Help - BMW Z3 - blown head gasket?

[Chevyg1rl]

My brother-in-law has a 1997 BMW Z3. Yesterday, the altenator went out. He replaced it and the battery, by the time he was done it was dark and he didn't see the tear in the lower radiator hose caused by the serpentine belt snapping and flying off.

Today, the car overheated and shut down. He fixed the hose and the engine cranks but won't turn over. He says it feels like there's no compression. When the car was being pulled up on to the tow truck, coolant was coming out of the exhaust pipe. The tow driver told him he probably blew a head gasket but there's no water on the oil dipstick and this doesn't make sense to him.

Any suggestions you have will be greatly appreciated. He loves that car like we love our Camaros. I loned him my '01 in the hopes to convert him.

[69Z/28Camaro]

the head gasket could be blown and i would think that with the very small amount of space between thepiston and cylinder that its very possible that there isnt any oil in the oil pan

[Chevyg1rl]

but there's oil on the stick? Would that still be the case if there's no oil in the pan?

[8cd03gro]

Definitely a blown head gasket, but possibly more. IIRC that's an inline 4? That's an easy fix you two could to yourselves and from there you can assess other damages.

[Chevyg1rl]

8cd03gro - thanks, that's good news. I'll let him know. It's a 4 cyl motor but other than that, I don't know much about BMWs. hopefully there won't be too much $ in the way of other damages

[8cd03gro]

Just to clarify, it's an easy fix for someone that has some experience. You don't need to be a mechanic, but you need to at least know what you're looking at when you pop the hood and you're going to need the torque-specs for the head studs. I'm sure if you checked out some BMW forums there would be someone in your area happy to help for the cost of a 6-pack of budweiser.

[mad@gm]

The problem is not the head gasket! I have fixed these before, the problem is the threads in the engine block for the head bolts are aluminum and crack causing the head to come loose enough to act like its a gasket problem, remove the head and replace the threads with steel (gaskets too) and the problem will be solved, you can use heli coils with green loc-tite or bmw also sells a repair kit for this problem, if you are not a qualified mechanic do not attempt there are lots of timing settings (3 chains and a vanos sys) that if you are even a slight bit off you will bend the valves and possible blow a piston or two, good luck!

[v6sonoma]

Originally Posted by mad@gm

The problem is not the head gasket! I have fixed these before, the problem is the threads in the engine block for the head bolts are aluminum and crack causing the head to come loose enough to act like its a gasket problem, remove the head and replace the threads with steel (gaskets too) and the problem will be solved, you can use heli coils with green loc-tite or bmw also sells a repair kit for this problem, if you are not a qualified mechanic do not attempt there are lots of timing settings (3 chains and a vanos sys) that if you are even a slight bit off you will bend the valves and possible blow a piston or two, good luck!

[Chevyg1rl]

^^^
Ahhh, thank you!! I will pass this info along.

A mobile mechanic (MM) we've used in the past stopped by last night to look at it because (thankfully) my b-i-l is not too stupid to attempt to work on this car without guidance. The MM said it was definitely a blown head gasket when he pulled the plugs and saw water in the pistons. Fortunately, we don't have the proper tools to repair it so it will be done correctly and with a warranty.

Thank you all for your info, it's much appreciated!

btw, b-i-l did post on his BMW site, but got bs instead of help. I laughed when the MM told him if he were driving a Chevy, he'd still be driving.