Month: November 2021

BMW N55 Engine Rebuild Project Part 2 – Piston, Crankshaft and Main Bearings Replacement

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Hey guys and welcome back to Part 2 of the BMW N55 Engine Rebuild Project. In this video we install a piston, new main bearings, new crankshaft and seal the bedplate. Since the original engine had chunks the size of my fist, yet still somehow ran, I bought another engine on Facebook marketplace and that’s the engine we are working on today. Check out the playlist to see the teardown video and more info on how I got it. If you’d like to see what the original engine actually sounded like despite having chunks of metal and a hole at the bottom, click the links in the description below and before we start, hit that like button like the piston hit the cylinder head on my engine for the YouTube algorithm and to make me feel a little better for spending so much money on bolts and gaskets!


Now, back to this engine that I got for cheap off of Facebook. In the last video, I disassembled it to see if it was worth saving and decided that it’s actually a rebuildable engine. Since then, I have been ordering parts and cleaning all the parts I could clean. I’ve tried a few different degreasers, but ultimately the regular brake cleaner and even the cheaper AutoZone brake cleaner seem to have been working best. I’ve also learned that using a ScotchBrite pad helped get rid of the tougher, built up stuff and smooth out the contracting surfaces. Even though this looks easy and fast on video, it took hours to do, but I WAS being careful not to damage anything as I’m fairly new at this.

Removing and installing a piston

Since this engine spun the bearing on piston 6, I decided it would be best to replace it for a couple of reasons. The most important reason was that there was damage on the connecting rod where the new rod bearing would go, which of course would not last very long even with a new bearing in pl ace. I was also worried that the connecting rod itself could have been slightly bent, internally damaged or no longer perfectly round and since I have 4 perfectly good pistons from the original engine, I decided to swap one in. I picked the best out of the bunch, gave it a good clean and then went to adjust the piston rings.

Now, it’s a little difficult to see this on camera, but the M-Flex ring is made from 3 different parts. Bearing spring being the middle and two steel band rings that go on top and bottom. The idea is to get the M-flex ring and the two steel bands to be 120 degree apart at the opening or separation point. It’s also important to make sure that the contact point is not arranged over what’s called a pin boss or basically avoid the area where the piston is connected to the connecting rod.

Once you have to bottom ring properly adjusted, you need to also adjust the middle and the top ring to be 120 degree from each other. The instructions on this aren’t super clear, but I went with 120 for the 3 parts of the M-flex ring and then again 120 degree separation between the 3 rings.

Now that I had my piston ready to go, I cleaned up the cylinder wall to make sure it was perfectly clean, oiled it and then oiled the piston as well. I don’t have any fancy tools for installing pistons, but honestly, it was much easier than I expected. I used this $13 tool from amazon and it worked perfectly. It’s a little fiddly, so if you do this a lot, spend more money on something more solid, but for me it worked exactly as I need it to. I oiled up the inside of the tool to make sure nothing got scratched and tightened it around the piston. Inserted the tool with the piston into the cylinder and gently pushed it in with my fingers. You do not want to use any tools here or force it in. The new piston is now installed… woohoo!

Installing Crankshaft

Having actually accomplished SOMETHING, I decided it was time for a little bit more cleaning.. I’ve definitely learned that a big part of engine rebuilding is getting rid of all the old muck and gaskets and all kinds of buildup. If I ever do this again, I might get a parts cleaner or maybe a Dremel with a soft pad or something like that. At least getting it to look new again DOES make you feel like some progress is being done, so that’s a plus.

Now that I felt better about how it looked, I removed the connecting rod bolts and the connecting rod bearing caps on the big end. It’s VERY important that these rod bearing caps do not get mixed up and go to the correct connecting rod when reused or you’ll have another knocking engine very soon. I marked them and put aside until they are needed again when we replace the rod bearings in the next video. The bolts will also be used before the final install for testing, so I’m keeping them for now. Subscribe to the channel so you don’t miss that video! Now that the crankshaft is not held in by anything, it can be simply removed from the engine. Do be careful as it weighs about 50 pounds and you don’t want to drop that on your foot.

I wanted to show you the difference between a good crankshaft and onethat has been abused. Let’s compare the crankshaft from the original engine to the one I’m installing shortly. You can see how much shinier and smoother journals are on the good part. Of course, the old one is not going to waste, it can be resurfaced and used again with oversized bearings.

Back at the engine, I removed all of the old crankshaft bearings, cleaned the area with some ScotchBrite and removed the residue with brake cleaner and a lint free paper towel. We are now ready to install the new stuff!

Installing Main Bearings

WHY am I going with aftermarket main bearings? Well, that’s a very good question with a few answers. First, these seem to have a better reputation with people that have rebuilt their N54 and N55 engines. Second, these King bearings have an improved crankshaft finish for reducing microscopic ferrite peaks if your crankshaft isn’t perfect and since I’m not installing a brand new one, it isn’t perfect. They also have improved oil clearances which should reduce wear on the engine and increase its life. Other than all of those reason, the price was also a factor as these much less expensive compared to OEM.

Installing these is actually fairly simple, put the grooved side in first, squeeze the bearing just a little and push it down with your fingers. They pop in and seat themselves when done correctly. At least they did in my case. The set with a little oil hole goes on the engine block and the solid ones are installed on the bedplate. Of course, I cleaned all surfaces to make sure there was nothing there before installing.

Now that everything is ready, we can temporarily install the crankshaft so that we can check the crankshaft bearing clearance. If it didn’t go in perfectly on the first try, don’t spin it, lift it out a little bit and put it back down where it’s not in the way of anything.

To make sure the bearings have seated correctly and are not over or undersized, it’s important to check the crankshaft bearing radial clearance. For this BMW recommends using plastigauge. I have a full video on how to use plastigauge if you’d like to see the entire process. The basic process is to cut a piece of plastigauge the width of the journal, place it on top of each journal you’d like to test and then install the bedplate back on the engine block.

We then follow the correct sequence to install the bolts and torque them to spec! I left mine for a couple of minutes and then removed the bolts and the bedplate.

Now that I’m confident with the fitment of my new crankshaft, it is time to do the final assembly. Of course, I have cleaned all of the areas again and removed the plastigauge from the crankshaft as well as the bed plate. With all the surfaces clean, I then installed some assembly lube as this will be the only oil between the journals and the bearings when the engine runs for the first time. After the oil pressure is build up, regular oil will go in through the holes in the bearings and lubricate, but we have to protect the engine for those first few rotations. I put some assembly lube on the bedplate bearings as well and even rub a little on the journals directly. This stuff isn’t going to hurt anything and it still much better to the surfaces compared to regular oil.

Since there is no gasket between the bedplate and the engine block, it has to be sealed with a special sealant. The one I got is recommended by BMW and is specified in the service manual. I applied a good bead into the groove as specified.

I really hope you enjoyed this video or at the very least learned something new. If you enjoy this type of content or just like cars, check out the rest of the channel for many more car related videos. Most aren’t nearly as technical. Thank you so much for watching and I’ll see you in part 3 where we install the rod bearings.

BMW N55 Engine Rebuild Project Part 1 – I Bought A Broken BMW N55

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Hey guys and welcome back to another video on the SimpleCarGuy channel. It has been a few months since I have started working on the e92 project and I know I haven’t posted an update in a long while. So, in this video, I will go over why it took so long, what’s happening now and the plan for the future. After taking the engine out of the car and tearing it down to see what it looked like, I found that it was not rebuildable at all and I had to find another engine. Unfortunately, that’s where I ran into some issues. At the time of buying the car, a BMW N55 engine could have been had for under $3000 with less than 100,000 miles minus the turbo and some accessories, which I would gladly pay. However, whether it was due to pandemic or winter being right around the corner, the engines just disappeared from the market and the pickings were slim. The best engine I could find was over $4000 with 135,000 miles out of a wracked car with no warranty or guarantee. Now, I could have risked it and went for it, but it felt like such a step back. I waited and waited and nothing came on the market.

Then one day I was on Facebook market looking for random car stuff as I normally do and I searched for a BMW N55. To my surprise, there was one for sale and it was only 5 miles away from me. What was more surprising was the asking price – $350. I figured, for $350, it can’t hurt to at least go look at it. I had a good look at it and it was a clear case of spun rod bearing. I realized that this engine in a rebuildable condition, so I pulled a trigger on it and bought another knocking BMW N55 engine. Of course, it’s not in a perfect condition by any stretch of imagination, but it’s decent enough to attempt rebuilding.

I brought the engine home, put it on a stand and started taking it apart to inspect it closer. So, how good of shape is it really in? Well, let’s find out!

Even though the guy that sold me the engine swore that the only damage to the engine is the spun rod bearing, I have seen what a spun rod bearing can do, so I had my doubts. My biggest worry was damage to the cylinder head and the cylinder walls which would make the engine not worth rebuilding. I used a small camera to go through the sparkplug hole and what I saw scared me a little bit. It looked like it was all cracked and black and not like it’s supposed to look. However, once I removed the cylinder head, I was pleasantly surprised, everything was intact and in good enough shape! Who would have thought!? This game me the go ahead to start ordering parts and proceed with the teardown.

I didn’t include the tear down footage on this engine up until this point as it’s pretty much exactly the same as I did on the original engine. Check out those videos for detail on how I got to this state of the engine.

While I do some research and wait on parts to start arriving, I’m continuing to take apart the bottom end. To remove the bed plate, I had to first remove the main crankshaft bolt, which turned out to be a not-so-easy task once the engine is on an engine stand. I ended up using a wrench to hold it in place and a very long pipe to break it lose. Now that the main bolt was out, I was able to remove the crank hub which then allowed me to remove the sprockets and the chains. A few screws and bolts later, the oil pump was ready to be removed as well.

The last step in disassembly was to remove the bed plate bolts in the correct sequences as well as all of the outside aluminum bolts. It’s mandatory to replace all aluminum bolts when re-assembling the engine, so lots of ordering a head of me. I then removed the bed plate from the engine block to expose access to the crankshaft. This is why I did so much work disassembling this engine. It’s to replace this big ol chunk of metal. I won’t be releasing those rod bolts until I’m ready to put the new one in as I’m afraid of accidentally pushing the piston out and it falling on the floor.

At this point I’m pretty much done with the disassembly of the engine and it’s rebuild time! I have ordered most of the parts I will need to get started, but first I will have to clean all of the parts I will re-use and set up a better work space for myself. The plan after is to replace one of the pistons, put all new main bearings in and replace the crankshaft. Put the bed plate back on, seal it with the correct sealant, install gaskets and seals back in and reassemble the rest of the bottom end. This of course will be in another video, so don’t forget to subscribe to follow this rebuild project.

Top 10 Useful Chevy Volt Hidden Features

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Just bought a Chevy Volt or renting out for a weekend? Find the top 10 useful hidden features on the Chevrolet Volt. Some of these are more useful than others, but all are interesting tips or tricks that you may not know about the Volt. I got over some hidden storage compartments, infotaiment features, hidden menus, accessory mode and so much more!

Hyundai Kona Review & Hidden Features

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Hey Guys and Welcome back to another video on the SimpleCarGuy.com. Today we are taking a look at this 2019 Hyundai Kona that my girlfriend has been driving for the past couple of years. Has it been a good car, has it had any major issues, what are some of the cool hidden features or things that you didn’t know about and most importantly should you buy this European looking little car that’s just a little more than ordinary? Let’s take a look!

If you’d like to skip the review part and just see the hidden features, skip to:

Has it been a good car? Over all, yes. Now, of course your expectations of a car may vastly differ from mine, but for a car that’s under 25 thousand dollars, it packs a lot of European design, great bright headlights, lots of safety features and even a 7-speed dual clutch transmission with a peppy 1.6-liter 4-cylinder engine that actually makes it kind of fun to drive. When it comes to front end of the car, it has been commented on a lot. In my opinion, the upside-down face with the headlights at the bottom and the daytime lights at the top, give it a nice aggressive, almost high-end German car look. It’s never a bad thing when you buy a daily gas saver and get something more in return. I do wish the fog lights would match the otherwise LED front end as they stand out quite a lot when used. One thing you may not notice on this car due to its grey color is the ugly plastic pieces around the wheel-arches and few other parts of the car. It works well on grey, black and some other darker colors, but looks very cheap on brighter paintwork. Of course, this is purely my opinion, but I had to mention it.

So, how has the reliability been? This KONA’s 1.6 turbo engine even though known to be very reliable has had an issue in the first few months of ownership. The car got a check engine light and we had to take it to the dealer. The service department quickly figured out that it was an injector, replaced it under warranty and it’s been running smoothly and very efficiently since then.

My opinion on the car only counts so much as I don’t drive it daily, so I asked my girlfriend to give me a quick review on the car from her perspective. She’d told me that after two years of ownership, there are some things that she really enjoyed and some that she could live without. She is impressed with the quality of the interior; especially, the leather seats that add a touch of luxury without having to spend thousands. With the ample trunk space, foldable back seats and relatively low trunk sill that the Kona provides, she is able to fit groceries, furniture, large boxes without having to turn to a minivan or large SUV. Apple CarPlay makes it very easy to enjoy music on the go and calling friends and family is done safely without having to pick up the phone.

Even though the Kona has a great interior, it does take a long time for the seats to warm up compared to other cars and even longer for warm air to start coming from the vents. Luckily, you can turn on the heater from your BlueLink app on the phone, but even after 10 minutes of running she still has to wear gloves before going on a drive on cold Chicago winter days. Once the heated seats are warmed up, they are a great feature and she would love to have the same convenience available for those sitting in the back. Lastly, as a none aggressive driver (ok, I would have to specify here and say that she can be a bit “enthusiastic” while driving), she did notice that if you take a corner a little faster the car tends to ‘tilt’ and she had to be mindful of her speed as it feels almost unstable. What she is talking about is of course body roll and I can’t say that there is a lot of it in this car, but it’s no sport car as far as handling, that’s for sure.

In conclusion, there have been pros and cons to owning a Kona but it does make for a great fun car that is reliable and easy to drive.

I hope that gives you a little bit of an insight into what a non-car enthusiast thinks of the KONA. I know there are many professional reviewers, but they don’t drive the car daily and that’s what matters in a daily driver, the personal experience with the car.

Now for a little fun, I thought I’d show you some hidden features, tips, tricks and just things you may not know about the KONA.

One of the more obvious, yet useful things you may not have known about the KONA is that there are two storage pockets under the HVAC controls right above the USB port where you can store your phone perfectly. Speaking of extra hidden space, a lot of people don’t know that in the rear hatch, you can take the floor cover off and the foam piece if your car has the cargo tray and drop it down about 3 inches giving you more storage room in the back.

Have you wondered where the space tire is on this car? Wonder no more, it is right here..

While we are at the back here, did you know that the rear wiper also has a washer fluid nozzle for cleaning? And if you have auto-wipers, the rear wiper will come on automatically when you shift in reverse and it’s raining. If you don’t like things happening on their own or afraid there might be ice buildup, you can easily turn it off in the menu. Of course, everyone knows there is a defroster on the back glass, but did you know that this car also has heated side mirrors? Pretty nifty!

The info-taiment is primarily focused on Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, but there are a couple settings you can adjust. As an example, you can move the sound to whatever corner of the car you want.

This Kona came with some good safety features, such as the lane keeping assist, Blind-Spot Collision Warning, Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning, rear camera and a few others, but no parking sensors. All of these are listed in your car spec sheet, but did you also know that your KONA will turn off the fog lights when turning below 25mph and turn on corner lights for those slower turns. You can’t have both, it’s one or the other. Speaking of speed, if you hold the plus and minus buttons while the cruise control is on, it will increase and decrease the speed by 5mph increments. The last hidden features that I was surprised by is the sun visor, it can be extended to provide just a little more shade!

As most modern cars, the KONA has an app that allows you to remote start the car, set up custom climate profiles, flash the lights, honk the horn and locate your car among other functions. I do think it’s a little silly that the car lights up like a Christmas tree when started remotely, but it’s not the end of the world.

So, would I recommend a Hyundai Kona for someone that is looking for a fun daily driver? Absolutely, you will enjoy a fun and energetic driving subcompact SUV, with decent handling, great gas mileage and overall a smooth riding experience. The turbocharged engine is a must if you want refinement and some pick up!  Not only that, when you get inside the cabin, it feels well made, upscale and future proof. So, thank you guys so much for watching, I really appreciate it. Let me know if you’d like to see more SimpleCarReviews and I’ll see you in the next one.

BMW Apple CarPlay Retrofit

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BMW never offered Apple CarPlay on the F10 NBT system, but luckily there are aftermarket kits that allow us to add wireless CarPlay to our 5 series BMWs like my BMW 550i, 535i, 528i etc. The kits come in different configuration and will work on CIC, NBT and EVO navigation systems. So, no matter what BMW you have as long as you have a screen, you can easily upgrade to Apple CarPlay or Android Auto on your car. In this video I go over the process of installing the kit on BMW F10, but this will work the same on the all of the below compatible BMW models:

1-Series F20/F21 – 03/2013 – 03/2015

2-Series F22 – 11/2013 – 03/2015

3-Series F30/F31 – 11/2012 – 07/2015

3-Series F34 – 03/2013 – 07/2015

3-Series F80 – 03/2014 – 07/2015

4-Series F32 – 07/2013 – 07/2015

4-Series F33 – 11/2013 – 07/2015

4-Series F36 – 03/2014 – 07/2015

5-Series F07 – 07/2012

5-Series F10/F11/F18

6-Series F06/F12/F13

7-Series F01/F02/F03 – 07/2012 – 06/2015

X3 F25 – 04/2013 – 08/2017

X4 F26 – 04/2014 – 08/2017

X5 F15 – 08/2014 – 07/2016

X5 F85 – 12/2014 – 07/2016

X6 F16 – 08/2014 – 07/2016

X6 F86 – 12/2014 – 07/2016

i3 – 09/2013 – 09/2017 (2018 model year)

i8 – 04/2014 – 09/2017 (2018 model year)

BMW N55 335i Cylinder Head Removal & Engine Teardown

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In the previous engine teardown video, I removed the oil pan and oil pump to investigate why this BMW n55 engine had such a horrible knock. After seeing the spun bearing and the destruction it had caused, I decided to continue with the engine disassembly and take off the cylinder head off. There are quite a few steps to do this, such as removing the valve cover, the injectors, the fuel lines and all of the wiring. I also had to get a timing tool to hold the VANOS system in place to remove the timing chain. After all of this work was done, I was finally able to remove the cylinder head and inspect the valves and the mating surfaces.

15 Hidden Features – Porsche Boxster 981

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I have always been a fan of the Porsche Boxster and when I had a chance to drive it for a couple of days, I wanted to experience it to the fullest, see what were the hidden features and things I didn’t know about this Porsche 981 Boxster. How many of these quirks did you know and what came as a surprise to you? I was really impressed with the rev matching feature and how quick the roof went up and down. It also came to my surprise that you can’t easily see the engine, even though this car is meant for enthusiasts. I hope you enjoyed learning about the lesser know features and leave a comment with other Porsche fun facts!

Porsche Boxster 981 – First Impressions

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As a fan of roadsters and sports cars, I had to check out a Porsche Boxster 981 for myself to see if it was any better than my BMW Z4. As I drove the Porsche, I took videos here and there so that you can see my genuine first impression of this Boxster and not a scripted video after doing research on the car and seeing what others think. I wanted to come in with a clean slate to see what the acceleration felt like, how did the car handle through tight corners and on regular roads. Was it comfortable and pleasant to drive? I tried to answer all those questions as well as give you some good scenery as I’m driving through some wavy roads. I also liked how this car had no rattles and felt very solid for a 5 year old car. Handling in this midengine car is of course outstanding and it has a lot more storage than you’d think.

Taking apart a blown BMW N55 Engine

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After spending the last few weeks removing the N55 engine from my BMW 335i, I’m finally taking it apart so that we can see what has been causing that horrendous knock and how much will my wallet be hurting after this project. Check out the playlist on this car to get caught up if you’re new here! Let’s get to it!

BMW N55 Engine Inspection at 85000 Miles

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In my previous video I took the engine out of my BMW 335i e92 and before I take it apart, I wanted to point out some of the issues and see what kind of shape the engine is after 85000 miles in midwest. This video isn’t supposed to be in depth or anything like that, but I just wanted to highlight a few common problems on the N55 and issues specific to this engine.