Dude your E46 videos helped me fix my car so many times, and this one gave me some great ideas for diagnosing my old honda's compression issues. Thanks so much for all you do.
Really clear and concise DIY post. Great tip on the upgraded o-ring! I have the same exact compression tester and had no idea that my compression numbers might be reading low due to that. My last (cold engine) check, about a month ago read ~160+ across all 6-cylinders. Will find me a fatter o-ring and check again. Thanks!
This is pretty obvious but the recommendation about pulling the fuel pump fuse and cranking the engine at around d the 3:30 mark must happen BEFORE you remove the spark plugs and coils and attach the compression tester. You won’t be able to purge / burn the fuel without spark. Again, pretty obvious but it’s not the order shown in the video.
At first, I was like, oh no this guy has a problem with the new engine. Thankfully it was just a DIY video! 😁👍🏻 Thanks, buddy for the video. I hope never to have to do a leak test in my car. 😅
Very good video , I have a blown head gasket on the N46 but what I did to confirm, was to use the same compression tester hose and put a fitting to it that could fit my radiator pressure tester , then TDC the suspected cylinder and pressure it , then I started seeing coolant spilling in the adjesent cylinder.
That's right Dennis , the milkshake was there but not in the radiator , that was not just a brown head gasket but the thread was stripped in the engine block , I am now trying to find a sump pick up tube. Thanks for your comment.
@@raymondprendergast5839 Stripped block threads are common. Actually I don't know who can advise to remove the head without helicoil or timesert the holes? And I wonder why they couldn't have done this from the factory.
The PSI is ambient air pressure dependent. So, if you are at sea level, you will have higher readings than if you are at 10,000 feet. I've always been told that you look for differences between cylinders and as long as they are within 10% or so high to low, you should be good. Obviously, if the rings are ALL shot, there is a problem.
I had this problem with a couple of compression test gauges, I think it’s due to a tapered seat for the spark plugs. What I did with my Compression tester adapter, was to gut a spark plug and attach this to the adapter, have no problems now, get consistent results.
I am so glad you are back, Jason. You were truly missed! My 21 year old totaled his '04 E46 Xi, that you helped us rebuild, a week ago. What is it with testosterone? Thanks for all your sage advise and I hope your arm is okay.
I've done a n52 headgasket (and head) for my brother in law last year... Wasn't too bad ;).. it was my first, and I ended up driving that car from Sacramento to Seattle immediately after assembling, without any issues.
With e46, the videos mostly felts like problems looking for solutions, but many of the latest e90 videos feel like solutions looking for a problem. A few years late to this platform.
The car I bought was just better maintained than my e46 lemon, but I took what I could find. But all the videos I’ve been doing (with the exception of this compression/leak down one) are all on common problems with this platform.
Great video, thanks! What method do you suggest to detect a gasket leak that is next to a coolant passage but does not touch the cylinder gasket section? I mean, in that case, the cylinder section of the gasket would be intact.
Good insight, Jason! Trying to figure out if my M54s misfire is coming from a head gasket problem or just vacuum leak. I replaced all the rubber and ccv once before but this may be a good test for me to do.
I wonder on the N51/52 if the valvetronic system not being set at full open and the throttle not being full open can hamper your results or cause excessive cranking to achieve an accurate test.
i hear alot of air like coming out or sucking in with a weird smell left side of the engine and wont crank and it side like low compression 180k miles idk when the gasket was change.
Jason, thanks for the insights, they have helped tremendously. Questions: I have an 08 N52/x3 I was having a no crank no start issue. I watched that vid of yours and it helped me diagnose a bad starter. I changed the starter, but now I have a crank/no start condition. My compression 1-5 is 160 and my #6 comes in at 170. It getting fuel, I can hear it trying to fire the gas but wont start. Any idea what the heck is going on here?
I wanted to reach out. I’m getting timing corrections on 1 specific cylinder on my S55 BMW M3. I have replaced spark plugs, injector, and coil pack still getting the same results. I believe my next steps are to compression test and leak down. Is there one I should do before the other? If my compression test pass, do I then test the leak down? Any info would be great, this is my first time performing these kind of tests. Thank you.
Ok bought a 2010 n52 328i. Cylinder 2 misfire. New plugs new coils did a compression test zero compression on cylinder 2 going to perform a cylinder leak down test depending on the results of that how can I determine if it's the rings or rod bearings? Super slight knock sound. Gonna drain the oil and look for flakes. I wonder if the piston may be hitting the valve . Also borrowing a bore scope to see inside the piston area. Pulled the plugs and it's black in there just flashing a light down the hole. I'll report back
I've replaced headgaskets on 2 Saabs without removing the engine. Can the N54 head gasket be replaced without pulling the engine out of the engine compartment completely?
O-ring false positives! Nice diagnosis. Obviously no overheating issue like the M54 old-days. I'm returning to M54B30 territory next month, wish me luck.
They really do drive so nice, even if they’re slow. I haven’t driven a 2006 330i with the N52 yet. Kind of wondering how it is. That is the last of the straight six naturally aspirated engines.
@@50sKid not quite.... we have the N53, 268bhp European replacement for the 255bhp N52! Last week I watched your leakdown test on the M54, which obviously led to your complete takedown, skim and rebuild series- loved it.
What size oring did you use? I have the same issue with it leaking through the spark plug. Brought a few oring kits but cant find one that stops it from leaking.
Do you still have the issue with the engine running warmer than it should? Or was it just doing that on your original drive home? Nice that the head gasket is good!
@@50sKid both n54's that I have stay well below the middle... But both have oil coolers. The n51 however gets a bit above the middle. I have retrofitted the oil to water heat exchanger, but it still goes above middle, albeit not as much.
Hey man I was wondering if anybody could give me any insight I just did a compression test on my 07 bmw 335i pulled 1st coil and plug out and the fuse for the fuel pump and then tested it with cold engine has not been ran in 2 days and read 120 on all cylinders and the 4th one was 125 cranked till gauge stopped and was wondering why numbers are so low?
Followed your channel for years, love it. Not sure why i'm watching this when i still have my E39, But keep them coming. I Wanna Add, I am invested in Crypto and just wanna mention ULTRA #UOS, wich is set up to challenge STEAM. You will start to see marketing by AMD in GPU sales soon. if you care in a good investment. Wouldn't call it without risk but it have a huge potential! In a risk reward point of view its insane... A bit advertising or heads up on my beloved project ;p
Dude your E46 videos helped me fix my car so many times, and this one gave me some great ideas for diagnosing my old honda's compression issues. Thanks so much for all you do.
Really clear and concise DIY post. Great tip on the upgraded o-ring! I have the same exact compression tester and had no idea that my compression numbers might be reading low due to that. My last (cold engine) check, about a month ago read ~160+ across all 6-cylinders. Will find me a fatter o-ring and check again. Thanks!
Always enjoy your videos! Glad you are back in action!
Another great DIY video. Glad you're back. Keep them coming. You need to put a serpentine belt front bearing guard on this guy
This is pretty obvious but the recommendation about pulling the fuel pump fuse and cranking the engine at around d the 3:30 mark must happen BEFORE you remove the spark plugs and coils and attach the compression tester. You won’t be able to purge / burn the fuel without spark. Again, pretty obvious but it’s not the order shown in the video.
Ah, yeah, I realize now I messed up on that order when editing
At first, I was like, oh no this guy has a problem with the new engine. Thankfully it was just a DIY video! 😁👍🏻
Thanks, buddy for the video. I hope never to have to do a leak test in my car. 😅
Lol! This guy is Scotty Kilmer level youtuber for E46 and E90. I'd appologise!
Well I kinda made the thumbnail slightly misleading 🤣
Very good video , I have a blown head gasket on the N46 but what I did to confirm, was to use the same compression tester hose and put a fitting to it that could fit my radiator pressure tester , then TDC the suspected cylinder and pressure it , then I started seeing coolant spilling in the adjesent cylinder.
Doh, that sucks!
In your circumstance you were losing coolant? No milkshake in the oil? The radiator pressure tester couldn't find the leak?
That's right Dennis , the milkshake was there but not in the radiator , that was not just a brown head gasket but the thread was stripped in the engine block , I am now trying to find a sump pick up tube.
Thanks for your comment.
@@raymondprendergast5839 Stripped block threads are common. Actually I don't know who can advise to remove the head without helicoil or timesert the holes? And I wonder why they couldn't have done this from the factory.
@@raymondprendergast5839 So somehow it was blowing out of the exhuast? Where was the coolant escaping in your situation?
Great video and good knowledge! Keep them coming.
The PSI is ambient air pressure dependent. So, if you are at sea level, you will have higher readings than if you are at 10,000 feet. I've always been told that you look for differences between cylinders and as long as they are within 10% or so high to low, you should be good.
Obviously, if the rings are ALL shot, there is a problem.
I had this problem with a couple of compression test gauges, I think it’s due to a tapered seat for the spark plugs. What I did with my Compression tester adapter, was to gut a spark plug and attach this to the adapter, have no problems now, get consistent results.
Bravo, Jason!
That’s quite the hickey on your left arm there…
It’s a scar from making sourdough bread 😂
@@50sKid even better than a hickey! 😋 🍞
Excellent video! Very helpful it you're thinking about buying one of these cars.
Learnt lot your e46 video recently purchased e92 keep videos coming
I am so glad you are back, Jason. You were truly missed! My 21 year old totaled his '04 E46 Xi, that you helped us rebuild, a week ago. What is it with testosterone? Thanks for all your sage advise and I hope your arm is okay.
Aww. That’s gonna happen. Glad he is ok though.
Thank you. We missed you like a front tooth!
thanks jason , clear and easy explanation
Fuel pump fuse is different for everyone mine wasn’t in that spot, refer to the fuse chart in your glove box to see which one to pull
Ah, didn’t realize that. Thanks
Where the heck are you finding a $1300 N54?? Mine was $2500 picked up... Great video and looking forward to the next one!
50skid has them connections as a famous youtuber
I guess I pulled that number outta my ass 😂
Had to do an n52 head gasket, man was it a pain in the ass.
I should’ve pulled the engine out, would have been a million times better.
I've done a n52 headgasket (and head) for my brother in law last year... Wasn't too bad ;).. it was my first, and I ended up driving that car from Sacramento to Seattle immediately after assembling, without any issues.
Did you end up having to timesert or helicoil the headbolt holes?
Great video, Jason. Thanks for sharing!
In the UK if your BMW has a blown head gasket then easiest thing is to push it off a cliff
Same here in the US! Who woulda thought BMW really is same worldwide!
Great video man
love these videos man, good stuff!
With e46, the videos mostly felts like problems looking for solutions, but many of the latest e90 videos feel like solutions looking for a problem. A few years late to this platform.
The car I bought was just better maintained than my e46 lemon, but I took what I could find. But all the videos I’ve been doing (with the exception of this compression/leak down one) are all on common problems with this platform.
Awesome video, great instructional. Put some aloe on that left arm.
Great video, thanks! What method do you suggest to detect a gasket leak that is next to a coolant passage but does not touch the cylinder gasket section? I mean, in that case, the cylinder section of the gasket would be intact.
Were you losing coolant in that circumstance?
Good insight, Jason! Trying to figure out if my M54s misfire is coming from a head gasket problem or just vacuum leak. I replaced all the rubber and ccv once before but this may be a good test for me to do.
I wonder on the N51/52 if the valvetronic system not being set at full open and the throttle not being full open can hamper your results or cause excessive cranking to achieve an accurate test.
Great video
i hear alot of air like coming out or sucking in with a weird smell left side of the engine and wont crank and it side like low compression 180k miles idk when the gasket was change.
Jason, thanks for the insights, they have helped tremendously. Questions: I have an 08 N52/x3 I was having a no crank no start issue. I watched that vid of yours and it helped me diagnose a bad starter. I changed the starter, but now I have a crank/no start condition. My compression 1-5 is 160 and my #6 comes in at 170. It getting fuel, I can hear it trying to fire the gas but wont start. Any idea what the heck is going on here?
Do you have a video on changing the head gasket?
Gracias 👍 👍
Do you have to remove the fan ??
I wanted to reach out. I’m getting timing corrections on 1 specific cylinder on my S55 BMW M3. I have replaced spark plugs, injector, and coil pack still getting the same results. I believe my next steps are to compression test and leak down. Is there one I should do before the other? If my compression test pass, do I then test the leak down?
Any info would be great, this is my first time performing these kind of tests. Thank you.
Maestro cual sería la comprensión normal en un bmw x5 e53 2004. 6 cilindros y uno de 8 cilindros ?
Ok bought a 2010 n52 328i.
Cylinder 2 misfire. New plugs new coils did a compression test zero compression on cylinder 2 going to perform a cylinder leak down test depending on the results of that how can I determine if it's the rings or rod bearings? Super slight knock sound. Gonna drain the oil and look for flakes. I wonder if the piston may be hitting the valve . Also borrowing a bore scope to see inside the piston area. Pulled the plugs and it's black in there just flashing a light down the hole. I'll report back
In the UK you could RUclips pushing it off those white Dover cliffs and maybe make enough for a whole new bmw, well one with an n54 maybe..
I've replaced headgaskets on 2 Saabs without removing the engine. Can the N54 head gasket be replaced without pulling the engine out of the engine compartment completely?
O-ring false positives! Nice diagnosis. Obviously no overheating issue like the M54 old-days. I'm returning to M54B30 territory next month, wish me luck.
They really do drive so nice, even if they’re slow. I haven’t driven a 2006 330i with the N52 yet. Kind of wondering how it is. That is the last of the straight six naturally aspirated engines.
@@50sKid not quite.... we have the N53, 268bhp European replacement for the 255bhp N52!
Last week I watched your leakdown test on the M54, which obviously led to your complete takedown, skim and rebuild series- loved it.
@@ppppugh7892 Aha, yes that engine couldn't be offered in the USA due to sulfur content in the exhaust or something like that
What size oring did you use? I have the same issue with it leaking through the spark plug. Brought a few oring kits but cant find one that stops it from leaking.
Is this cold or warm engine test ?
hey! thats an amazing video, would you be able to do it for me? how much would you charge for it?
Looks like Jason has been losing weight. 👍
Yessir, thanks for noticing!
@@50sKid Have you been using leeches? Your arm is pretty beat! :-)
i was going to say that lol his face looks skinnier
I see you everywhere now, haha. :)
what does the leakdown test show me that a compression test doesnt?
Do you still have the issue with the engine running warmer than it should? Or was it just doing that on your original drive home? Nice that the head gasket is good!
It never actually did run hotter than it should. That was the oil temperature gauge, not coolant, and it is supposed to go that high.
@@50sKid both n54's that I have stay well below the middle... But both have oil coolers. The n51 however gets a bit above the middle. I have retrofitted the oil to water heat exchanger, but it still goes above middle, albeit not as much.
@@AlecKristi I'm gonna retrofit the air oil cooler soon -- I'll see how much of a change it makes!
Hey man I was wondering if anybody could give me any insight I just did a compression test on my 07 bmw 335i pulled 1st coil and plug out and the fuse for the fuel pump and then tested it with cold engine has not been ran in 2 days and read 120 on all cylinders and the 4th one was 125 cranked till gauge stopped and was wondering why numbers are so low?
Hi,
My 2009 f02 740li same low values... Fuse was not taken out,maybe that cause it?
BMW X5 , piston 1 y 2 .- 180 psi.
3, 4 y 6 .- 210 psi.
Piston 5 .- 150 psi
???
Jason, I believe you are not supposed to go counter-clockwise on the pulley... Any thoughts on that?
i think its a bad idea to go counter clockwise as you could loosen the crank bolt.
Do you know if m3 rear half shaft fits on a 330ci e46 coupe 5speed? With the 6 bolt
Not sure
Very very rare for a head gasket to be blown on a N54 as then gasket is metal
That’s not why it’s rare, but yes it’s rare
The tip of my spark plug broke off you think the tip melted off? Lol or it is stuck somewhere into my engine thanks
Could be either one
Don't overlook the eccentric sensor.. I just did mine.. bad compression one of the symptoms of a bad eccentric sensor
Wouldn't a bad eccentric sensor throw a code or not necessarily?
@@CLPATTERSON not necessarily.. it depends on how far gone the part is 🍻
@L0w_k3y after some research it appears the n54 doesn't have this sensor, is this accurate?
@@CLPATTERSON yes.. I actually upgraded to the n54 😅🙌.. no valvetronic nightmare 😅🍻
Followed your channel for years, love it. Not sure why i'm watching this when i still have my E39, But keep them coming. I Wanna Add, I am invested in Crypto and just wanna mention ULTRA #UOS, wich is set up to challenge STEAM. You will start to see marketing by AMD in GPU sales soon. if you care in a good investment. Wouldn't call it without risk but it have a huge potential! In a risk reward point of view its insane... A bit advertising or heads up on my beloved project ;p
🤝🤝🤝