I think I might have head gasket failure!!

[M@r]{]

This sounds just like the symptoms I have

http://forums.m3cutters.co.uk/showthread.php?t=8868

Really not having much luck with this car

Is HGF something you can claim from the 3 month warranty you get when buying from a dealer? I've only had the car a few weeks and covered leads than 300 miles

 

[Adamski]

The thread above says typical on cars over 100k miles?

An ///M owner in your area might be able to offer a helping hand by having a listen?

 

[M@r]{]

It does but if you read through the links on there a few have said they've had it at just over 60k

 

[Adamski]

Could take it to an Indy Garage and get a compression test done if you're really worried? Any loss of power?

 

[Darren Slone]

I think you would have a case, crikey you have only just got your car

 

[Adamski]

I think you would have a case, crikey you have only just got your car

Totally agree - if the head gasket has gone, I would be pursuing warranty repair....

 

[Stuart Truman]

{"]This sounds just like the symptoms I have

http://forums.m3cutters.co.uk/showthread.php?t=8868

Really not having much luck with this car

Is HGF something you can claim from the 3 month warranty you get when buying from a dealer? I've only had the car a few weeks and covered leads than 300 miles

Sale of goods act will cover you if you've only had it less than 3 months.


Tapatalking...

 

[Lance]

What makes you think you have HG failure?

Are you losing water, oil? Is there heavy sludge on the inside of the oil filler cap? Is the car overheating? Sludge on the dipstick?

 

[M@r]{]

What makes you think you have HG failure?

Are you losing water, oil? Is there heavy sludge on the inside of the oil filler cap? Is the car overheating? Sludge on the dipstick?

No none of that. Have a look at the link I put in my first post. Looks like Hgf on the S54 doesn't present itself in this way.

 

[Andy]

because of the pinking? I get this when cold, particularly it's on sh*t fuel. once it's warmed a bit and ive been near the limiter i dont get it again, always think it needs a blast to clear it out.

im in the west mids so happy to have a listen if you fancy a journey..

have you read this thread about the other noises too..

 

[tomscott]

You sure and your not looking for something. The engines are very taperty... You are running it on super?

 

[sammyz]

You're not having much fun with this car are you?
HGF would be covered by a warranty but I'd take up Andy's offer and let him have a listen to your 'noises'. He'll either give you some piece of mind or confirm something doesn't sound right and you can get it properly investigated.

 

[M@r]{]

because of the pinking? I get this when cold, particularly it's on sh*t fuel. once it's warmed a bit and ive been near the limiter i dont get it again, always think it needs a blast to clear it out.

im in the west mids so happy to have a listen if you fancy a journey..

have you read this thread about the other noises too..

Temp doesn't seem to affect it. Its done it from cold and sometimes not. I would say its not as bad when its cold?

I've got to go to Telford on Tuesday (from Grantham way) I need to be at the clients from midday to 6pm, I could head over before or after if that suits? My only worry is more miles making it worse, ie damaging the head?

 

[Beedub]

hgf is very rare on this car.... its just not a widely reported issue.......

dont worry about the tappety rattles... its just the nature of this motor........... mark enjoy your car If you car is pinking you KNOW!!! Really wierd sound.....

 

[srhutch]

Perhaps the Z4 runs a newer HG, the M3 has been around much longer so this may have been addressed like the Vanos bolts, although there doesn't appear to be a clear cut answer on that one.

 

[mmm-five]

I'm a bit concerned that the OP on the M3Cutters website is an 'expert' in pinking, but then goes on to say that it's a good opportunity to get your valve clearances checked whilst you've got the head off.

Surely he should be doing regular valve clearance checks anyway, but I bet he didn't even check them when trying to diagnose this rattle.

He's also gone and replaced more than just the head gasket, so he can't state for certain the the head gasket caused this noise, and could have easily been the tensioner/guides that he replaced.

These engine are tappety, and you and you can hear it more on a light throttle as the engine noise is not drowning it out.

However, on a 5 owner, 100k mile car, I'd not be surprised for it to be a bit more rattly, as some owners don't bother paying the extra £200-£300 to get the valve clearances done.

Valve clearances are the first thing I get done whenever I buy an ///M, as I can't guarantee how the previous owner has maintained the car - or how well/completely a dealer has carried out the work they've been paid for.

Your best option is to compare it to a few similar cars and see if there's much difference - as you don't want to have to fork out £1000 if the dealer investigates and finds nothing wrong.

 

[andysat]

I'm a bit concerned that the OP on the M3Cutters website is an 'expert' in pinking, but then goes on to say that it's a good opportunity to get your valve clearances checked whilst you've got the head off.

Surely he should be doing regular valve clearance checks anyway, but I bet he didn't even check them when trying to diagnose this rattle.

He's also gone and replaced more than just the head gasket, so he can't state for certain the the head gasket caused this noise, and could have easily been the tensioner/guides that he replaced.

These engine are tappety, and you and you can hear it more on a light throttle as the engine noise is not drowning it out.

However, on a 5 owner, 100k mile car, I'd not be surprised for it to be a bit more rattly, as some owners don't bother paying the extra £200-£300 to get the valve clearances done.

Valve clearances are the first thing I get done whenever I buy an ///M, as I can't guarantee how the previous owner has maintained the car - or how well/completely a dealer has carried out the work they've been paid for.

Your best option is to compare it to a few similar cars and see if there's much difference - as you don't want to have to fork out £1000 if the dealer investigates and finds nothing wrong.

-Sounds like good advice!

 

[Ewazix]

I'm with mmm-five about the OP on M3 Cutters concerning pinking. I confess to knowing nothing about the S54 engine but have unfortunately had to repair several HGF over the years and understand the basic auto-engineering principles. Pinking or pre-ignition is typically caused by poor fuel and/or the ignition timing being incorrectly mapped for the grade of fuel or, ironically, excessive compression in the cylinders (used to be common in old style engines that accumulated coke deposits in the head). The higher the compression the easier it is to detonate a mixture and the bigger the bang, the lower the compression the less likely you are to suffer pinking/pre-ignition - so a HGF will not cause pinking and pinking is not a sign of HGF. If you had pinking it would sound like rattling tiny ball bearings in a crystal glass, but I doubt that's your noise?

The common signs of HGF are unexplained loss of coolant, nasty sludge in the oil cap (not just a bit of winter mayo), oil or an exhaust smell in the coolant, unusual amounts of steam out of the exhaust when hot, overheating, poor running or even oil/coolant appearing around the exterior of the head. Any garage can run simple compression tests or use a cheap coolant sample analysis kits to check for you if you need peace of mind, but unless you have a combination of these symptoms you won't have a HGF.

From what I read the S54 can typically be tapetty or run with a slightly noisy VANOS without it being an issue, it's just how they are so I would just enjoy

 

[M@r]{]

Well I'm over my mothers house where my step Dad is an Rac recovery driver. If this weather calms down we're going to run some tests.

Tbh when I first left home I almost turned round and went back, it was noisier than ever, sounded terrible and didn't require the same amount of 'load' to get the noise, ie just under light throttle. But them after a few miles it quitened down then after a 50 mile run down the a1 it was almost gone completely.

Either way something definitely isn't right. I drove a few before buying this and none sounded like this.

 

[Beedub]

{"]Well I'm over my mothers house where my step Dad is an Rac recovery driver. If this weather calms down we're going to run some tests.

Tbh when I first left home I almost turned round and went back, it was noisier than ever, sounded terrible and didn't require the same amount of 'load' to get the noise, ie just under light throttle. But them after a few miles it quitened down then after a 50 mile run down the a1 it was almost gone completely.

Either way something definitely isn't right. I drove a few before buying this and none sounded like this.

hopefully you get this sorted soon....... interested in what you find....