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My Alpina is dead :(((

Alpina Specific discussion
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PerryGunn
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My Alpina is dead :(((

Post by PerryGunn » Mon Apr 30, 2018 8:55 pm

SkiNNeR wrote: Mon Apr 30, 2018 8:38 pm well it looks like Athena have a Gasket for that size.... £285 but im not sure if this a kit that comes with the other bits n bobs..

https://forged-pistons.co.uk/webshop/at ... kness1-80/
AFAIUI a gasket for the standard S52B32 engine won't work on the 3.4L B3S engine - although there are reports of it working with the earlier 3.3L B3 engine - you're not the first person to have looked for an off-the-shelf alternative to the expensive Alpina B3S gasket.

I really do suggest that, before you spend money on something like this, you contact Phil Crouch for advice
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Post by markeg » Mon Apr 30, 2018 11:22 pm

PerryGunn wrote: Mon Apr 30, 2018 8:25 pm There's a specific Alpina gasket for the B3S engine - but it's not cheap!! You're very unlikely to be able to find an off-the-shelf generic or aftermarket kit that will work. Phil Crouch at CPC was trying to source an alternative gasket from the US that he thought might fit but I don't know if he succeeded, he was also looking at the possibility of getting copper gaskets made - again, I don't know the outcome of this.

Try contacting him for advice as he has a lot of experience with these engines - http://www.cpcpe.com/
+1 - There is a thread on the Alpina forum where we discussed this at length. I also remember it mentioned that Phil was going to source a copper gasket although I don't remember it ever came to fruition. He has got experience of replacing a number of the B3S engine head gaskets though. 80k is the usual number quoted for the key mileage although it all depends on a number of factors; for example mine was at 115k+ and showed no signs (I had the compression test done a number of times)
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My Alpina is dead :(((

Post by SkiNNeR » Tue May 01, 2018 8:21 am

markeg - yes im sorry you did mention that indeed. But i wouldn't want to wait a long time to get shipment from america. And i've heard copper gaskets can be a nightmare to seal sometimes. I will give him a shout tho indeed, But quick question does anyone know how much the gasket is from Alpina?
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My Alpina is dead :(((

Post by SkiNNeR » Tue May 01, 2018 8:24 am

PerryGunn - Yea its strange m8, there are so many places that say the car is 3.3, when its a 3.4. Even the horse power is different and top speed on some sites :) its crazy. finding parts can be a bloody nightmare!
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Post by PerryGunn » Tue May 01, 2018 8:52 am

Last I heard the Alpina B3S gasket was ~£400 inc. VAT (+ fitting) but I'm sure Phil Crouch will have a more up-to-date cost.

The normal way to find out parts info is to contact the parts department at the Nottingham branch of Syntner - that's effectively HQ for Alpina in the UK. If they can't help because the part isn't listed, an email to Axel Rimpler, the Alpina production manager in Buchloe, should help with unusual items - although it may take a few days - but, to avoid Axel being bombarded with queries (and becoming less helpful) please try Sytner Nottingham first.
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Post by SkiNNeR » Tue May 01, 2018 9:21 am

PerryGunn for sure m8, I don't really like pestering anyone. £400!! that's insane!!! I will get intouch with synter and find out what they can do for me, thought there were better upgraded options readily available. Guess I was wrong

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Post by SkiNNeR » Tue May 01, 2018 9:40 am

BMW synter at Nottingham have just turned complete w**k, they telling me to go to my local dealer to get quotes... that's a joke! Twice before i've been to my local dealer to get parts and each time they ordered the incorrect parts which i had to end up paying for anyway for some STUPID reason because they wouldn't take them back, they are completely useless. I did however get a price from synter just now over the phone for only the head gasket..................................... £568.70 Inc vat!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WTF!!!!!! are they insane?
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Post by PerryGunn » Tue May 01, 2018 9:45 am

SkiNNeR wrote: Tue May 01, 2018 9:40 am BMW synter at Nottingham have just turned complete w**k, they telling me to go to my local dealer to get quotes... that's a joke!
It's not unusual for them to ask you to quote/order through your local dealer but they should be able to provide the correct BMW/Alpina part number to order - that avoids the mix-ups where the local dealers don't have the necessary Alpina knowledge
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Post by SkiNNeR » Tue May 01, 2018 9:55 am

yea fair play, They didn't try brush me off like this before tho. I already had the part number :/ Anyway doesn't matter i'll have to find another option, there's no way im paying £568.70 for a gasket alone thats ridiculous. I could prolly find a V8 engine complete for that kinda money and drop it in there for the time being :D
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Post by ph001 » Tue May 01, 2018 10:00 am

That compression figure on cyl 6 is low but if something is smashing into the plug I think the first thing I would be doing is getting an iphone / android endoscope camera through the spark plug hole and into the cylinder for a look around.

If it is a piece of broken valve well that could certainly be the cause of your low compression - it's a little unfortunate that you will still have to take the head off to change the valve/s :(

Endoscope cameras are no money relatively speaking..... https://www.amazon.co.uk/Inspection-Pan ... ZP0W1A6Z86
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Post by markeg » Tue May 01, 2018 11:12 am

Have you tried pm'ing AlpinaRoadsterS on here? Manfred's a pretty helpful guy and might be able to help with a quote from a German dealership; might be cheaper?
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Post by PerryGunn » Tue May 01, 2018 11:37 am

markeg wrote: Tue May 01, 2018 11:12 am Have you tried pm'ing AlpinaRoadsterS on here? Manfred's a pretty helpful guy and might be able to help with a quote from a German dealership; might be cheaper?
Excellent suggestion Mark - we've always suspected that there's a quite hefty Alpina/BMW UK markup on these parts... :thumbsup:
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Post by MACK » Tue May 01, 2018 2:35 pm

SkiNNeR wrote: Tue May 01, 2018 9:40 am BMW synter at Nottingham have just turned complete w**k, they telling me to go to my local dealer to get quotes... that's a joke! Twice before i've been to my local dealer to get parts and each time they ordered the incorrect parts which i had to end up paying for anyway for some STUPID reason because they wouldn't take them back, they are completely useless. I did however get a price from synter just now over the phone for only the head gasket..................................... £568.70 Inc vat!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WTF!!!!!! are they insane?
That's just insane for the head gasket, you could buy a second hand M54 lump on fleabay for that!
At this point Id be doing as suggested and having a look into the combustion chamber with a camera to see exactly whats going on in there. Either yourself or get a garage/engine specialist to do it. It the only way your going to know (other than head off obviously). You may have bigger issues than a valve, such as piston damage or even a damaged cylinder/block. What you find is obviously going to have a huge bearing on how to proceed at this point.
If you need a piston for example maybe a good engine builder can match the existing part to a new one off manufacturer markings etc. As i said earlier I'm not well up on Alpina but I'm willing to bet the bespoke parts are being made for them by the mainstream suppliers rather than in house.
I had this situation years ago with a melted piston. The bespoke engine builder who originally built the engine wanted a fortune for the piston but a local engine builder used markings on the piston and measurements etc to work out what piston it was and got me one a lot cheaper direct from the actual manufacturer.
If you've damaged the block beyond repair you may have to start getting creative and think about trying to find a B3S engine from somewhere, god know where though. Alternative you may be able to source an E36 M3 engine and have it bored out, just like Alpina did in the first place.
Hopefully its something relatively painless like the valve and you get it sorted soon
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Post by PerryGunn » Tue May 01, 2018 3:51 pm

MACK wrote: Tue May 01, 2018 2:35 pm ...
If you need a piston for example maybe a good engine builder can match the existing part to a new one off manufacturer markings etc. As i said earlier I'm not well up on Alpina but I'm willing to bet the bespoke parts are being made for them by the mainstream suppliers rather than in house
...
Manufacturer information for a lot of the parts is available, e.g. the pistons in the B3S are lightweight forged items made by Mahle, the tuned stainless exhaust was made to Alpina specs by Boyssen... other parts came from the BMW parts bin and were re-purposed for the RS sometimes with a bit of in-house work to modify them, sometimes not...

The problem with the headgasket is that Alpina had it made specifically to their pattern for the bored-out 3.4L engine and they hold the only stock of them. As there are relatively few B3S engines around, it seems that it's not economically viable for anyone to make a pattern part.
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Post by MACK » Wed May 02, 2018 9:13 am

PerryGunn wrote: Tue May 01, 2018 3:51 pm
MACK wrote: Tue May 01, 2018 2:35 pm ...
If you need a piston for example maybe a good engine builder can match the existing part to a new one off manufacturer markings etc. As i said earlier I'm not well up on Alpina but I'm willing to bet the bespoke parts are being made for them by the mainstream suppliers rather than in house
...
Manufacturer information for a lot of the parts is available, e.g. the pistons in the B3S are lightweight forged items made by Mahle, the tuned stainless exhaust was made to Alpina specs by Boyssen... other parts came from the BMW parts bin and were re-purposed for the RS sometimes with a bit of in-house work to modify them, sometimes not...

The problem with the headgasket is that Alpina had it made specifically to their pattern for the bored-out 3.4L engine and they hold the only stock of them. As there are relatively few B3S engines around, it seems that it's not economically viable for anyone to make a pattern part.
Thanks.
Some good/useful info there Perry. You learn something everyday. Do you have links etc to the Alpina parts info? Might be useful to the OP and other Alpina owners going forward.
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