so after buying my 2003 540i last week i have complained nonstop about the loud valve train start up and everyone(2 diff bmw techs,2 diff indy guys,numerous forum guys,bmw salesman and 540 owner)all have said it is normal. i can not let it die! i am on a quest. the start up old is noisey as hell. it cannot be right. i have been told by the master tech at my dealership to flush out amsoil and put in castrol syn 60w and it will help...so i purchased the oil pan gasket and am going to check the oil pump bolts for my peice of mine and i will let you know the outcome. im going to my friends personal garagasaurus who has a lift and im going to drop the oil pan and ck the bolts and change the oil. it simply cannot be right like this....any thoughts. im a man posessed!!

+1

Post back after you've checked the pump bolts. Mine is noisy and embarrassing, but random. Sometimes it starts with no noise, other times after only a few hours, it's noisy.

It is NOT normal for this kind of racket.

My car sounds a bit cranky upon shutoff. It bothers me too.

i talked to a salesman friend of mine toady and he says his sounds like a gremlin in his engine with a hammer at cold startup then it goes away. he says he bought his car with 48k and now has 98k and it is just the same as it was when he got it. another forum guy says his is so loud that people stare at him when he starts his car and people can hear. i can understand alittle valve chatter but this is crazy. i took it to a bmw indy/mech engineer retired and he says that it shouldnt be that loud. he suggested the oil pump bolts. the m5 forum also confirms this but they thought it ended in 2001. it is making me a nervous wreck as it is only a week old too me. im stressing about it. a mastertech told me not to f*** with it. but i have to know.....so i cant imagine anything else it could be.

I can definitely see the oil pump bolts being loose as a culprit. It would be nice to think that the 8 quarts of 6 dollar/quart oil we use would leave a film on the parts good enough to be quiet at startup...

In case I don't see this thread once you've taken the pan off, will you pm me??

Thanks,

Mike

i will make sure i repost a thread as soon as i get finished. it cant be normal.

Cured one about 3 months ago by replacing the oil pump. (Yes, the bolts were ok on the old pump)

how can you tell if its bad?

Wow, I was just going to say replace it if you already that far into it, but a quick quote at PelicanParts.com yields a 353 dollar part...

Now we need to know how to tell if it's bad.

I have had two E39s and they both made a noise such as you describe on start-up. The '99 moreso than the '01. Some say it also might be the vanos system seals leaking,

I could've not agreed more, it's a downright embarrassing noise. However, my ford escort was noisy @ startup ever since I bought it with 15K miles back in 02. 6 years and 85K miles later, it still makes noise at the startup, however it made it so far =) Point is, I wouldnt mess with my car UNLESS I'M SURE certain part is faulty :)