How much Should Head Gasket Replacement Cost BMW 540i, Any Techs?

[VertZ24]

Well, I bought a BMW 540i with the 4.4L V8 to flip. When I bought it it had blown head gaskets, I got a quote from the shop and they said worst case senario we will put a used engine in it if there is any damage and it would be just shy of 4,000$. That was reasonable, turned out everything inside was fine so they just had to replace the head gaskets. Now keep in mind to do the HGs in these cars the engine has to be removed, understandable. I was charged 43hrs labor and 600 for misc parts/solvents. The bill came to 4,000 even which was the number I said call me if it gets over because I will not spend over that, seems fishy huh?

So my question is, whats a rough estimate on a BMW 540i 4.4L V8 1997-2003 head gasket job. I am going to call the BMW dealership monday but I thought maybe there would be some techs here. Regardless I have lots of room to make money on the car and the payment has been done but whats everyone think.

I will post up a copy of the bogus bill in a few.
Thanks
Chris

[BKphoto]

quite frankly I've never heard of anyone having to do this on a V8...its usually a 6 problem...

[jamesdc4]

My head gasket has a small leak, but it is not bad enough to warrant replacement yet.

[BlackSapphire]

Well, 'removing and replacing cylinder head' books at 15-16 hours from BMW.

I would imagine that process would be the base. I'm sure other items are tacked onto that. That gets you in the ballpark.

15-16 x hourly labor rate.

[BKphoto]

+ its like home repairs, you don't know whats wrong until you are knee-deep into it...

[VertZ24]

Yea they charged me for a lot of weird parts, they were supposed to be the best around for these foreign cars. This was the first time I have ever brought my cars to a shop so I did not know what to expect. Everything is usually done by me but I did not want to mess this up.
They charged me 12 hrs to remove and install the engine and 15 hrs to do the head gaskets, thats what urks me. Then to do the water pump it was 2.8 hrs, unreal I am going monday to flame throw.

But yes the HGs were bad, the car overheated and then they thought the block or the heads were craced and everything was inspected and machined like new. Awesome car, I just dont want to get ripped off. I am going to sell the car $12,900, it is in Mint condition, the dealer said it was one of the cleanest 5 series he had seen when I went to trade it in on an 840 (Next car.)

[ViolinARC]

Your first mistake was giving them a number to shoot for. When you said the most you were willing to spend was $4k, it was an open invitation to rip you off. It appears that they charged you twice for the engine removal/installation. The head gaskets probably have a book time of about 3 hrs. and the 12 hrs. to remove/install the engine seems alright. I question the additional 12 hrs. on top of the 15 hrs. Something certainly seems fishy here since you could've dropped in a like "new" engine for about the same cost. My Indy would NOT have charged the labor hours to do the water pump 'cause the engine is already out. When I had my valve covers done, he did the plugs at NO EXTRA CHARGE! Face it, that shop took advantage of your good, trusting nature. Time to call around and get some other quotes before contacting your local Chamber of Commerce and BBB. Do your homework this time and you may be able to recover some of your precious funds for other projects. GL Bro...sorry to hear that you were taken for a "ride".

[Shocker]

I replaced my headgaskets without removing the engine, so they bent you over on that extra 12 hrs. IMO

[hellrot98m3]

anybody know what i should expect for a 98 m3 in hours? having this done this week, by a guy who has a lot of experience

[e39dream]

Inline 6 head gasket should not be too bad- unless your head is warped or cracked. Nice M3 btw.

[NZ 540I]

Hi,sounds like the shop you went to have the repairs carried out with ripped you off.Having worked for the main bmw dealer in auckland nz,we never remove engines to do heads on m62 or m62 tu.Average cost for headgaskets(without rebuilding the heads or head damage)would be around 5 to 7k nz.Price goes up when heads need rebulid and if other components need replacement.Average time 15 to 18hours depending on condition and problems that arise e.g broken studs,waiting for parts,machine shop...

[525iT_Feen]

I suggest resurfacing the heads every time you do a head gasket, ESPECIALLY if it blew and wasn't just replaced as preventive maintenance. Just thought I would throw that in there as food for thought. 16 hours seems like a bit much IMO.

[VertZ24]

When I get back I am going to scan the bill, I know it was dumb shouting out the price of 4gs. I am confronting them tomorrow and if they do not cooperate I am going to the BBB. Any tips on this? Did I mention that they forgot to plug in the oil sensor by the oil filter and when I went to my college commute the car said shut engine off immediately. So I did so and called the shop since I found the connection missed. They towed it to be safe and put 15$ worth of gas in it to be safe since it was on an 1/8th tank. I got the car back fine no charge then they called me a week later for the 15$ gas money, Joke huh? I am going tomorrow to have words, hopefully i come back with some money, I love this car but getting screwed makes me feel bad to my stomach, I almost dont enjoy driving the car.

[nzfiveforty]

Having worked for the main bmw dealer in auckland nz,...

McMillans or J Claytons?

[amancuso]

hrmmm... well If your next car will be an 840Ci/i be prepared to spend even more cash!

[NZ 540I]

I done my time at McMillans,then moved on to giltrap prestige.

[nzfiveforty]

I done my time at McMillans,then moved on to giltrap prestige.

We might know a couple of the same people then. I did my time at mcmillan ford in the eighties just before it got bought out by cable price. Ive been on these boards off and on for just a couple of weeks, there's some good info here. Anyway, welcome. Might pick your brain at some stage if there's anything i cant work out on my 540...

[NZ 540I]

you're more than likely right,you must have known Eric Haddock then?
I haven't been on this board long and thanks for the welcome.Its good to get other peoples ideas and info on these cars.If you have any problems and need help,i'll do my best to help. Cheers.

[nzfiveforty]

Was he the service manager for a while? I rememebr Glen and Jacko, Steve.., I was good friends with Trevor (they were all team leaders then). There was a Mike (cant remember surname) that moved to BMW at about that time.. had a stuck throttle and put the clutch in to stop and so blew a motor on his first week so the story went.. the good old days lol...

Vertz24 - sorry bout the thread hijack.

[kxl77]

IIRC, my shop instructor once told us that based on the book hour of a vehicle, shops can NOT charge you more hours in labor. If it's a 2 hour job, and they finish in 10 minutes, they still charge you for 2 hours. If they finish in 20 hours, it's still 2 hours. Maybe this only applies to dealerships, but it might be worth finding out. Best of luck. Sucks to hear that you got ripped off. Post a picture of your bill so we can further analyze it.

[VertZ24]

17.6 for removal and installation of engine
15.0 hrs to replace head gaskets
1 hr, replace water pump gasket
2.8 hrs dissassemble and replace cylender heads
1.8 hrs to remove and install valley plate
2.2 hrs to seal rear collant plate/repair broken bolts
1.8hrs to replace lower oil pan gasket
.3 oil change
1 diagnose blower motor resistor not working (never even asked for that)

I am going to the shop today hopefully they cooperate, all data shows 12 hrs to remove and install engine. I hope Iget some money back but not likely.

[Jim Knight]

If you go looking for a "Good Buy" they are gonna give you a "Good-Bye" You ain't never gonna get nothin' from them.
JimK

[Maxeah]

Okay, I need to chime in here. Firstly, I have worked on this engine in a 740.
much more room to play, and a 540 it is a nightmare. I bought this car for my son a 99 540 I in knew it needed valve seals. AnyWho, if I was going to do head gaskets in this car I would definitely remove the engine. Just too close to work in there. There are so many, might as well replace other parts, while I'm in there to mention. Even if you replaced the engine, unless it was totally rebuilt, you don't know what you really get, until you install it and started up for the first time.
Personally I think you got out on the cheap, I would think this would be a $7000 job. My last question is, is the car running well? Then just sell it, or Drive it , and don't buy another one with the major engine problem. My 2 cents
Alan