BMW Z4 M Roadster S54 e85 Vanos Procedure / Cam Timing

In this video I show you the method I use to replace the vanos oil pump disc, timing chain guide, vanos repair, etc.. on this 2008 e85 Z4 M; which has very a tight clearence between vanos & radiator support. This makes it a more complex job compared to the more common e46 M3 w/ the S54.
The main issue on e85 is you can not install the vanos unit with the splined shafts / helical gears attached to it - therefore, you can not verify the vanos pistons are fully retracted in their bores when the cams are fully retarded. On the more common e46 M3, the standard procedure is to bottom the pistons out w/ the vanos on the bench & install everything as a unit.
On e85 BMW TIS has you putting the splined shafts in & then attaching the vanos unit to those while it’s in the car. You then use a BMW electronic switching tool & a BMW vanos air pressure adapter to force the pistons back in their bore.
You don’t see any nuts or bolts being turned in this video. Instead I explain how to do vanos work on this vehicle / set cam timing & get it 100% verifiable correct before you button up the car & what tools you will need so there is zero guesswork or keeping your fingers crossed when you turn the key. This method also would work on an S54 in any vehicle & you will not need with of the previously mentioned BMW tools

[@kevinw6282]

Nice explanation. I did it essentially the same way, but I did not verify visually that the pistons were too far out by having the caps off, and then install the caps to ensure they were fully out/forward, as you describe. When I had it on the bench, it seemed like the pistons moved freely enough and bottomed out reliably for me. I did the same thing, temporarily locking the hubs with the helical gear out in order to get the pistons to push in all the way. I used a small curved pick to reach in there between the helical gear and the VANOS to force the pistons all the way forward as well. As I recall, I could not physically force them any further forward that I did, so I assumed I had them fully bottomed out. But not visual confirmation as you did, I would do it your way next time. I think it's great to get them all the way forward, and to pay attention to getting the helical gears in the hubs at just the right spot as a lot of videos have said. But my understanding is that of the available linear travel the pistons may have, they system doesn't use all of that and there is a little leeway in regard to VANOS adaptation capabilities. The amount of linear travel available, when translated into degrees of advance in valve timing, exceeds the amount of advance the system will call for. I think this is correct. I also still try to get everything exactly perfect, but I know in the back of my head if I'm a tiny bit off, the system is designed to adapt for that and still operate well within parameters. I hope I'm not wrong in that assumption. I'd love to check VANOS adaptation values, haven't found a shop yet that'll do it for me.

[@Swanicyouth]

Why do you think your’s is not all perfect? Are you getting a check engine light or drivability issue? If not & the car drives great - that sounds perfect to me. I didn’t check adaptation values before or after. I have a $150 “BMW” Foxwell 510 scanner which has “vanos test”, which just manually activates solenoids with the engine off, but best I can tell adaptation values are not on there for Z4 M. Z4 M uses a different model Siemens DME opposed to e46 M3, so all the software out there can not do all the same things for each car. That scanner can clear adaption values, which I did before initial start up. I’m not even 100% sure (or if it’s clear to anyone) if “adaptation values” are a correction of how far “off” the timing is from perfect (a correction let’s say) or just where the DME has the timing at that particular moment based on various factors (temperature, fuel quality, etc…). If it’s the later, than shooting for the lowest number is pointless.

[@kevinw6282]

@@Swanicyouth Hi. Yep, it's a good point. I don't necessarily think anything is off. I got it timed perfectly with the bridge, no issues on first start after the work. Pulls great through the mid range. No lights or any other indication from the car that there is a problem. I wonder a little if it is slightly "running out of steam" at the top end compared to before, but I know that is super subjective. What I don't know is if it could actually be slightly down on power at the top end, like that is actually happening, without any codes or problems otherwise and still be technically "within parameters" - I don't know enough about them or the vanos adaptation to know if that is possible. That is the only reason I thought it might be interesting to know what adaptation is doing, if it actually could answer this question in the first place, as you say. My understanding is that "adaptation" is relative to the cam position sensor, so a fixed ideal number, depending on engine speed and load, but that it likely takes other factors, like you mentioned, into account to achieve that. My understanding could be faulty though....lol.

[@Swanicyouth]

You are right. I’m beginning to think S54 people are all crazy. There is a video I watched after this of BMW assembling an S54 at the factory & when the tech put the vanos on he just basically slapped it on in a manner that didn’t seem like it mattered what tooth, etc... Despite TIS describing how critical this is & BMW making 2 special tools to manipulate piston depth - I’m starting to think if everything is connected propery it’s fine regardless. I’ve heard of people having issues / codes / misfires after doing this - but never anyone 100% saying the cams were timed right, but the vanos pistons were too forward (advanced). I’m just 1 guy w/ 1 car who studied this extensively so I was 100% sure I was doing it correctly the 1st time. Maybe someone who’s fixed multiple bad VANOS jobs will chime in.

[@s.boucher9101]

Thanks for the video. I’m planning doing this work on my Z4 M in the upcoming weeks.

[@Swanicyouth]

@@s.boucher9101 Let me know if you have any questions. Not a lot of DIY type info out there for these cars..

[@s.boucher9101]

@@Swanicyouthgiven the small clearance between the VANOS piston caps and the front panel (about an inch or so), how easy was it to remove the vanos? Did you have to remove the piston caps first?

[@Swanicyouth]

⁠ No. I read it was an issue. I even read someone jacked their motor up for extra clearance. Your going to have to take out the fan & the other stuff you can see missing in my video, including the clip in the radiator support that holds the hood release cable. You may want to get a new clip in advance. I’m very good with removing plastic clips without damaging them, but this one you pretty much have to break one of its insertion tabs. Then, wire tie the hood release cable out of the way. It’s not nec, but I highly rec removing lower radiator hose. It gives you more room for everything & takes like 2 sec. You’ll loose about a gallon of coolant. You can take everything apart you need to get it out in 25 mins. I’m always going to rec removing more easy stuff to make a job easier. You can take it out the oil feed tube w/ the vanos also at that point, just tilt it up a bit when you take it out. No need to take caps off for removal. There is plenty of room.

[@s.boucher9101]

@@Swanicyouth Thanks for the guidance. I’m currently planning the work and how I should approach it.