psam550

Hello Fellow Members,

I noticed a very small amount of motor oil on the bottom of the part noted in the attached photo of my 2006 550i. I have a few questions I hope one of you can answer:

1. What is that part?
2. Should I be concerned?
3. How much $ to repair/replace?
4. Can you recommend a good independent mechanic in San Diego?

Thanks for your help.

Psam550

JAYS545

Sometimes just replacing that clamp will solve the problem. That's what I did.

ditka550

The dealer quoted me $770 to replace this. Think they said it was the air pump. I sprayed it down with carb cleaner and have been watching it for a month now and I do not have any new oil. The leak would be down the front below the part, correct? I'd just clean and keep an eye on it

RTR

It's the vacuum pump.
2 gaskets can leak: gasket between VP and the timing cover - $5 and 1-2 hours of labor (not hard to DIY) or it's a gasket inside the VP (BMW does not sell it, but you can find it online. Otherwise a new VP is ~$400).

If you end up changing VP, check your oil pressure sensor (right below the VP). It's known to leak and is $10. Easy to replace.

psam550

Thanks for your replies, RTR, Ditka550 and Jay545. I appreciate the help.

Psam550

paran

BMW has really shitty, bio-degradable, gaskets on their V8 engines. Period.

545i, or 550i; same thing.

It's why Infiniti, Lexus, Honda, etc., have gained such a foothold in the USA market. Their gaskets actually last beyond 6 years.

Yes, politics rules the day in a country.

And in Germany, (unlike Japan/China/Taiwan/Indonesia/Korea) being "Green" is A+ regardless of the "actual" carbon footprint left by the initial "Green" effort.

If you buy a BMW; Mercedes, VW, Porsche, etc since about 2002, it will have bio-degradable, eco-friendly, plastics, and rubber compounds. Which means they are "engineered" to breakdown in your vehicle so that they can "breakdown" in the landfill.

Forget about the long term carbon footprint of having to replace these gaskets long before they should need to be replaced, just think immediate, PR, short-term, eco-friendly advertising at the time of purchase.

psam550

It was the oil pressure sensor. Yes!! Only $50 to replace at the Indy Shop. Thx, RTR, for the tip. No other leaks after 130k miles! (Love this car.)

Psam550

ditka550

Nice, seems like its rare for a repair to actually be the minor or two choices!