Dr Vanos Replacement Worth It?

[YoungDinosaur]

I live in Denver and I can't seem to find any shops on the Front Range that have a good reputation for rebuilding the vanos. Because of that, I think I'm going to order the entire vanos replacement from Dr Vanos. That appears to be a widely accepted option from the community but I was wondering if anyone had any additional thoughts. Should I also replace the vanos oil line with a 3,000 PSI high pressure hose from Rogue Engineering? It seems like a cheap bit of insurance. Is there anything that should be replaced when the new vanos is installed?

Edit #1
- I just realized that Dr Vanos does not include the upgraded exhaust hub. They are charging another $800 for that and Beisan is charging $400. This would bring me up for $2,300 without labor just on the vanos parts.
- @Cubieman also suggested the Cam Bolt Kit which would also make sense since it's a cheap fix

[Cubieman]

If you are taking your VANOS off you should have the cam sleeve bolts checked at a minimum and I would replace them/loctite them, if they break you have the potential for major engine damage.

Dr. Vanos stuff is fine, but the heart of the matter is getting a pump disc with smaller holes drilled, you could save a ton of money if you had your disc machined or bought a machined disc and simply put in the O rings etc. in on your own all supplied by Beisan.

Alternatively you could buy a VAC hub that has bigger "tangs" to engage your current disc.

I get it if you don't want to do it yourself, but it's not that hard (Orings, disc removal/install) if you follow the instructions on Beisans website.

The aftermarket VANOS lines are fine but for a street driven vehicle replacing the line with a BMW unit is perfectly acceptable imo.

More info:

https://nam3forum.com/forums/forum/main-forum/e46-2001-2006/3317-s54-vanos-info-thread

[eacmen]

I live in Denver and I can't seem to find any shops on the Front Range that have a good reputation for rebuilding the vanos. Because of that, I think I'm going to order the entire vanos replacement from Dr Vanos. That appears to be a widely accepted option from the community but I was wondering if anyone had any additional thoughts. Should I also replace the vanos oil line with a 3,000 PSI high pressure hose from Rogue Engineering? It seems like a cheap bit of insurance. Is there anything that should be replaced when the new vanos is installed?

Edit #1
- I just realized that Dr Vanos does not include the upgraded exhaust hub. They are charging another $800 for that and Beisan is charging $400. This would bring me up for $2,300 without labor just on the vanos parts.
- @Cubieman also suggested the Cam Bolt Kit which would also make sense since it's a cheap fix

Mike from Naturally Agitated is in Denver. He has sold me a few rebuilt units over the years and all were perfect.

He is @naturallyagitated on instagram.

[Cubieman]

You only need the re-drilled disc OR the hub with larger tangs, not both.

I had forgotten about Naturally Agitated, if your in Denver pick one up from them, those are tested units as well.

I would buy a unit from NA and have your shop install new cam bolts as well. The anti-rattle procedure imo is really only good for potentially quieting your engine down so other sounds could maybe be heard better for diag purposes.

[Rkymtnrider]

I believe mike can rebuild and reinstall for you if you can leave your car with him.

[jet_dogg]

Is that the du who claims 400whp with a stroker that nobody's ever seen the dyno chart of?

[YoungDinosaur]

Thanks for the suggestions and info on the exhaust hub. I don't know if Naturally Agitated exists anymore. They aren't on google maps or yelp, IG is private, and their website doesn't work. I also found a post on Bimmerfest claiming that they were scammed by Naturally Agitated. Who knows if that was true but none of that is a good sign. Sad to see a local business go down like that.

My local independent BMW shop said that they had never done one of these and they thought that installing the pre-built VANOS would be $1000 in labor and another $800 in special tools of which they would want me to pay half. This is quickly getting out of hand.

[heinzboehmer]

My local independent BMW shop said that they had never done one of these and they thought that installing the pre-built VANOS would be $1000 in labor and another $800 in special tools of which they would want me to pay half. This is quickly getting out of hand.

Only special tool you need is the cam timing tool. $150 for the BMW one (which is what you want, one pin only): https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw...ol-83300493749

[Rkymtnrider]

Thanks for the suggestions and info on the exhaust hub. I don't know if Naturally Agitated exists anymore. They aren't on google maps or yelp, IG is private, and their website doesn't work. I also found a post on Bimmerfest claiming that they were scammed by Naturally Agitated. Who knows if that was true but none of that is a good sign. Sad to see a local business go down like that.

My local independent BMW shop said that they had never done one of these and they thought that installing the pre-built VANOS would be $1000 in labor and another $800 in special tools of which they would want me to pay half. This is quickly getting out of hand.

There is a performance shop in loveland that have a couple of e46 m3 race cars. Theyre kind of expensive, but at least have the experience of working on our engines. Cant remember the name at the moment.

[YoungDinosaur]

Is it SCR Performance? Do any of you guys know the Denver Beer and Oil guys on youtube and instagram? Is their shop legit?

[heinzboehmer]

Is it SCR Performance? Do any of you guys know the Denver Beer and Oil guys on youtube and instagram? Is their shop legit?

Avalon Motorsports in Denver and Gunbarrel Import Motors in Niwot both seemed to have decent experience with these engines.

I only ever had PPIs done at these places (never took my car in for service), but I was pleased with both. Seemed like all of the people there had owned one of these cars at some point lol.

If I had to choose, I think I would go with Gunbarrel Import Motors. They just seemed to have a bit more experience with this chassis. I will say that the only experience I have with both shops was back in 2017. Things might have changed since, but back then I would have been comfortable bringing my car to either. I would give them a call and see what they have to say.


I've seen the denver beer and oil guys at meets and similar, but I'm not sure I would trust my car to them. They seem to have a ton of experience with these cars, but also seem to be "whatever just impact the bolts on, it's a track car" kind of people. Probably not the best approach to take for more delicate engine jobs. I've also interacted briefly with Mike from naturally agitated (at least I think that was him, there were a bunch of people around the car). I've definitely seen his work though and it's pretty good. I've also heard he's been hard to get a hold of lately though.

[YoungDinosaur]

Contacted. Thank you. Denver Beer and Oil recommended that I reach out to Euro Garage Denver. I have to say that their Instagram timeline does seem to show work on a lot of M cars including E46 M3 vanos rebuilds and rear subframe reinforcement.

Edit:
I just talked to Euro Garage and they said that they just did a vanos rebuild last week so I think I found my place. Two year warranty. Now I need to figure out what to order from Beisan...