m30 valve cover, stained

[e34m30SF]

Hey folks, my 90 valve cover (and most of the engine bay) is covered in what seems to be dried up oil. If i try to scrape it off with a screwdriver, it seems to come out in flakes. Is this a common problem on these cars?

my former 208k 89 535i had the same issue, but i wrote it off because it had 208k. this current car has 108k. and it's a 1990.

Any advice?

[indierthanthou]

sounds like cosmoline. not completely sure on what it is, but its not going to hurt anything. mine has it too

[Alexlind123]

Its cosmoline.

[Jeff N.]

..commercial paint stripper will remove the cosmoline. You can also have it dipped and bead blasted at the local machine shop...

..if it bothers you..

[Derek A.]

anti corrosive paste that was on the aluminum to prevent it from getting all furry on the trip across the ocean from the father land.

[Alexlind123]

..commercial paint stripper will remove the cosmoline. You can also have it dipped and bead blasted at the local machine shop...

..if it bothers you..

I would be quite surprised if paint stripper removed it.

[clevertd]

Got mine clean with brake cleaner.

[Rus]

As mentioned before, its probably cosmoline. Your intake manifold is likely covered in the stuff as well. You can really improve the look of the engine by painting the valve cover. When I did mine, I used an abrasive attachment in a drill to clean off the cover. Then I just used high-heat engine primer and paint. There are a variety of finishes you can get ranging from crinkle-paint to smooth clear-coated appearance too. I went with a simple matte black finish and its still holding up well after almost two years.

[Alexlind123]

As mentioned before, its probably cosmoline. Your intake manifold is likely covered in the stuff as well. You can really improve the look of the engine by painting the valve cover. When I did mine, I used an abrasive attachment in a drill to clean off the cover. Then I just used high-heat engine primer and paint. There are a variety of finishes you can get ranging from crinkle-paint to smooth clear-coated appearance too. I went with a simple matte black finish and its still holding up well after almost two years.

http://www.bimmer.info/forum/showthread.php?t=17365

[GoldenOne]

carb cleaner works extremely well also

[Jeff N.]

Paint = evil.

Clean. Dip. Bead blast. But don't paint.

Disclaimer: This is for "silver" paint to cover up the cosmoline.


As mentioned before, its probably cosmoline. Your intake manifold is likely covered in the stuff as well. You can really improve the look of the engine by painting the valve cover. When I did mine, I used an abrasive attachment in a drill to clean off the cover. Then I just used high-heat engine primer and paint. There are a variety of finishes you can get ranging from crinkle-paint to smooth clear-coated appearance too. I went with a simple matte black finish and its still holding up well after almost two years.

[Alexlind123]

Paint = evil.

Clean. Dip. Bead blast. But don't paint.

Disclaimer: This is for "silver" paint to cover up the cosmoline.

WHY?

[Jon K]

Mail it to me, I'll make it pretty ;)

[e34m30SF]

sure, i'll mail it to ya-better yet come over to sf!

[BFEINZIMER]

simplegreen and qtips
:)