This BMW Has Been Sitting in a BARN for 30 YEARS...Will it Run?

This 1979 BMW E12 520/6 has spent the past 30 years sitting in a barn untouched. It's my mission to bring this thing back to life, to try and get it up, running and possibly even driving.
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[@italianjob-vx6hp]

At this stage , please remove the engine , rebuild it, or have it rebuilt. You know that makes sense even if you keep or sell . Get engine straight and you would get buyers!!! Really appreciate this vid and the last one!

[@katywalker8322]

If the oil pump had seized on the shaft, then the distributor would not have had drive, so the engine would stop immediately. 30 years might be enough for the cam to seize, but wouldn’t expect it unless water getting in there. Personally, depends on what you want to do with the car. It is a survivor so tempting to say fix it all. In which case engine out and full strip down. It would make a good project. As a short fix, rebuild the head and back on. Does it have replaceable bearings for the cam? If so a replacement cam and new bearings would get it running. If not, I suspect that there are places that can replace the bearing surfaces in the head (it was a common fix on motorcycles years ago)

[@deanusrjm]

Id love to see you rebuild it George

[@AllTorque]

I would engine convert it .. probably put a tuned M54 3.0 in there (going to be cheapest big bang for the buck and will get it close to an original M5 power output) ... sort the bodywork. Keep it looking stock and have an absolute sleeper. It's not a mega desirable model so wouldn't worry about taking it away from OEM. Also would like appeal to a wider audience with some mods.

[@styz8312]

you know aswell as we do that you want to rebuild it. but its all down to can you afford it. love the content as always keep up the good work

[@Juntasification]

We keep it in the shed. Build the garage. Tear it down to its bones. Put in a rotisserie and rebuild it. That's what I've been doing on my weekend for the last year. :)

[@ColeoneAquarium]

Rebuild rebuild rebuild , keep this bmw Alive 🎉🎉🎉

[@kar4tube]

Vintage BMWs are among the only good ones. It'll be a big job resurrecting this 520, but you'll be preserving a lovely piece of history for future generations. You'll never get a worthwhile ROI unless you go big (i.e. full resto). If, and understandably, that's beyond your budget, punt it to another enthusiast or part it out. Good luck!

[@DocMackGarage]

Plug it into ISTA and see if it has any codes , lol joking. It is a lovely car but might take quite a bit to get it up and running . From the engine point of view maybe worth an engine out rebuild .

[@GeorgeAusters]

😂😂

[@robsijben5707]

Try to get this engine running on a budget, and at the same time source a spare engine, of which you know it is a good one. There are a lot of M20B20 engines out there, as they are also used in the E28, E30 and E34 chassis. The intermediate shaft also drives the oilpump, but when the distributer is lifted, the oilpump drive also disengages. There is a long 8mm allen shaft driving the oil pump via the gear on the distributer. Like the car.

[@craigadams2415]

Love the old bmw. Id only spend money on the original engine if you are going to make the rest of car pretty good too... which would probably not make sense financially. Why not put a more modern bmw engine in it instead (prob cheaper) and then improve the bodywork. Luckily at over 40 years old it doesnt need an MOT.

[@rodbridgman7873]

Only just seen this one George. I would put an m30 2.8, 3.0 or 3.5 engine in it...E12 are rare and should be maintained...

[@PatGill-tu6oq]

That shaft drives the distributor, the distributor via a hexagonal shaft, like a pencil, I believe I have some new shafts in my stock, they do wear, as does the fuel pump cam lobe!

[@jasonsinclair6949]

Hi George, Been binge watching your videos on the N47 engine absolutely love it. I have an X3xdrive 2009 with 320 000km on the clock. is there a way i could know if the timing chain has been redone without knowing the history? Thanks in advance.

[@mihaiserbanescu8676]

I think the timing was off and a piston hit 2 valves. this may have happened because that oil pump died, no oil was running and that is why there is so much scoring. when parts got welded together, is when the the timing skipped and valves got hit. probably the engine is junk at this point. however, you know everyone wants to see you do it right! :D

[@GadgetMart]

That’s a beautiful old car Infact I would buy a new one today if they still made them. Only downside is the auto box for me. Rebuild it, take your time with it

[@carguy815]

REBUILD TAKE IT OUT STRIP IT ALL DOWN BUILD HER UP SHE'S WORTH IT PLEASE honestly probably only worth it for yourself because of videos but could do a full build paint engine bay put it all back together that would be beautiful if you like give the temporary fix a go but it would make a hell of a series and given it's a classic worth it every time depends what you make on your videos I guess still hope so

[@richardnorris3095]

Got to be a rebuild George 👍🏻😎

[@ianjenkins4641]

Perfect excuse to stick a N52 in. You do need to look at how bad the rust on the body is first though. As you are going to find some horror rust.

[@fourwheelsoffun555]

Bolt in an m30b35 for cheap with a gasket refresh. You’ll be set.

[@christopherwright1795]

Sell it as is , someone will want to do that car , if you asking for suggestions it’s means you’re not Up for this rebuild get it sold onto another enthusiast

[@alinstefan1984]

if it was me and had space, I would've done full rebuild, but this car will take at least 6 months almost full time on it

[@Tom-dz7of]

Hi mate, you’ve got two options, rebuild or swap the engine out, it all depends on bodywork, if the cars solid and u want to restore it OEM rebuild, or maybe a 3.0ltr, think you need to look at cost and what you’ve got to spend. People will hate me for saying it but m52 🤷🏼‍♂️, better power and economy 😎👍🏻

[@markymark7200]

Auction it. Dont scrap. A auctions place in Thornton le Dale Yorkshire sell these kinds of cars they pick them up too.

[@MichaelAMalone]

Full rebuild if you can afford it, with the view to restore the entire car, otherwise part it out...

[@leiflillandt1488]

Will it be too expensive to transport/bring the empty body to some of the east European countries to get the rust removed and painted? I think, if you repair the engine, repair the whole engine. If you sell it, the customer, at least, knows what he get and what he can expect. Then I think you can make some interesting videos, but I don't think it is a good business. If you sell it eventually, you demand to be able to buy it back to a given amount of money if the shape is unchanged. It can be interesting to buy it back in twenty years or so!

[@thomashorabin7554]

if the body and underneath is ok i think itll be worth getting used parts for the engine ?

[@Roadkill7878]

Not sure it’s economically viable to get it up and running

[@philipbunker146]

All depends what you want to get out of it at the end! Given the forth coming expense of the dream garage, I would suggest it’s not something you can entertain at the moment.

[@svhulda6157]

Remove motor and fix it and get a second hand head. Or scrap the car.

[@BMWguru]

I’d do a full engine rebuild shame to scrap it

[@christopherkelly6903]

Stick a more modern engine in it 😉. M57 could be fun 😀

[@phillynarrowstraight]

Engine swap! Get something more modern in it 👍

[@mifo1133]

lets be honest, body is bad, rust everywhere, it hide propably a lot more problems in other components then with engine, parts are expensive, you have to replace most of them for new. You will propably hate me for this but this project is not worth it, for your pocket and for youtube. I would scrapt it and move on next project. Its too bad to be restored. But i will watch and learn if you decide to restore it. For me personaly its more entertaining to watch you work on "newer" cars like 2005-2011 era and fixing problems on them.

[@GeorgeAusters]

I appreciate what you’re saying👍🏻

[@ademineshat]

Let's first ask for parts and then decide 😊

[@bobfrankish8883]

Hi George, interesting video. Myself, and many others, really want to watch people bringing cars like this back from the dead. That being said, it really depends on a chain of events. 1. Can you get your planned workshop built? 2.If you get the workshop up and running, do you plan on attempting the metalwork restoration and subsequent painting yourself? 3. If the answer to 2 is no, then call it a draw now. You will easily hit £20K farming out the bodywork restoration, and those cars are just not special enough in my opinion, but this is only my opinion. If you fancy honing your skills on a full restoration project however, then that would be different. I for one would welcome the channel content. However, you have to weigh up the KZbin monetary side of things. A project like that would tie up your workshop for ages, so you would have to rely on the restoration videos to supply the income. Look at my current situation, because of ill health and other problems, my garage has been tied up with my 8 series for about 7 years now. Any work I have done on my other cars has had to be done outside in all weathers, which has been really frustrating. Finally, a friend of mine had a similar problem with a seized camshaft on an M20 following an oil starvation issue. He just smoothed off the journals, put it back together and ran it, and it did a year with no problems after which he sold it. I'd stick my neck out and say that you could get it running and able to be moved around for not too much money, then if you decide you are going to restore it at a later date, look for another engine which you know you will have to recondition anyway.

[@GeorgeAusters]

I think restoring the entire car may be out of the question as I just don’t have the money nor time to have it sitting round for years waiting to be done. My initial goal is to get it running and driving. Was your friend’s camshaft as bad as mine is?

[@DavidBlack-d2g]

Whip the sump off and check mains etc... if oil pump is dead, then the engine is in for a rebuild... got to question how far do you go? (or run away)

[@DavidBlack-d2g]

I would not spend the cash on the cams... the bottom end may be gubbed... I suspect you will sell for parts on this one...

[@PatGill-tu6oq]

check the head for cracks, they crack in a very unusual place, through the cam bearings, usually starts at the rear and at about 5 o/clock looking from the front, the timing belt sheds teeth, does not break.

[@GeorgeAusters]

Will check the head, thanks! Exactly my thoughts on the timing belt!

[@davidmerrifield7881]

Interesting video, George 😊

[@SoraaConstruction-zl9ww]

This should be a good rebuild series

[@nathanenglish6151]

Don't scrap it anyways 😔

[@samcourt6228]

Whilst it’s a lovely thing. I think to get it running well and looking good is going to be a massive undertaking. I think you need to go all in, or get shot.

[@GeorgeAusters]

If I can get it running and moving soon then it buys me some time to think about what I want to do

[@BryceBrown1]

An out-there idea, but I wonder if there's a local mechanic school that could get involved. Could be more hassle than it's worth... 🤔

[@GeorgeAusters]

Sounds good in practice but I wouldn’t even know where to begin with that

[@rogermanvell4693]

stick an m20 2.5 in there.

[@Ben-jq5oo]

Subscribed !

[@alinstefan1984]

last year I've rebuild my l200, this year my crafter and my e60

[@GeorgeAusters]

Nice work!

[@TRD1949uk]

Second hand engine 100% do a timing belt and any other due diligence on that engine and fit that😊

[@GeorgeAusters]

Thing is, you could spend £800 on an engine and find out that one is no good too

[@phillloyd6356]

Go for a rebuild

[@arturssuharovs4066]

Half rebuild

[@JohnMartin-oh6bf]

Full rebuild

[@Audrius267]

That'll be waste of time,u stripped engine out,so at this point probobly best thing to do just rebuild engine Ofcorse depends on your plans with car

[@GeorgeAusters]

A full engine rebuild will not be cheap.. Be talking around £2k just in parts

[@Audrius267]

@GeorgeAusters well then I guess it comes down to what your planing to do with car. When I got my e31 840 I did spend few coins on it but my plan is to keep car So like I said before it's all down to what's is your plan for car

[@philipunsworth2801]

Rebuild it

[@4551jas]

be nice to see it fixed up keep the old car runing and back on the road

[@GeorgeAusters]

That’s the plan!

[@berwhaletheavenger]

I think I owned that in the eighties, Fjord blue 520 from Glasgow.

[@GeorgeAusters]

Really?! Yes it was from Glasgow!

[@berwhaletheavenger]

@@GeorgeAusters Would have been 1988, I bought it or one very similar from a car auction in Oxfordshire for about £500. It had the Callanders Garage dealer sticker in the rear screen. It was mixing oil and coolant so we fired it back into the auction! 35 years ago now so I can't recall that much about it.

[@simontrigg9059]

If you have the funds please go the whole way and re-build the entire engine.Unfortunately you're in a situation where there can be no compromise,the only other option is to break it for juicy spares.

[@GentilsGarage]

Hi George, I’m in a similar predicament as yours although the engine on mine is in a different condition. Personally, if you really love the car and want to keep it then go for the rebuild, but I would take my time and do it in stages. But, I would try to do the minimum to have the car moveable under its own steam so it doesn’t get in the way. check and make sure the oil pump works and you can free the distributor shaft. One you can sort those then I would move to the head and have it pressure tested and checked for straightness. If all good, then replace damaged valves and lap the others. Not sure if that camshaft can be rebuilt or the cost to have it done, but a new one is around €500 from Walloth Nesch. The alternative would be an M20 engine from an E28 as it has a similar sump but those are fuel injected and have an electric pump so extra modifications needed, but not much. Swap mounts and it would drop straight on your car as the gearbox would bolt straight too. Some of the steps I’ve mentioned above are the same as the one I’ll be doing on my car very soon. Anyway, good luck and look forward to the next video!

[@GeorgeAusters]

Appreciate that mate. I was actually going to ask what your would suggest and you're the only other person I can think of that has one of these cars.. So you think do the bare minimum to get it up and running / driving and then see what I want to do from there? In terms of parts, I think i'd only need an exhaust valve, an inlet valve, stem seals, head gasket, bolts, intake and exhaust gaskets, cam seals, rocker cover gasket and sump gasket and new belts. Sounds like a lot but only roughly £100-150 for the lot

[@GentilsGarage]

@@GeorgeAusters yes, the bare minimum for now and at least you have an acceptable top end to get the car running. Also, a quick carburettor clean and replace fuel hoses to be safe. Once running, a good coolant system flush and it sure there’s a lot of gunk in the block. Then, do another assessment of the bodywork and see what you can realistically do to get the car structurally safe. Leave the engine bottom end rebuild such as pistons, block and crankshaft for another time when there’s more funds and have time and space to work on the block. For the head parts, I would say around 250 including valves. The same parts for my M10 without valves and belts is just under £200. Feel free to get in touch!

[@GeorgeAusters]

@GentilsGarage The gaskets are very cheap for this engine, I’d only replace the broken and bent valve.. the drive belts are literally like £3 or £4 each

[@GentilsGarage]

@@GeorgeAusters sounds good. On top of head bolts and stem seals, im getting a full set of gaskets, O rings and washers from top to bottom as it’s weeping oil from every nook and cranny and whoever owned it before used silicon seal everywhere to stop the leaks! It’s a mess down there

[@realmusicreallife]

Doesnt make sense when you think you broke belt by turning it by hand. You must off felt resistance by hand before belt gave up and died? I think the belt took a shit when it was driving and it was parked up and left for years

[@GeorgeAusters]

Belt definitely broke while turning it, if it was already broke then the crank would have turned easily

[@realmusicreallife]

@@GeorgeAusters thought the crank did turn easy. Fair enoigh hard to tell on videos

[@GeorgeAusters]

No the crank wouldn’t move at all until the belt was broken

[@jismo7]

I'd try and find a donor engine and modify it; get the bodywork done ; get it on airbags and some nice alloys and raffle it once complete 👍🏻

[@draganburic9524]

Rebuild it, it will be a fun project and a good learning lesson for maybe some future oldtimer restorations

[@nickwillobey2205]

It'll run, lts a BMW😊😊😊

[@GeorgeAusters]

Let’s hope so

[@jrn6471]

Hi George. For the sake of saving money, i would source another complete M20 engine and replace the whole assembly. Im aware it's not going to be a matching number car (VIN, engine & gearbox), but you can still over time rebuild the original engine as you wish in your own speed. Starting to rebuild the head alone will make you run into unexpected issues which again have to be addressed on the point of no return.....You can then address the corrosion and have the car sound within a limited budget. That's my recommendation to get it moving.

[@GeorgeAusters]

The thing is also, with a replacement engine - you don’t know if that will be better or worse than the original

[@evansrestorations]

@@GeorgeAustersit can’t be much worse! 😂

[@JulianValentini]

Full rebuild

[@GeorgeAusters]

Do you think enough people would want to see it to warrant the cost?

[@JulianValentini]

@@GeorgeAusters Yes, especially if you show in detail how you repair or replace the fuel pump, oil pump, etc. But in the end the engine has to be in perfect condition. New head? New camshaft? Not the minimum to just get it to run.