Valve stem oil seals

[Malc]

The good lady has been complaining of blue / whitish smoke on start up that clears after a couple of minutes
Wrong engine, but still BMW!
My 2002tii seems to eat oil and there appears to be no external leaks, fearing the worst, broken rings, gasket failure etc I did a compression test last night
PSI
Cold........hot
175.........195
170.........190
172.........192
170.........192

Humm that looks ok to me - comments

So I am leaning towards the oil stem seals, here's the question Is there any way of changing them without taking the cylinder head off?

I think I should be told !

Cheers
Malc

 

[Bill Riblett]

Valve stem seals

Not what you want to hear, but the best way (that will last) to fix this is to pull the head and replace the guides and seals. Use the later style (E21) guides and seals. They will last a lot longer.

 

[Honolulu]

yes you can change seals with the head on

A friend updated his '84 M6 this way, with the after-hours help of one of the dealer techs. He went to double valve spings...

Set a cylinder to TDC and loch the engine so it won't turn. Connect need a tool that inserts into the spark plug hole, and supplies pressurized air to the cylinder. Did I hear 100 psi? Maybe.

The air pressure will hold the valve closed while you go about your business upstairs. Repeat for additional cylinders. Be sure to bleed off hte air pressur before removing the tool from the spark plug hole.

I have not done this, but read it several times on various BMW boards. It's not a common occurrence, though I am considering it to address soem blue smoke issues I'm having.

 

[vraned]

Malc,

I made a tool just for this procedure. The colder fittings between the air coupler and the old compression tester fitting allow you to relieve the cylinder pressure without drama. The cheap head-on spring compressor is readily available.

Hope this helps.

David