TechSuperstar

Searched the threads and wiki and didn't find anything. Has anyone done a DIY on this? I've got oil leaking from the area and have a few questions:

1: The dealership wants to replace the whole assembly. They say sometimes they are cracked on the bottom. Is this common? If I'm taking it apart anyway should I just replace the whole thing or just the gasket?

2: How hard is this to do? Is there a DIY somewhere?


Gaskets: 272-184-00-80 - ~ $7
272-184-02-80 - ~$7

Whole assembly (not sure if it includes the gaskets or not)
272-180-05-10 - $87

Thanks

DanielFD

They are known to break down and mix some oil in the coolant, in your case most likely just the gasket. But they exchange the whole part because its known to break down anyway (good insurance) I'd say to do the whole exchange anyway as its not expensive.

TechSuperstar

Thanks.. I think I'm going to do the whole thing. Hoping to get some info if anyone else has done this. I'm hoping I can just siphon some of the coolant out to get it below the level rather then draining it all. Not sure any oil actually needs to be removed... etc..

DanielFD

thats correct you can probably do that. though id check and make sure theres no oil in the coolant or else i'd replace the coolant completely.

Rudeney

This is really very easy! I could do it in about 30 minutes. First, drain about a gallon of coolant. To do this, you will need to drop the lower engine cover, but you can do this without lifting the car. Just remove the front four (of six) 8mm bolts holding the cover in place, then you can flex it a bit to get it to pop out from inside the bumper and access the stopcock for the radiator. There is a small nipple on the back of the radiator, bottom right (car's right) just behind the stopcock - put a hose on that nipple, and into a gallon jug then open the stopcock and drain. After that, remove the oil cooler, but be ready with a rag as you will get a few ounces of coolant out of it. Once it's all back in place, pour the coolant back into the reservoir.

TechSuperstar

Thanks Rodney. I'll be attempting in the next week or so. Worried about it making a big mess which is what happened a couple months ago when I changed out the power steering reservoir cause that was leaking. We'll see how it goes.

Ghennes13

Hey rudeney,

I want to replace just the gasket to the oil cooler on my 09 550. Do I need to drain the coolant/oil if it’s only the gasket alone and not the whole unit? Plus there’s a black metal pipe that sort of curves over the oil cooler blocking access to the bolts holding the cover plate to the cooler. What is that and is it safe to remove? First time doing this job and will save me a ton of money. Appreciate the feedback.