Should I replace these TVA gears?

[TWiTCHY]

Decided to check on my TVAs while I had the plenum off, and to my surprise, found little wear inside. My car has 85k miles and is an '08. Photos show the inside of one of the actuators, which appeared clean and mostly free of dust and residue. However, I did find rounding of the 6th and 7th tooth (when counting from the right) that is typically found by other owners that have fault codes thrown. It's just not as bad as I've seen and I don't want to mess with them and potentially create a problem. I have the Odometer Gears set handy when the time comes but I may get the set from the U.K. that includes the brass gear and pre-installed shaft.

Oh, and I also found a nest of some sort hiding behind the TVAs....

[drrust]

You've already done the hard part (taking them out). The odometer gear install is not that difficult, just needs care. If you have a drill press that makes pinning the gear, much easier.

Whichever route you take, pressing the shaft back into the actuator is another area where people (including myself) have run into difficultly. Make sure to use the washers mentioned in the instructions. Also make sure the washers are centered over the shaft prior to trying press in the shaft by using the nut. The issue is that the treads on the shaft can be stripped if there is interference. Alternatively a hydraulic press could be used, but that's a tool most DIYers don't have handy.

Any idea what type of nest it was? Make sure no wires got chewed. At my work, squirrels have eaten wires on cars.

[Mvy]

Its hit or miss to replace the gears. And based on others who have had failures and the fact that the hard part is already done (removing them), id recommend you replace them both so you avoid future headaches. It seems these parts will fail, and based on your age and mileage its time for a proactive change out.

[SYT_Shadow]

Originally Posted by Mvy

Its hit or miss to replace the gears. And based on others who have had failures and the fact that the hard part is already done (removing them), id recommend you replace them both so you avoid future headaches. It seems these parts will fail, and based on your age and mileage its time for a proactive change out.

This

When the time comes I'll replace mine because I don't plan on first installing Odo gears and then dismounting the entire thing again to replace them when that doesn't work

[drrust]

If the actuators were not throwing codes, changing the gears now is a good option. The electronics likely are in good shape. I changed the gears in mine prior to any codes being thrown and have had no issues for a year.

If you were throwing codes, gear replacement seems less predictable. Now that one can get actuators for about $600 vs the $900 of the BMW stamped ones, many are just putting in new actuators.

[Mvy]

I saw this on another post.

$544 each from getbmwparts.com p/n #13627838085

https://www.getbmwparts.com/parts/in...&siteid=214672

I have also heard that you can use M5 TA's and just take one piece of the existing M3 ones you are removing and make it work. Those are around 500 each I believe. VDO is the OEM manufacturer for these actuators. Good luck. I just did mine at 8 years, 60k proactively as I was putting a super charger on and getting to them later is a bitch.

[TWiTCHY]

Thanks for all of your input. They were not throwing codes but I was hoping to go until 100k before replacing the gears. I'll go ahead and replace them with the brass ones from the U.K.

Also, I took some time to clean the throttle body valve undersides. Found a lot of oily grit underneath them and cleaned them with a rag soaked in throttle body cleaner and a toothbrush. I used a short ratchet extension to keep the valves open while I cleaned each bank. Seems like a good step to take to reduce the amount of force the TVAs need to use to actuate the valves.

[pbonsalb]

I agree with replacing them since you are in there anyway and a quality gear set like odometer gears or the UK brass gears are only about $225 for both actuators versus $1100 for a set of new VDO actuators. If yours were failing, I would recommend new actuators.

[Mvy]

BTW, that nest was hilarious. A mouse made a house in your motor.

[TWiTCHY]

Originally Posted by Mvy

BTW, that nest was hilarious. A mouse made a house in your motor.

I was afraid I was going to find a carcass in there...luckily it was just a bunch of insulation material and string.

[TWiTCHY]

You guys convinced me to do it. Was pretty easy! Finished both in about 2.5 hours. I followed a short 5 minute video I found on YouTube by Jason Bayliff, but skipped the drill and pin per Odometer Gear's instructions in favor of JB weld only. With Bayliff's instructions, you need to break the original half gear but then you don't need to mess with taking off the nut from the other end of the shaft. Took about 15 minutes per actuator to break off the half gear, grind down the shaft, and glue on the new one.

[bigjae1976]

Do you have a link to those gears?

[TWiTCHY]

Originally Posted by bigjae1976

Do you have a link to those gears?

Here you go!

https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw...odometer-gears

I recommend buying them ASAP since this is the old price. Not sure how FCP can sell these for $130 when they go for $230 everywhere else now. The kit repairs both actuators, so buy one kit.