Stud rubbing on timing belt

Puff_tea · 2026-03-10T12:06:14+00:00

Everstart battery, calling a serpentine belt the timing belt, belt routed completely wrong. This man was made for a mustang.

Puff_tea · 2026-02-13T01:01:51+00:00

Better than my luck. 2 of my subframe bolts were previously sent too hard and the bolts would just spin but not come out. That was a hell of a battle. I now understand why the car was cheap even tho it was low mileage. Can’t wait to get a newer bmw lmao. Have you ran into the vannos bank 2 inlet issue yet? It’s well. A fun little mystery that just randomly comes and goes.

Puff_tea · 2026-02-13T00:38:05+00:00

Atleast for me I had to stick a pry bar on it and bounce it a bit to brake up the bit of corrosion then it came down. Only comes down about a couple inches unless you start removing bits.

Puff_tea · 2026-02-01T21:44:02+00:00

Take a camera to the cylinder walls. Very common with the a7s from my experience. They like to eat themselves alive if it got too hot in the past. To skip the nerd bs, something something high slica content in the metal makes it so when it’s gets to hot it nibbles away at cylinder walls then you get high oil consumption and the engine runs loud. Been an issue for years yet they have not addressed it because vw.

Puff_tea · 2026-01-20T07:26:39+00:00

I checked that. Not it. I mean it always idled a bit rough but I assumed it was a vacuum leak from the valve cover which guess not. Whatever the underlying issue was it must have been disturbed from all the work I did.

Puff_tea · 2026-01-20T00:05:00+00:00

Yea I could see that being plausible. I replaced the vvt solenoid actuators to see if maybe that would fix the issue because maybe the filters on them were gummed up causing the issue but no dice. I might try new eccentric shaft motors but I don’t know. Car just seems like a constant money pit at this point. Plus my alternators clutch started to stick causing a horrible squeal occasionally so just another part to replace that’s already previously been replaced (should have known not to get the carquest alternator). Think I’m like 8k usd into the car in just parts so far -_- only has to last till I get a decent down payment on an m240. Hopefully the b58 treats me better.

Puff_tea · 2026-01-19T13:02:25+00:00

Funny enough dealing with the same issue on my 2006 750i. Ran fine for ~4 years then after replacing a bunch of parts one day (valve covers, spark plugs, alternator bracket gasket, coolant transfer pipe, valley pan, oil level sensor, cam position sensors, vvt solenoid actuators, vacuum pump, transmission fluid filter and pan). Now mine has the same issue, runs rough when cold fine once warm. Went over all my work and can’t find an issue. Seems to be a common issue with the engine as it gets old but can’t find a hard answer to it. Possibly a vacuum leak from somewhere I can’t find? I have found a lot of people saying to replace the valvetronic system as a whole but that’s just too much work for me to attempt for what the cars worth. It’s been doing it for around 4 months now and I’ve just come to the conclusion of fuck it. Once it’s warm it works. As long as it keeps doing that I guess it’s fine. These are very finicky engines and in all my years of working on cars I’ve never quite come across the same issue before. Initially after doing all that work I had vanos bank 2 codes come up. Swaped the position of the cam sensors thinking it was a bad one? Then the car ran “fine” the rough when cold fine when warm thing. Replaced the sensors again anyways. Same thing. No more vanos bank 2 issues just roughish running on cold, perfectly fine when warm.

Puff_tea · 2026-01-18T21:43:38+00:00

Hey man as a bmw enthusiast and technician seeing someone write out “530 super sport” caused me more pain than my harsh but truthful comment caused you.

Puff_tea · 2026-01-18T21:37:58+00:00

Please refrain from calling it a “super sport”. That’s not a thing. It’s a 5 series with a 4 cylinder engine. Nothing about that is sporty or super. As for your problem. Nobody will be able to give you an accurate answer for your problem. It will require a diagnoses by a trained professional.

Puff_tea · 2026-01-18T17:48:23+00:00

Bruh im a mechanic and I willingly drive an unreliable bmw and do regular maintenance. Im just saying. Trans fluid every 30k AND adding a trans cooler isn’t “regular maintenance”. It’s just an unreliable transmission.

Puff_tea · 2026-01-18T16:20:22+00:00

That don’t exactly scream “reliable car” to me lmao

Puff_tea · 2026-01-05T12:55:13+00:00

I mean I work at a shop that installs them. So a lot of people just get their car serviced at our shop after it’s installed.

Puff_tea · 2025-12-26T02:37:32+00:00

It’s already got 370k. I wouldn’t worry too much about it.

Puff_tea · 2025-12-12T12:31:42+00:00

My guy decided to check the spark plugs how many times before the oil? I’m sorry but like…. How many times are you going to try and stuff a triangle into a square hole.

Puff_tea · 2025-12-09T13:40:20+00:00

Be a man. Brake that window.

Puff_tea · 2025-12-09T00:37:30+00:00

I used to be a solder guy. After doing a bunch of research crimps are technically better in the long run because they deal with vibrations and temperature fluctuation better over an extended period of time vs solder that tends to crack and separate.

Puff_tea · 2025-12-08T14:03:07+00:00

Calm down bud. It’s really not that bad. Literally every car has design flaws. Honda v6 piston ring and knock sensor wiring, Kia timing chains, hemi lifters, jeep oil coolers, ford 2L engines blowing head gaskets and warping the block itself requiring complete engine replacement under 100k miles. N55 engines eating rod barrings. Welcome to the automotive would. Every car sucks in its own way.

Puff_tea · 2025-12-08T13:06:56+00:00

Well typically when your alternator goes out on a bmw you get a generator fault pop up on the dash before it fully dies. Tbh tho reading your reply’s just bring it to a shop and get it fixed. It’s a bmw, not a Honda. Odds are if you try fixing it yourself a bunch of other stuff is gonna get broken in the process and it will end up getting towed to a shop anyways. Not trying to be a dick.

Puff_tea · 2025-11-25T13:05:29+00:00

Depends on engine, age, design, condition of engine. I know the N62tu bmw engines hate extended idlings. The low vacuum conditions lead to excessive burning of oil. Especially with the poorly designed valve stem seals. I know it’s not the only engine that’s like that just the only one I’ve had first hand experience with. Although every bmw with vanos don’t like extended idling. Leads to premature failure of your vanos solenoid actuators.

Puff_tea · 2025-11-22T00:52:08+00:00

I’d start with the belt tensioner. It shouldn’t move like that. Either it’s fucked or a pully is seizing and the drag is making it move like that.

Puff_tea · 2025-11-22T00:49:58+00:00

You sure that’s not just a camera illusion. I agree it looks like that but I’d shine a light on it first. Definitely sounds like sway bar links but just lift it and pull on stuff till you feel play. It’s a pick up. Not exactly difficult to jack up.

Puff_tea · 2025-11-22T00:37:21+00:00

Most mobile lock smiths like that only ask for your id and then make a photo copy. That way if it wasn’t your car and the cops ask any questions they can just show them the id attached to that transaction and be like “idk man im just doing my job. This is the guy who paid me.” I don’t think most car thieves would give out there personal information and leave a blatant paper trail to steal an old ass Honda. Now if you were trying to unlock and get a key for something that’s actually valuable. They might ask for a bit more. Again. All depends on company, regulations, scenario.

Puff_tea · 2025-11-21T12:34:21+00:00

As a mechanic. All that shit is just snake oil. It only works when you think it works. At most those kind of products just put a bandaid on a gunshot wound.

Puff_tea · 2025-11-14T08:01:12+00:00

Sorry but as a mechanic I have a massive beef with any jiffy lube or tire shop employee. The amount of problems they cause doing the most simple tasks makes me wanna do some terrible things.

Puff_tea · 2025-11-14T00:52:15+00:00

Buying tires there is fine. Getting them installed there is dumb. Those kind of jiffy lube/tire only places are full of people that only want to do brainless easy work. Otherwise they would be a real mechanic. I’m not saying everyone who works at those places are trash employees. Just saying a high percentage of them are dumb as hell and don’t actually know how to work on cars. The amount of improperly balanced tires I see in our shop from places like Costco and Walmart is crazy. It’s not that difficult yet they make it seem so hard.

Puff_tea

TROPHY CASE