So, Last night at the New Year's party, good times were had. I visited with my friends from college, and found out an interesting item. My friend Pat bought a 95 318ti when he graduated back in 96. He may well be soon upgrading to a new 135i. His E36 now has 250,000 miles on it and is in need of new seals. He gets a nice present of an oil puddle every morning. He goes through a quart or two of oil every week. So, the question is how much trouble is this going to be? Is it really worth it? And if I end up not being able to afford it, who wants it?
Edit:
I do not know on price as yet, but Pat is saying cheap.
cost depends on what is leaking....
If it's really cheap and the chassis is good (and you want a project...) I'd consider looking for an M50+trans to put into it out of a 325i. They can be found for ~$400-600 with ECU and wiring, and are a pretty easy swap.
Nathan
Valve cover gasket, oil filter stand gasket and oil pan gasket are all super common leaks on the m44. The first two are fairly simple but the pan gasket is a bit of work especially if you don't have a lift. I would start by washing everything down with a pressure washer and identify the leaks from there.
I may be interested depending on the condition of the vehicle and asking price.
I just pulled the engine out of my 318ti. The front seal started leaking at 104k miles. That engine is on borrowed time if it has not had a timing chain replacment. So you would need to replace the timing chain and that will also include all the seals on the front of the engine. Thats what they did to my old engine before they put it in a Z3. I now have a 2.8L six in my car. A Huge improvement.
The 1995 Ti's had a M42 and the gasket between the oil filter housing and the engine block leaks like a mofo after high mileage.
It's about a 3 hour job and about $10 in parts... Pretty simple.
Check out 318ti.org for all the info you can ever want on the ti.
LeMons car is a possibility. His wife made a mention of the fact that they like pizza. There is some time left. He wants to get a new car sometime in the next 2 years. most likely sometime in the next year.
If the chassis is in decent shape, I would NOT Lemons a Ti. They are getting pretty rare and people will spend top dollar to get one with a good body and interior.
And yes. the M42 loves to leak at the filter housing. The fact that it is leaks even after the car is shut down points to it as the filter is an upside down housing with a drop in filter. Any oil left in it has to drain somewhere else. Other seals may drip a bit, but generally when shut down and without pressure behind it, the oil will simply drain back to the pan.
