VANOS question

[lightning]

How do l know if it is working? Will the engine still run OK if the VANOS fails?
It was one of the points given to check when buying a Z3 3.0, but it only mentioned listening for a rattle from the front of the engine.

I read somewhere that it can stop working, but how reliable is it? I guess anything can fail. The engine certainly seems to perform well enough. Maybe l should try some in-gear acceleration runs to see if it matches the BMW figures, like 30-50mph in fourth gear.

[lightning]

I can't find much about this online or on a forum search.

Various people and websites advised me to "check for VANOS failure" but nobody seems to be able to tell me exactly what it is all about.

[Brian4]

Here's some of the symptoms with failure not as common as some make out though. Ask how many on here have issues and not many replies. The 3.0 M54 engine is pretty bomb proof as long as it is serviced regularly.

http://vanos-bmw.com/

I think the S50 and S54 engines were more prone but they have a slightly different system on these engines (M cars)

[Cabrioot]

Mine dit not rattle, car was running good and had power enough
Came from a VW golf with 110HP in to a 3.0 with 231 HP and then you dont mis 10 or 20 Hp.
To get the car in top condition i changed the Double Vanos and the disa valve.
Frome that moment i had a complete different car and a better runnig motor with more tork in the low rifs.
Bought the set at Beisan in th USA
Mine had 190000km on it how much have yours

[lightning]

It has only 54,000 miles.

I am sure it is fine, l will buy a code reader sometime so l can check for fault codes, and reset the service lights.