Oil level window fix

I had my oil level window come out ( see trip report "Las Vegas to Bloomsburg 2011), and have been reading of several other BMW owners having this problem. Mine came out after 20 years - so, not a bad record. The service manager of the BMW dealership in Birmingham, Andy Carroll - came up with this fix after learning that there were no windows in the US. I did have this fix come off, didn't check for tightness after a very cool morning - did manage to get it back on and finish our trip. Here are a couple of pics of this item, I will now keep this in my parts stash on future trips.





Still waiting to get a replacement window from BMW, however another K owner had one and has sent to to me, I'll send him one back when I get a new one from BMW.

I believe he got this part at Home Depot, might help someone else with this problem if a window is not available and on the road.

Neat idea.

That caution on the outer disk is especially appropriate...

I carry one I bought at Pep Boys. To them it's a "1.5 in. temporary freeze plug". It doesn't have the fancy wing nut, just an ordinary bolt (hope I'm carrying the right wrench). Possibly these plugs are more available at auto parts stores than at hardware stores.

Pipe Stopper

Interesting idea. This is a pipe sealer or stopper that you can buy at any big box home improvement store for a couple of bucks. Don

Yep, a test plug, actually, that you install in drain and vent lines while doing a pressure test. The caution is for the pressure test, as if not tight enough, they have been known to blow out. Good temporary solution.

Simple workaround- great idea for a bailout fix. One to remember. Nice coincidence of metric and SAE size

racer7 said:

Simple workaround- great idea for a bailout fix. One to remember. Nice coincidence of metric and SAE size

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What's weird is that it says 1.5" (40MM.) 38 MM (1.496058") is actually a lot closer to 1.5" than 40 MM (1.574798").

What's weird is that it says 1.5" (40MM.) 38 MM (1.496058") is actually a lot closer

You can sure this is a BMW forum!

I picked one up at Home Depot after seeing Bob's post on another forum. $2.75ish.

Zaasu said:

You can sure this is a BMW forum!

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And I am surprised that no one has asked how much oil should be added until now.

Mark

I would think you would lose most of your oil, minus whats in the oil filter. In my K1100 I think I would add about 3 qts and head for home.

I think I would go for the automotive application plug, because it is designed for engine temps. One from Home Depot may be able to withstand temps only up to what you'd find in your plumbing.

Jeff488 said:

I think I would go for the automotive application plug, because it is designed for engine temps. One from Home Depot may be able to withstand temps only up to what you'd find in your plumbing.

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Just trying to get an education here. One is used in the application of pressure testing plumbing or ending the flow somewhere and may have a temperature limitation.

So if you go to an automotive store, what part are you looking or asking for?

On the other hand the plumbing one might indeed fail over time, but be enough to get you home in a few days.

At an auto parts store, you ask for a "temporary freeze plug".

On an engine block, a freeze plug is typically a steel or brass "dish" that's pressed into a hole in the side of the block, where the coolant passes near the outer wall. If the local environment gets cold enough to freeze the coolant solid in that particular location (a block may have several in various places), ice expands as it "phase-transitions" from the liquid state to the solid. Allowing this plug to be literally forced out of the block saves the misfortune of actually causing a cracked block.

Freeze plugs can be a royal PITA too, depending on where the engine designer decided to put them. They might leak (at either the circumference, or rot out at the center due to corrosion), or come out accidentally. Many moons ago, an acquaintance had a Jaguar V12 with a leaking freeze plug. This one was located on the left side at the very rear of the block. The factory manual and the local Jag shop both said the only way to fix it was to pull the engine.
Instead, this guy pulled the interior carpet, and sawed through the firewall... and got it pulled & replaced.