e32 750iL Calypso Red
- Thread starter Steve750
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Steve750
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The car was mot'd when I bought it, but I hadn't time to do anything with it being at uni etc so I stored it giving the odd start here and there. The cold starts were showing their effects on the engine so I decided a bit of a refresh was needed.
This started out as a service but it snowballed a bit
M70/M72 v12s suffer from vacuum leaks. One of the main causes is the 6 intake gaskets they have. The rubber becomes hard and brittle, so people usually take them off, clean them and reseal them providing they aren't badly damaged. They are £150 a pop from bmw and there are no after market ones available
Lockdown happened, so the stripping began.. after removing a lot of skin from my knuckles I lifted out the cooling system, just to make life a lot less painful. Its surprising how big your hands feel when working around a v12..
You can see just how stinking the gaskets are, and everything in general haha
Since I was in there I decided to pull the rocker covers. Its common for the rear bolts on the oil feed line to go lose over time. In some cases they've actually come off and starved the engine of oil leading to failure !
I was able to turn the rear oil feed bolt on each side by with my hand... So good job I lifted the covers off
Once I start rebuilding I will torque to bolts back to spec
I sent the rocker covers off to get powder coated in matt black since the silver tends to turn a dirty yellow over time. I am also going to refinish the intake manifolds after I clean out all the crap thats gathered in them from the last 26 years
While the rocker covers were away getting powder coated I changed the spark plugs. Even with the intake manifolds off it was still a tight squeeze to get to some of them. Its almost impossible to get to the first 1 in each side with the car built back up. Most of the time dealers/garages don't bother replacing them. I was glad when I found they were just as dirty as the rest
and the same make, so I assume they were changed in the last service
I done this over lockdown. I started working from home shortly after I began this little project in April, so the next few updates should have more detail in them since they will be as and when I do the jobs. Finally started back into it on Friday/Sat when various gaskets and stuff arrived
This started out as a service but it snowballed a bit
M70/M72 v12s suffer from vacuum leaks. One of the main causes is the 6 intake gaskets they have. The rubber becomes hard and brittle, so people usually take them off, clean them and reseal them providing they aren't badly damaged. They are £150 a pop from bmw and there are no after market ones available
Lockdown happened, so the stripping began.. after removing a lot of skin from my knuckles I lifted out the cooling system, just to make life a lot less painful. Its surprising how big your hands feel when working around a v12..
You can see just how stinking the gaskets are, and everything in general haha
Since I was in there I decided to pull the rocker covers. Its common for the rear bolts on the oil feed line to go lose over time. In some cases they've actually come off and starved the engine of oil leading to failure !
I was able to turn the rear oil feed bolt on each side by with my hand... So good job I lifted the covers off
Once I start rebuilding I will torque to bolts back to spec
I sent the rocker covers off to get powder coated in matt black since the silver tends to turn a dirty yellow over time. I am also going to refinish the intake manifolds after I clean out all the crap thats gathered in them from the last 26 years
While the rocker covers were away getting powder coated I changed the spark plugs. Even with the intake manifolds off it was still a tight squeeze to get to some of them. Its almost impossible to get to the first 1 in each side with the car built back up. Most of the time dealers/garages don't bother replacing them. I was glad when I found they were just as dirty as the rest
and the same make, so I assume they were changed in the last serviceI done this over lockdown. I started working from home shortly after I began this little project in April, so the next few updates should have more detail in them since they will be as and when I do the jobs. Finally started back into it on Friday/Sat when various gaskets and stuff arrived
ChrisL
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Steve750
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Nice, I’d like the 18” version of thoseAanmelden bij Facebook
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Blackie
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See, I need to learn to make excuse like this when people post adverts of wheels that would suit my car!
Blackie
RMS Regular
Oh yea, it’s definitely a safe excuse, I just need to think of similar ones! Lol. Though I doubt I could be changed from the BBS’s now!
AND NO PEOPLE, that is not a challenge! Lol
Steve750
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Got the rocker covers back from the powder coaters. He must have left them outside and the insides where a right mess. But after a bit of scrubbing they came up well
Before fitting I gave everything a good clean
There was some sludgy crap in around the engine as shown below...
Spent a long time cleaning all that off. Also made sure the cams where nice and clean before refitting the covers. Its amazing the amount of dust that can sneak through a closed bonnet and towels
New gaskets from BMW
Both sides fitted
Next up was sealing the intake gaskets. They were stinking in carbon and general crap. They are £150 each so I decided to clean them up and see if they were worth re installing.. and they were
Added a fine film of sealer on the intake ports and the gaskets and torqued everything up to spec
Spent more time cleaning in around the engine than actually fitting parts. Its now been hours and a lot of carbon cleaner haha. And from looking at that last photo I still have more to do.. although there seems to be some weird surface corrosion on the aluminium that doesn't come off. It wasn't on the intake ports which was the main thing
I also replaced all the high/low pressure fuel pipes, vac lines and emission hoses. All reinstalled using new clips
So next up is refitting the intake manifolds. Currently cleaning them, so hopefully I will get them refinished soon and installed so I can hear this v12 purr again
Before fitting I gave everything a good clean
There was some sludgy crap in around the engine as shown below...
Spent a long time cleaning all that off. Also made sure the cams where nice and clean before refitting the covers. Its amazing the amount of dust that can sneak through a closed bonnet and towels
New gaskets from BMW
Both sides fitted
Next up was sealing the intake gaskets. They were stinking in carbon and general crap. They are £150 each so I decided to clean them up and see if they were worth re installing.. and they were
Added a fine film of sealer on the intake ports and the gaskets and torqued everything up to spec
Spent more time cleaning in around the engine than actually fitting parts. Its now been hours and a lot of carbon cleaner haha. And from looking at that last photo I still have more to do.. although there seems to be some weird surface corrosion on the aluminium that doesn't come off. It wasn't on the intake ports which was the main thing
I also replaced all the high/low pressure fuel pipes, vac lines and emission hoses. All reinstalled using new clips
So next up is refitting the intake manifolds. Currently cleaning them, so hopefully I will get them refinished soon and installed so I can hear this v12 purr again
Blackie
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Again, great work buddy.
Steve750
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Got a box of bits from BMW
I had a coolant leak before I started work on the e32. I had a suspicion it was pipe 12, as it runs directly from the expansion tank so it's always full of coolant.
The old expansion tank was that brittle it actually broke inside the pipe and bits of plastic became lodged in the pipe that I couldn't get out. So I decided to replace it. Cost a fortune and came all the way from Germany but its here now and its on! Delayed progress this week but it’s a job that can only be done with the intakes off, so it was now or never.
I had to to remove the rocker cover again to fit it and other coolant pipes since it was so hard to access
I decided to remove the other rocker cover again to make sure everything was spotless
Just to keep track of part numbers I’ll post them on here
Refinished the intake manifolds. Really pleased with how they turned out. Next job is fitting them
I had a coolant leak before I started work on the e32. I had a suspicion it was pipe 12, as it runs directly from the expansion tank so it's always full of coolant.
The old expansion tank was that brittle it actually broke inside the pipe and bits of plastic became lodged in the pipe that I couldn't get out. So I decided to replace it. Cost a fortune and came all the way from Germany but its here now and its on! Delayed progress this week but it’s a job that can only be done with the intakes off, so it was now or never.
I had to to remove the rocker cover again to fit it and other coolant pipes since it was so hard to access
I decided to remove the other rocker cover again to make sure everything was spotless
Just to keep track of part numbers I’ll post them on here
Refinished the intake manifolds. Really pleased with how they turned out. Next job is fitting them
Steve750
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- #62
After a lot of cleaning I was ready for the intake manifolds
Intake manifolds fitted, with gasket sealer applied
I was cleaning up the throttle bodies and noticed one of them wasn't working very well. If I pressed it open it barely closed.. very slow and sticky. Which is strange as these symptoms would cause the care to over rev in one bank of cylinders which it didn't do. I decided to take it apart and clean it despite bmws best efforts at fitting tamper proof screw!
As you can see, everything was clogged with carbon
As you can see, the brushes were not in contact with the motor. Meaning this throttle body wasn't working at all! That explains the lack of power then. You are probably thinking if the car was down a bank of cylinders you would notice just by listening to it? well, not really.. since it works of 2 banks of 6 cyls, when one bank is down the engine still sounds silky smooth since theres still 1 bank of 6 cyls running. V12s are notorious for hiding problems like this .. they are very hard to diagnose misfires, the joys of balanced crank and banks
So this is what the brushes should have looked like ..
Everything else was cleaned up and reassembled
Currently tiding up the rest of the engine bay. Particularly where the radiator sits. It is black with crap and there is some surface rust where the mounts were attached. Car is now running, I pulled the fuses of the fuel pumps and let it turn over for 30 seconds to build up the oil pressure. Only had it going briefly as the rad was disconnected
Intake manifolds fitted, with gasket sealer applied
I was cleaning up the throttle bodies and noticed one of them wasn't working very well. If I pressed it open it barely closed.. very slow and sticky. Which is strange as these symptoms would cause the care to over rev in one bank of cylinders which it didn't do. I decided to take it apart and clean it despite bmws best efforts at fitting tamper proof screw!
As you can see, everything was clogged with carbon
As you can see, the brushes were not in contact with the motor. Meaning this throttle body wasn't working at all! That explains the lack of power then. You are probably thinking if the car was down a bank of cylinders you would notice just by listening to it? well, not really.. since it works of 2 banks of 6 cyls, when one bank is down the engine still sounds silky smooth since theres still 1 bank of 6 cyls running. V12s are notorious for hiding problems like this .. they are very hard to diagnose misfires, the joys of balanced crank and banks
So this is what the brushes should have looked like ..
Everything else was cleaned up and reassembled
Currently tiding up the rest of the engine bay. Particularly where the radiator sits. It is black with crap and there is some surface rust where the mounts were attached. Car is now running, I pulled the fuses of the fuel pumps and let it turn over for 30 seconds to build up the oil pressure. Only had it going briefly as the rad was disconnected
Last edited:
Steve750
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Degreased the engine using a lot of this stuff
Always hid the front part from any pics because it was so bad
. Someone must have put Waxoyl or something on it. Absolute nightmare to get off, but I got there with the steamer and air compressor
Also fitted my new coolant tank from bm
The old one broke inside the coolant pipe which I also replaced last week
Always hid the front part from any pics because it was so bad
. Someone must have put Waxoyl or something on it. Absolute nightmare to get off, but I got there with the steamer and air compressor Also fitted my new coolant tank from bm
The old one broke inside the coolant pipe which I also replaced last week
Last edited:
@Steve750 Spotted this earlier, only 72k miles. Some interesting other stuff in their showroom too.
deanemotors.ie
BMW E32 750il - Deane Motors
The second generation 7 series, the e32, was a car of many firsts. It was the first BMW with active damping control, traction control, double glazed windows and, like this example, the first BMW model to have a V12. This 1988 750il long wheelbase is a superb example of BMW’s flagship vehicle...
deanemotors.ie
@Steve750 Spotted this earlier, only 72k miles. Some interesting other stuff in their showroom too.
BMW E32 750il - Deane Motors
The second generation 7 series, the e32, was a car of many firsts. It was the first BMW with active damping control, traction control, double glazed windows and, like this example, the first BMW model to have a V12. This 1988 750il long wheelbase is a superb example of BMW’s flagship vehicle...
I love dealers like that which have a real mix of cool stuff!