Found oil in a weird spot.
 

So tonight I was going to Walmart to get some essentials for myself. And when i started my car up i muted the radio for some odd reason and my window was down. I started to hear this weird noise and felt something out of the ordinary. It sounded as if the car was spuddering? or something. i mean it was going but not as if all 4 cylinders were right. its weird to explain anyway. i went to Walmart and paid close attention how my motor was running. the sound and feeling went away by the time i got home for the 8 mile drive, there and back. I got my tools out and check the spark plugs. One had OIL!! :confused: I know that isn't normal what so ever. Could this be the source of my issue?? from what i was hearing and feeling earlier??

so how do i fix the "oil leakage"?? do i need new gaskets or something??? what parts are needed?? Help please!

It's normal. Replace the big rectangular valve cover gasket (#5), the 4 round gaskets for the spark plug holes (#6, #7), and the grommets for each of the bolts that hold down the valve cover (#10).

http://static.bmwfans.info/images/epc/OTkxX3A=.png

I have had the same issue for months. I have all I need i just haven't had time to do it. probably in the next tech meet or something. I got all my parts from pelican and there's a DIY on this too.

I wouldn't panic unless the chamber is totally soaked in oil.. for the whole time I ran my M44 I had a small bit of oil in one of the chambers, but it never caused me any problems what so ever.

But its a cheap DIY fix anyways... I was just lazy.

You might still have to figure out the sputtering, because most of these cars have the oil in the plug well issue. All together now "check for air leaks in the intake system."

alright cool. yeah jesse called me like at 1 am and explained what i should do. exactly what you guys are saying. im gonna get the valve gasket kit and the bolts ordered soon. but what do the bolts have to be torqued at to seal them up correctly like oem??
and i see that there are two different sized bolts for the valve cover. how many do i need of each???

the performance wasnt lost it seems. well only at a stop i can notice this issue. while gasing it down the streets thru the gears the car was moving just fine. hmm...

the car wasnt sputtering i guess. it just sounded weird. its hard to expalin the sounds in words. lol. but THANK YOU all.

Re-use the bolts that come off. If they come out different, just make sure they go back in the right holes--it may help to lay them down in the same configuration as the valve cover.

Don't have the torque values offhand but it should be in the manual, and REMEMBER in-lbs, NOT ft-lbs. Also, they should be installed in a criss-cross pattern much like doing your wheel lug bolts.

Ok, I talked to Marv last night and again today on his lunch break. Here's whats going on:

Marv your CCV(crank case vent valve), the line going to it and the passages in the valve cover are plugged. You'll still need to remove your valve cover, so go ahead and order the gasket kit. Unfortunately the CCV becomes brittle and usually breaks when you try to take it apart and clean it. So you're going to have to order a new one of those too. Since the line going to the CCV is cracked and partially melted, order that as well. The whole job from start to finish should take about an hour. As aceyx mentioned, you could re-use your old valve cover bolts though most mechs would recommend replacing them. You should atleast replace the grommets that AutoM3 mentioned. When you order the valve cover gasket kit, be sure to get the complete kit with the 4 spark plug hole gaskets. Use a can of brake cleaner to blow out all of the passages on the valve cover before you re-install it. Specifically the ones going to the CCV hose. Once the gasket is in place, position the valve cover and insure that the gasket hasn't moved. Then thread all of the bolts in by hand until hand tight. THIS IS THE IMPORTANT PART! You're going to need a torque wrench. While tightening the bolts GO ONLY UNTIL THE SPECIFIED TORQUE AND STOP. Do not back the bolt out if you go over, as the gasket has already been crushed and thus it will certainly leak if you back the bolt off. Also, Tighten the bolts in a cross-pattern as you would tighten the lug nuts on your wheels. There's a specific pattern IIRC on pelicanparts in one of the tech articles. This is a critical step in achieving an evenly distributed torque.

Things to order:
valve cover gasket kit including spark plug gaskets
valve cover bolt grommets
CCV(#16 in the diagram)
CCV hose(#13 in the diagram)

Here's a couple threads with similar problems:
http://www.318ti.org/forum/showthread.php?t=18113
http://www.318ti.org/forum/showthread.php?t=16665

VC gasket kit $22 @ pelicanparts P/N 09-0906-876-M61:
http://www.pelicanparts.com/cgi-bin/...ILTER_TOOL2=ON

hoses $17 @ pelicanparts P/N 11151247903:
http://www.pelicanparts.com/cgi-bin/...ILTER_TOOL2=ON

CCVV $51.75 @ pelicanparts P/N 11157501567:
http://www.pelicanparts.com/cgi-bin/...ILTER_TOOL2=ON
$39.96 @ Mileoneparts:
http://www.trademotion.com/partlocat...layCatalogid=0

Valve cover bolt seal $0.75 x 15 @ pelicanparts P/N 11121721879
http://www.pelicanparts.com/cgi-bin/...ILTER_TOOL2=ON

thanks jess. i've been looking and calling around. guess ill have to order online cuz the store prices are like doubled. my car will have to sit around on my driveway. :frown:
the thing is im kinda scared of doing it all myself cuz im not that experienced but ill have to do it somehow anyway. :-/
ah... this just happened to me yesterday and noticed it last night and today. this sucks as*.

marv call me

i think you can drive around with it, mine has been like that for a couple of months. But it hasn't been making a weird noise. I got the parts just to lazy to do it.

Screw the pelicanparts article, it only covers 6cyl. Here's an awesome writeup from our own KB:
http://www.318ti.org/forum/showthread.php?t=12007

thanks. bob. ill send you the pm of the list as soon as i can write it up. (while at work).
and thank you guys for helping me and letting me know what i need to do and expect.

whats the p/n for the hose that connects to the brake booster?

jesse. this the hose i was also talking about. the one you disconnected to have the seafoam sucked into.
i cant find it anywhere on realoem