So how much does a vanos unit repair cost on an E36 M3 evo?

[swiftpete]

I'm thinking about buying an evo but all I seem to read is how vanos fail all the time and cost a lot to repair/replace. Could anyone give me a bit of an idea how much they actually cost? If it's a crazy amount I may just look at the 3.0 instead.

Cheers.

[Huliganov]

Around about £1200

[alanruss]

how often is this actually supposed to happen? I am possibly buying an M3 Evo on Saturday... I am getting Phil Crouch to look it over so surely he will be able to tell the state of play?

[M3John]

Depends where you have it done. Main dealers will be around £2k. My Indipendents did mine for me for £1,500. Shop around !

Edit for above post;

VANOS issues are a little over hyped if i'm honest with you although they must have gone wrong at some point for everybody to start yelling VANOS!! . My car did around 110k on it's origional units and i only replaced them because one of the solinoids was sticking intermittently so the cost of changing that as opposed to the whole unit just made more sence really as i would have at some stage paied for the labour rate twice for the same job almost.

Edited by M3John on Thursday 10th April 18:55

[Cactussed]

I have never heard of a vanos failure leading to engine failure. Sometimes the solenoids go, sometimes just the o-ring seals. To replace the whole unit is about £1200-1500 (as John said). You can replace the solenoids for a lot less (£200 each x 2 I seem to recall) and it can be done in your garage if you're that way inclined. There was a writeup somewhere either here or maybe on E36coupe.com Can't recall.

[M3John]

Andrew are you still up for a beer tonight ?

[E36GUY]

swiftpete said:

I'm thinking about buying an evo but all I seem to read is how vanos fail all the time and cost a lot to repair/replace. Could anyone give me a bit of an idea how much they actually cost? If it's a crazy amount I may just look at the 3.0 instead.

Cheers.

That's the myth. There are problems but they are well over-publicised. Remember that people talk about when they have problems far more than people actually say they've got no problems.

Yes the Vanos units do fail on occasion but it's a small percentage of the overall numbers of e36M3evos actually on the road. There is a test you can do (do a search) to see if the Vanos on a car you are buying is on the way out but it is no reason not to buy an Evo. They are expensive to fix so that highlights the need to do your research and buy a good one.

[Cactussed]

Christ mate, totally forgot and am taking Mrs Cactussed out to dinner!
You about tomorrow afternoon?

[swiftpete]

E36GUY said:

swiftpete said:

I'm thinking about buying an evo but all I seem to read is how vanos fail all the time and cost a lot to repair/replace. Could anyone give me a bit of an idea how much they actually cost? If it's a crazy amount I may just look at the 3.0 instead.

Cheers.

That's the myth. There are problems but they are well over-publicised. Remember that people talk about when they have problems far more than people actually say they've got no problems.

Yes the Vanos units do fail on occasion but it's a small percentage of the overall numbers of e36M3evos actually on the road. There is a test you can do (do a search) to see if the Vanos on a car you are buying is on the way out but it is no reason not to buy an Evo. They are expensive to fix so that highlights the need to do your research and buy a good one.

Yes you're no doubt right. People don't generally complain when their car is working properly. I will keep my eyes open for a nice evo. Just got to shift my car onto my mate first!

[M3John]

Cactussed said:

Christ mate, totally forgot and am taking Mrs Cactussed out to dinner!
You about tomorrow afternoon?

Ok mate no worries. Will be around tomorrow, got to take the ///M3 for an MOT but other than that it's going to be a lazy day for me. Give me a call tomorrow and have a nice evening tonight.

[Cactussed]

I'd opt for the EVO, simply because its a bit more modern inside. You won't really notice much difference in performance.

John, I'll give you a bell later on.

[ASBO]

Cactussed said:

I'd opt for the EVO, simply because its a bit more modern inside. You won't really notice much difference in performance.

Over the 3.0l? I'd beg to differ on that one.

[french]

yeah your right Cat ,I seriously doubt many people would notice a huge difference , maybe lower down in the revs it may seem a bit more lively but once your up in the higher rev range ,nah.

[dangerousbryan]

mine has currently done 147k and has never had a vanos unit. it is never wellied until the oil is up to 80 degrees and i think this is why it has lasted.

bryan

[ASBO]

french said:

yeah your right Cat ,I seriously doubt many people would notice a huge difference , maybe lower down in the revs it may seem a bit more lively but once your up in the higher rev range ,nah.

Seriously?

[Cactussed]

ASBO said:

french said:

yeah your right Cat ,I seriously doubt many people would notice a huge difference , maybe lower down in the revs it may seem a bit more lively but once your up in the higher rev range ,nah.

Seriously?

Seriously!

[E36GUY]

eh?

The Evo is absolutely no different inside to a 3.0 unless you get one with a passenger airbag in the dash. Otherwise, they are identical.

Biggest difference with the Evo though is the addition of a 6th gear which makes a hell of a difference to your touring MPG. 0-60 is slightly faster as is accelleration generally and I believe that the Evo had a lot of chassis/suspension mods over the 3.0. The difference is not just a few more CCs.

[wpo750]

E36GUY said:

eh?

The Evo is absolutely no different inside to a 3.0 unless you get one with a passenger airbag in the dash. Otherwise, they are identical.

Lets not forget the addition of digi climate, better steering wheels and later style vaders