So I have a bad vanos

So the rebuilt motor I bought and installed a week or so ago obviously wasn't rebuilt right. After a week of driving, and having a gut feeling about it, I rediagnosed it at my work. and of course, a long laundry list of faults got pulled up. The obvious ones I knew of before hand were from my headers, I have yet to intall the O2 sim, but on top of that, I got about 6 vanos related faults from both intake and exhaust.

The diagnostic machine was pretty cool, it showed the postioning of both vanos solenoids in real time, and I found that the exhaust side is faulty and not moving at all.

This whole engine replacement has been probably the biggest F up and headache I've ever dealt with and am getting tired of having one thing after another get in my way of getting my car running legit again. Anyways, I happen to have my old vanos, which I had a feeling would come in handy, so my next plan is to try to swap them out.

I have read the beisan vanos seal replacement diy, and am just wondering how many of you have done it. Are there any snags involved with removing/installing a vanos? I know they are very delicate and the last thing I wanna do is destroy another motor. I plan on most likely replacing the seals in my original vanos then just swapping the whole unit over. Any input from experience would be much appreciated guys thanks again!

About a month ago i followed Beisan vanos seal procedures and everything came out and installed easily. i think if you can install a motor you can handle vanos seals

Yea the motor was a nightmare, luckily I had help with it. Wiring was the biggest headache ever. I'm sure I can tackle the vanos, especially after assembling a shortblock, but i just want to know what to expect with this new project. Did you feel anything noticeable from replacing your vanos seals? Did you have to re-time your engine after removing and installing your vanos?

And has anyone experienced similar loss in power as I am from their vanos? Pick up is very slow and, I can stomp the accelerator to the ground and the car will creep until it hits 3k or so.

From what I know 3k is the threshhold for vanos problems, and I've read many accounts of power, and response improvement after doing the vanos seals. I'm going to be doing mine probably later this summer/early fall when I do VCG.

i did notice better acceleration. it was worth the 60$ for the new seals. i have 175k miles and the vanos seals were plasticized and worn down. you have a double vanos. you dont have to worry about timing. beisan instructions couldnt be any more thorough.

It took all day for me because I was being careful, but wasn't hard to actually do. I didn't notice much of a difference in performance, but at least my car doesn't almost stall out on cold mornings anymore. Make sure you have the tools the DIY says you need. You really need them.

Originally Posted by HighPod

i did notice better acceleration. it was worth the 60$ for the new seals. i have 175k miles and the vanos seals were plasticized and worn down. you have a double vanos. you dont have to worry about timing. beisan instructions couldnt be any more thorough.

Are you sure the engine does not need timing by swapping a bad vanos unit with my original unit in good working order? I have techs at work saying otherwise, which is freaking me out a little lol. I'm pretty set on replacing the vanos seals asap on my original since it is already out and couldn't be easier to do lolol. Swapping the units is another story :/

i didnt have to do squat to the timing heres the instructions http://www.beisansystems.com/procedu..._procedure.htm


if you had a single vanos then you have to "lock" the timing http://www.beisansystems.com/procedu..._procedure.htm

I did this last year, and it was a piece of cake. I had only owned the car for about a month and had never done any work on it, but it still only took 6 or so hours. I'm sure if you already know your way around the engine it could take much less. The scariest part of the whole thing was taking out the reverse-threaded vanos bolts. I ran "righty-tighty lefty-loosie, now the opposite" through my head about a million times before I put pressure on them, but they came right out. If you follow the instructions you won't have to touch the timing at all.

To give you an idea of what it looks like the first picture is with the vanos still attached, and the second is after I removed it. The timing chain and cam gears are completely untouched.

No touching timing necessary or locking the engine when doing the job.

I read the instructions multiple times until it became reflex in my mind.

Saved a copy for my laptop to use when doing the job.

Did rattle fix at the same time. Why not when everything is wide open and all you need extra is an impact wrench and 4" bench vise with liners.

Originally Posted by ryansteel87

I did this last year, and it was a piece of cake. I had only owned the car for about a month and had never done any work on it, but it still only took 6 or so hours. I'm sure if you already know your way around the engine it could take much less. The scariest part of the whole thing was taking out the reverse-threaded vanos bolts. I ran "righty-tighty lefty-loosie, now the oposite" through my head about a million times before I put pressure on them, but they came right out. If you follow the instructions you won't have to touch the timing at all.

Yea I read thru the beisan diy a few times and removed my original vanos off my old motor, so I'm sure swapping the two units won't be too difficult. If all you guys have done it without re-timing then you all must be right. I just wanted to double check before I go thru with it. Thanks for the pics too.

Am I going to need a new VCG when I do this? I just put a brand new gasket in with that new motor or do you guys think I'll be safe?

Short time on your gasket and you should be fine.
Examine when you remove and make the call then.
New Permatex (O2 sensor safe) is required.

Originally Posted by threetwentyfizzle

Am I going to need a new VCG when I do this? I just put a brand new gasket in with that new motor or do you guys think I'll be safe?

When I bought my car the dealer had installed a new VCG in during their inspection, so I just reused it. If the rubber is pliable and shows no signs of cracking you should be fine. I haven't had a leak with mine and it's been driven for well over a year since my VANOS job. Make sure you have a good quality bit set for when you take the two allen caps off the VANOS unit though. I had some cheap ones and snapped the driver adapter when I tried to take them off. It was a PITA walking to Farm and Fleet to get a new adapter with my car in pieces. Also, do make sure you have a proper torque wrench for the VANOS bolts. If they aren't torqued properly you can snap them off inside your cam gears, which would add a whole new level of suck to an otherwise easy job.

Originally Posted by Stinger9

New Permatex (O2 sensor safe) is required.

+1

Do make sure you have new permatex to properly reseal your VCG, and make sure to scrape off all of the old stuff that might stick to the head. Anything that sticks to the gasket that wont peal off easily won't be a problem.

Thanks guys, sorry for the delayed reply, but I will take all your advice to heart. I will be ordering the vanos seals in the next few weeks when I get some extra cash and will prob do the vanos swap in the next couple months. Hopefully the job will go quick just having to swap the 2 units out, that should shave some time off of it

Originally Posted by e4Tsex

It took all day for me because I was being careful, but wasn't hard to actually do. I didn't notice much of a difference in performance, but at least my car doesn't almost stall out on cold mornings anymore. Make sure you have the tools the DIY says you need. You really need them.

Did mine yesterday, and had to go out and get a pair of short (4") flat-nose pliers. The radiator gets in the way of anything longer for pulling out the exhaust side VANOS seal.

Originally Posted by Wolrab

Did mine yesterday, and had to go out and get a pair of short (4") flat-nose pliers. The radiator gets in the way of anything longer for pulling out the exhaust side VANOS seal.

How long did it take you to do the job? Removing the fan shroud didn't give you enough room?

Just have assorted sized needle nose pliers ready. or flat nose. i think he meant for removing the piston bolt cap.

Originally Posted by threetwentyfizzle

How long did it take you to do the job? Removing the fan shroud didn't give you enough room?

I spent the whole day on it, but I'm pretty slow. I take my time the first time I tackle something like this. No, I took out the fan first (electric on mine). Not quite enough room for 6" needle-nose.

It's that little plastic thing that you pull out to expose the left-hand threaded bolt. By the way, the Beisan instructions tell you there's a risk of breaking off those little bolts. I didn't, but I had spares anyway. Cheap insurance. Note that Beisan doesn't supply the VANOS gasket or the seal rings for the banjo bolt. You need to have them on hand.

Originally Posted by Wolrab

It's that little plastic thing that you pull out to expose the left-hand threaded bolt. By the way, the Beisan instructions tell you there's a risk of breaking off those little bolts. I didn't, but I had spares anyway. Cheap insurance. Note that Beisan doesn't supply the VANOS gasket or the seal rings for the banjo bolt. You need to have them on hand.

Will do! Thanks for the tips guys! Hopefully this will restore my lost low end torque that I am desperately needing. Not to mention gas mileage lolol