[Technical01]

i've spoke with Raj he said i could have moved the timming in replacing the vanos hub bolts although im sure i didnt.
didnt use a lead angle locking tool, but also didnt move the engine once everthing was off the front. i also had the spark plugs out whilst doing this.
the exhaust cam i had to manually move to push out the skew gear so i could undo it, if anything i would have thought that was where i was going to get a problem?
i have read loads of other post about cam timming and im under the impression that if it was the cam timming i would get a p0012 or p0011, or something relating to the camshaft advance or retard,...

im seen the pictures of the solenoids and i understand they break the legs of the board,. im going to strip out the solenoiid and take the top so i cant take a look. if not i guess pull the rocker and check the tabs on the oil pump,..
i dont have the lead angle locking tool, im trying to work out if its 1.5' degrees after twelve oclock on both cams or only on the inlet cam,. it could be 1.5' degrees before twelve on the exhaust cam??

thanks

dave

[Technical01]

ok,. so,..
i stripped out the solenoid and cut off the top and found that the soldered joints on the pcb had broken,.
brought myself a nice soldering iron, some solder and a solder sucker.
cleaned out all the old rubbish solder, cleaned, resoldered and siliconed the lid back on again. refitted the solenoid to the vehicle, started the engine and the engine management light went out on its own without even using a diagnositcs machine.
this repair is easy, i can see why its so cheap now to send it away. there in nothing really inside of the solenoid to go wrong!! lol .
if you have this problem this is a "Easy Repair" and anyone who can solder can do it themselves without any hasstle.

[kielce23]

So I wanted to thank you guys, especially the author of this thread. Six months following the expiration of my aftermarket warranty the car started to suddenly choke and run very irregularly at idle. Th check engine light came on and the codes showed vanos retard valve failure, and whole bunch of misfire during startup codes. I googled the codes and came up with thread. Naturally, i freaked out when the peake book pointed me to the dreaded Vanos problem but after reading this post and ordering my parts from Ticher Bmw the car runs like new. I am certain that If I was going to take it to the dealer I would have been out 4K plus.

Thanks again guys.....

[bursond]

Thanks for the write up. This DIY took me less the ten minutes. I cleared the codes lets see what happens. Classic BMW gave me an incredible deal on a new solenoid $496...I got the sealing plate w/orings and the bolts. I had 121,583 on the odometer...Thanks!

[bcsabok]

I have a 2005 m3 and was having similar error codes:
P0012
P0300
P0301
P0302
P0304
P0305
and following symptoms: rough idle, loss of power on higher revs, SES light on.

These posts are great... we opened the valve cover, took the Vanos off and found the broken tabs as well on the Exhaust Cam Hub (or Vanos Gearbox inlet @bmw). Once the Exhaust Cam Hub ring was replaced, the car ran fine for about 3 days, then the P0300 codes came back. We are suspecting the ignition coils or solenoid pack; however, the solenoid pack error usually comes back after some long miles driven and I and my buddies have a doubt it is the problem at this point... let's see what the ignition coils swap does to the car.

Originally Posted by wayne186

Shirazi89,

you have identical codes to what I had. It ended up being a broken tab on the intake gear of the vanos which cost me a ton of money to replace. You can however swap out the solenoid for the vanos first before taking it to the dealer. Super easy to do.. only need to remove a couple of bolts and it slips right off.

I have a spare one here that I have been trying to sell as I had to buy a whole new vanos (they don't sell the vanos and the solenoid separate but you can buy the solenoid separate which is what I initially done).

Where are you located? If you are any where near me then I can bring the solenoid to you and pop it in to see if that fixes your problem. If it does then we can chat $$$ and see if you want to buy my spare at a reduced price.

PM me and I will give you my cell number so you can call me up at chat about what is going on with your ultimate driving machine

Wayne

[M Pete]

Thanks for the writeup guys. I just replaced mine today and it really is very easy. She runs smooth now. I ended up buying the solenoid from BMW. Not too bad of a price here in Germany. Once started looking at the old one prior to taking it out I could tell that oil had been seeping out. It wasn't noticeable unless you really looked at it.