VANOS Diagnostic and Adaptation Reset Service in OE Supplier

A VANOS part: we read the live VANOS position against the commanded position and tell you what the fault actually is, which is worth doing before anything is bought.

We are an independent parts supplier. We are not BMW AG or MINI, we are not appointed by them, and BMW and MINI are their trademarks. What we sell are parts that fit those cars, described as such. Every listing states the chassis codes and engine codes it fits, the production date range, which quality tier you are buying, the labour time the job actually takes, and whether the part needs coding to the car before it will work. Where a part is only made in plastic by the factory and fails because it is plastic, we say so and we offer the metal one.

Specification and fitment

• Fits: 3 Series E46 E90 E91 E92 E93 F30, 5 Series E39 E60 F10, X3 E83 F25, X5 E53 E70, 1 Series E87 F20, Z4 E85 E89
• Engine: chosen above. These cars change mid production, sometimes twice in a model year, and two cars built four months apart can take different parts. Send us the last seven digits of your VIN with the order and we check the part against the build record before anything is dispatched. It takes us two minutes and it is the difference between a part that fits and a return.
• Production dates: 1998 to 2018 depending on chassis and engine
• Quality: made by the firm that supplies the vehicle manufacturer, in that firm's own box rather than a dealer box. Identical part, identical line, no dealer margin, and this is what we would fit ourselves
• Part number: cross referenced to the original equipment number for your VIN and confirmed before dispatch. We do not publish a single number against a listing that covers several build variants, because that is how people order the wrong part
• The failure this addresses: VANOS is the variable valve timing. On the M52 and M54 it is a rattle at idle caused by perished seals, which is a seal kit and an afternoon. On the N series it is usually a solenoid, which is a twenty minute job and a hundred pounds. Neither is the engine failure people fear when they read the fault code, and the diagnosis is worth doing before the wallet comes out.
• Labour time: twenty minutes for a solenoid, three to five hours for a seal kit or a unit
• Coding: no coding, but the adaptation values want resetting with a diagnostic tool afterwards or the car will run on the old learned figures for a while. The VANOS adaptation should be reset after any work here or the engine runs on its old learned offsets
• Also needed: engine oil and filter if the VANOS was starved, new sprocket bolts in the later specification, and thread locking compound
• Torque: sprocket bolts torqued then angled with the later specification bolts and the correct thread lock. This is the detail that turns a good VANOS job into a permanent one
• Weight: approximately 0.1 kilograms
• Warranty: two years or 24,000 miles, whichever comes first
• Diagnose first: a VANOS code is a symptom. Check the solenoid, then the strainer, then the camshaft position sensor, and only then think about the unit. The order matters and it goes from twenty pounds to five hundred
• The rattle: on an M52 or M54 a rattle at idle that eases as the engine warms is perished VANOS seals, and it is a seal kit rather than a unit
• Sprocket bolts: these back out on the M52 and M54, and when they do the engine is usually finished. The later bolts are cheap and are in every relevant kit here
• Oil: VANOS works on oil pressure, so thin, old or low oil gives VANOS faults on a healthy system

What arrives

• the part as described
• seals and O rings disturbed by the job
• later specification bolts and thread lock where applicable
• instructions and torque figures

Fitting

Twenty minutes for a solenoid, three to five hours for a seal kit. Reset the adaptations afterwards with a diagnostic tool, because the engine will otherwise run on the offsets it learned from the failed part and will feel flat for a while.

Which version to buy

Work up the price list, not down it. Solenoid, strainer, camshaft sensor, oil condition, and only then the unit. We will read a live VANOS position against commanded for free and tell you which step you are on, which is the difference between an eighty eight pound repair and a five hundred pound one. VANOS is the variable valve timing. On the M52 and M54 it is a rattle at idle caused by perished seals, which is a seal kit and an afternoon. On the N series it is usually a solenoid, which is a twenty minute job and a hundred pounds. Neither is the engine failure people fear when they read the fault code, and the diagnosis is worth doing before the wallet comes out.

This is a workshop service carried out at our premises at Unit 1 Main Road, Tydd Gote, Wisbech PE13 5QD. It is available to UK customers only. After you order we contact you within one working day to book your car in.