she pulled over the second the warning flashed so car didn’t overheat or anything. Once unloaded I had a look around to see if I could find where all the coolant came from, no apparent issues but chassis leg was wet under expansion tank. Decided I would whip tank of quick and check for cracks or splits. That’s when I found this, it’s a very small indentation that get wet everytime I dried it off. Weird thing is there is nothing close enough to damage it
Being a heating engineer I was there in my van and wondered what Mac-giver move I could make to get her home again. Cut up some burner cover , used PVC glue and glued it closed.
Seems to have done the job as 20 miles later she’s home and coolant level has dropped about 200ml which could just be air from previous loss. New tank already ordered from BMW at £106 plus VAT which will be here tomorrow.
My concern is that’s two unrelated coolant issues on the last 2 drives, now either we are VERY unlucky, or we have an underlying issue like HG’s gone and over pressurising the system finding the next weakest link.
Roll on the next saga ... ps, we not even covered 200 miles yet
d_a_n1979 said:
Well fingers crossed it's a simple fix
Think get it fitted; get it filled, bled and let the engine get up to temp for a good while and then out for a local test drive where it can be brought up to speed for a bit to run it hot and then back on the drive to see how it does when cooling down
Fingers crossed it's not anything to do with HG and just sods law
Pretty much what I did after rad hose popped off the other day. New bottle being delivered tomorrow to my local BMW, I will fit it and do the same... let’s hope that’s the last of it as it does run bloody lovely, when not broken Think get it fitted; get it filled, bled and let the engine get up to temp for a good while and then out for a local test drive where it can be brought up to speed for a bit to run it hot and then back on the drive to see how it does when cooling down
Fingers crossed it's not anything to do with HG and just sods law
BigMacDaddy said:
As above, hope there's nothing major underlying and it's just a spell of bad luck that's now over. Love my E61 550i and might well have to look at a 650 stablemate for weekend fun now, that interior looks cracking
Fingers crossed mate, can’t let the wife breakdown too much more, think I’d be in for the high jump if it goes wrong again. The chateau interior and black exterior is just spot on IMO. Mrs Fb headed down to BMW and collected her coolant tank. Asked the chap which coolant it takes and he popped out with 3L of genuine BMW coolant on the house . Also couldn’t be more helpful and carried the little box to the car for her... rumour has it tits come in handy !!
The temp bodge had held yesterday so system was still full and bled from last drive, swapping tank takes all of 5 min if you taking your time. Went for a 30 mile drive which initially was some long NSL rods to just bumble along, then into town to get everything toasty hot, headed off for a couple of DC blasts before braving it down the motorway a couple of junctions. After an hour I started really giving it some , as that’s when the rad hose blew off last time .
Safe to say for the very interim it is working as it should and holding temp as it should via hidden menu on the dash.
So for now, I’m calling it a success.... but don’t worry, I’m sure there will be another instalment soon enough
The temp bodge had held yesterday so system was still full and bled from last drive, swapping tank takes all of 5 min if you taking your time. Went for a 30 mile drive which initially was some long NSL rods to just bumble along, then into town to get everything toasty hot, headed off for a couple of DC blasts before braving it down the motorway a couple of junctions. After an hour I started really giving it some , as that’s when the rad hose blew off last time .
Safe to say for the very interim it is working as it should and holding temp as it should via hidden menu on the dash.
So for now, I’m calling it a success.... but don’t worry, I’m sure there will be another instalment soon enough
Thanks all for the kind comments, Mrs Fb was out last night and did about 40miles and then out and about again today. So far so good with no new issues... sounds daft getting excited about 50 miles trouble free but I’ll take what we can get
Have a courtesy non broken photo
Court_S said:
What are your thoughts on it compared to yours?
Mine overall is in far nicer condition, to the point the guy we bought the 650 from was adamant mine has a new radiator as it was so clean. Quick point to the factory sticker dated 2006 and he couldn’t believe it. Mine drives like a new car, I know it’s a cliche but I’ve had brand new cars and mine drives every bit as good if not better. Her 650 drives nice and with 4 new MPS4’s and recent alignment it does feel planted. Fuel wise is the interesting one, I don’t think the V8 is much worse ... from initial trips so far I would says there’s all of 2 maybe 3mpg difference around town, and pretty much the same on the motorway. Have a courtesy non broken photo
Court_S said:
I did wonder about the MPG. My old 330 wasn’t the best on fuel so a bit more heft probably wouldn’t help. Does yours feel loads slower?
How does your good lady feel about the car after it’s issues?
In the grand scheme of things fuel difference is pretty much insignificant, power wise is tricky one as Mrs Fb and I share a different opinion. Hers is quicker for sure, but is it really a 100hp quicker, I genuinely don’t think it is. There is much more on the top end and it pulls harder the faster you go but does it warrant the potential Bork factor over the 630 ... not convinced myself. How does your good lady feel about the car after it’s issues?
The noise and the fact you drive a nice big NA V8 is probably the only real upside to the 645/650 over the 630. For me if you buy a 6 series for the looks, buy a 630, if you are buying one for the V8 then obviously you will buy the 645/650 and have massive potential bork factor added.
I don’t regret buying her the 650, yet. She got quite despondent after breaking down on the motorway, now it’s fixed and currently behaving itself she is loving every mile
Well so far so good, Mrs Fb has been using the car and not had anymore issues to report. I think the alternator gasket is going to need to be done sooner rather than later as there are tell tale rainbows under the car in the rain... a standard V8 trait.
Her car wasn’t all that clean when we bought it and was absolutely filthy now after plenty country lanes etc. Thought I would treat it to a good wash and see how it came up. Also found an inch thick layer of rubber in the rear arches
One and only ‘before’ pic
And an interior you would struggle to believe has covered a 110k over the last 15 years.
Once she’s done a few more miles and all is well, I will start sorting bits for her. I’ve got a Bluetooth adapter to wire in, some nice brand new Eibach Pro springs to go on, alternator gasket to do and then some general tidying up for her.
Her car wasn’t all that clean when we bought it and was absolutely filthy now after plenty country lanes etc. Thought I would treat it to a good wash and see how it came up. Also found an inch thick layer of rubber in the rear arches
One and only ‘before’ pic
And an interior you would struggle to believe has covered a 110k over the last 15 years.
Once she’s done a few more miles and all is well, I will start sorting bits for her. I’ve got a Bluetooth adapter to wire in, some nice brand new Eibach Pro springs to go on, alternator gasket to do and then some general tidying up for her.
Grrrrr.... getting bored now !
Been having little rainbows appear under the car and knew something was leaking. A previous look under the car seems to indicate alternator soaking wet and I presumed usual alternator bracket gasket was leaking. This is a ball ache job and up to 10 hours on axle stands roughly.
Today I thought I would decrease and jetwash the entire engine bay and have a good poke around . Drenched it head to toe in degreaser and then blasted the life out of it with the jet wash. First interesting thing I noted was coolant in the airbox
That initially explained the MASSIVE plume of white smoke out the back when rad hose let loose. Then I spotted the air intake is about 2 inches forwards of the hose that blew off, I’m guessing it just injested a large breath of coolant as the hose blew off.
And some before photos of various dirty engine bay bits
Note the tell tale clean spot
After a good blast, didn’t take proper pics as I had discovered leak by this point and was pissed off
And this is what we had after about 3 minutes in tick over.
Leak is coming from upper timing cover gasket on passenger side.
I thought I had snapped up a car with all the main issues done, it appears not. Luckily all the common issues on these are purely labour intensive and the parts are pennies. I just had hoped not to be spending forever upside down under cars again.
Anyways Mrs Fb has been told not to drive it until I’ve fitted new gaskets. That’s pleased her no end !
Been having little rainbows appear under the car and knew something was leaking. A previous look under the car seems to indicate alternator soaking wet and I presumed usual alternator bracket gasket was leaking. This is a ball ache job and up to 10 hours on axle stands roughly.
Today I thought I would decrease and jetwash the entire engine bay and have a good poke around . Drenched it head to toe in degreaser and then blasted the life out of it with the jet wash. First interesting thing I noted was coolant in the airbox
That initially explained the MASSIVE plume of white smoke out the back when rad hose let loose. Then I spotted the air intake is about 2 inches forwards of the hose that blew off, I’m guessing it just injested a large breath of coolant as the hose blew off. And some before photos of various dirty engine bay bits
Note the tell tale clean spot
After a good blast, didn’t take proper pics as I had discovered leak by this point and was pissed off
And this is what we had after about 3 minutes in tick over.
Leak is coming from upper timing cover gasket on passenger side.
I thought I had snapped up a car with all the main issues done, it appears not. Luckily all the common issues on these are purely labour intensive and the parts are pennies. I just had hoped not to be spending forever upside down under cars again.
Anyways Mrs Fb has been told not to drive it until I’ve fitted new gaskets. That’s pleased her no end !
g3org3y said:
Sorry to hear of your new issues. I bet it's even more frustrating given this car is supposed to be for your wife.Are you going to do all the work yourself?
All the common leaks are such cheap repairs but labour is the kicker. Car runs spot on and it’s doesn’t really detract from it so in that sense it’s a decent car. Wife’s not too fussed yet, don’t know how many more issues she will put up with though. So far it’s just niggles so I don’t mind persevering with it. If it throws a mega wobbly though I will launch it and I’ve her my 630i instead.
robsa said:
Still, look on the bright side - you were right about getting a 630i instead of the troublesome V8...
What the saying about gut feeling... should have stuck with it and avoided the N62 like the clap. Court_S said:
That’s a ball ache.
At least it was her who wanted a V8, rather than you pushing it! I’m pushing to upgrade my other half’s 116 to a 125/130 in the spring...she’ll go nuts if it turns out to be a pain given how reliable her car actually is.
Yes that’s rather fortunate it was her idea rather than mine ! At least it was her who wanted a V8, rather than you pushing it! I’m pushing to upgrade my other half’s 116 to a 125/130 in the spring...she’ll go nuts if it turns out to be a pain given how reliable her car actually is.
So after nearly 2 days of degreasing and drowning in brake cleaner I had the engine clean enough so it wasn’t baked in 15 years worth of usual seeps and weeps. After a few minutes of running on axles stands I have two blatant leaks that require immediate attention.
1 is the Ns upper timing cover gasket which is £20 in parts and probably 2-3 hours labour
2 is the dreaded alternator gasket which I though I had got away with. This one is even cheaper at £15 for gasket and 2x O’rings, however anywhere up to 10 hours labour on stands.
And that’s the crux of these engines , if you can fix the leaks your self it’s always pennies in parts but painful amounts of labour . This is where it gets a bit of a quandary, because do I strip the car partially and do the know leaks, or do I get stuck in balls deep and rip it all apart spending 20+ hours on it but replace ALL the usual suspects? It drives lovely, runs sweet and looks great, just my OCD won’t allow me/her to own a car that leaves oil drips everywhere you park.
d_a_n1979 said:
Peace of mind then and if/when you do come to sell it on, you know you've always got that in its favour as most folk who do their research on these will want to know what the oil leak situation is like 
The problem with this model/engine is you can actually see any of the usual leaks without partial stripping. So when viewing a car unless its absolutely pissing out you wont really know you are in for pain unless you jack it up and remove undertrays and engine top covers. So even full knowing what to look for , i still couldnt see alt bracket was leaking or that upper timing cover had a weep 5harp3y said:
awesome thread and these look the business in black, they have aged really well!
for the gaskets, get them all done etc
better to sink the time in once rather than over 3 or 4 goes
They were considered very ugly at the time and even now to a point, personally i think they look great now in the right spec and colour combo. Due to parts availabilty before xmas it looks like I'm in for 2 sessions, one to fix initial bracket leak and then blitz the rest in better weather. for the gaskets, get them all done etc
better to sink the time in once rather than over 3 or 4 goes
vx220 said:
Go deep, get it absolutely perfect just in time for the Mrs to be done with it, sell it cheap (to me!)
Question from some slightly technically minded but with hands that will not follow car-based instructions, why does the alternator have a gasket?
hahha, once I've done all the leaks the last thing I will be doing is selling the bQuestion from some slightly technically minded but with hands that will not follow car-based instructions, why does the alternator have a gasket?
d thing !! see below for bracket gasket info.SturdyHSV said:
I believe it's the bracket for the alternator that provides some sort of seal to the block, but that sounds like such a ridiculous design I can't imagine it's that...
So basically they cast an engine block with a hole in the side of it that they then plug with the bracket that holds the alternator?
You know what doesn't have that problem? A VXR8 If the kids are 5 years older now, maybe they won't be as inclined to mash jam in to everything?
The bracket requires a gasket as there are two holes in the block that feed through the gasket to either a pair of blanking plugs OR and oil cooler. Not all of them had the cooler , but from what limited research I've done its the 650's that got one and not the 645's. So basically they cast an engine block with a hole in the side of it that they then plug with the bracket that holds the alternator?
You know what doesn't have that problem? A VXR8
If the kids are 5 years older now, maybe they won't be as inclined to mash jam in to everything? For what VXR8's are trading at now... I would struggle to justify as a 3rd car
Rang my local BMW and priced up the bracket gasket and oil cooler O’rings. There was a discrepancy over my car having the oil cooler or not. I can see one on the car, Real OEM says no. There are different Alternator bracket gaskets and O rings depending which model you have, I told the parts Lady I would just have a set of each. Grand total of £22 later I had 2 Alt gaskets and 4 o rings. They had them in stock at a branch in London this morning and had them delivered to my local branch some 85 miles away by 14:30 this afternoon (same day!)
So I’m ready to tackle the main and only leak for now over the festive period if it doesn’t rain constantly, and in the summer I will blitz every single gasket and seal externally to future proof what’s an otherwise cracking car for Mrs Fb
You can see the oil cooler passages in this pic below better
So I’m ready to tackle the main and only leak for now over the festive period if it doesn’t rain constantly, and in the summer I will blitz every single gasket and seal externally to future proof what’s an otherwise cracking car for Mrs Fb
You can see the oil cooler passages in this pic below better
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