"Scott" > wrote in message
...
> Well my oil leak on my 1992 525i (150k) turned out to be more serious than
> I thought. Here is the list of what the BMW dealership says the car needs:
>
> Valve Cover gasket
> Oil filter housing gasket
> Front timing cover gasket
> Crank seal gasket
> Head gasket gasket
> Oil pan gasket
>
> And for only $2,400 they will gladly replace them all. As I understand it,
> the head gasket is the real expensive chore, requiring lots of man hours.
> The BMW service rep said a car with this many miles is normal to have the
> gaskets start to fail. My question should I go with the dealership on the
> repairs or find a shop that does BMW cars as well. While money is always
> an
> issue, it would be silly to save $500 but then have a shop do the work
> incompetently, especially the head gasket. I was told there was an issue
> with the upper and lower aluminum covers mating properly when putting it
> all back together again. Not sure what that means, but it doesn't sound
> fun.
>
> I also asked the service rep if I should consider not going through with
> the work if other problems could manifest (I purchased the car, 525i
> touring wagon for $4.5k). He said the engine/trans in these cars are
> strong
> and should last 300k and the gasket replacement is normal.
>
> Any comments would be appreciated. Thanks!

Looks like the shotgun approach to oil leak repair to me.

I'd try and find a more concientious repair guy that will actually determine
where the leak is before tearing the engine apart.

-Fred W