N00b Questions - Help me understand what I need to do? Code P0015 - Camshaft Bank 1

[FreeMan12406]

Needless to say, it's been a fun and rough 6 months of ownership on my 135i and that long journey can be read about here:

http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1387164

Well, a few days ago while putting around on the highway my SES light came on. Just great I thought to myself. Got off the highway, turned the car off, turned it back on and no SES. Got back on the highway and it instantly came on so I went back home and parked it. This week I was driving around again and the SES light popped on so it was the perfect time to take it to Autozone for them to quickly read the code. So here is what they told me...

Code - P0015

Definition - Camshaft position "B" - timing over retarded - bank 1

Now my car feels and appears to be running fine, even when the SES light is on. The only visible issue I can see is my RPM's stay at around 2k and to really get them over that I have to floor it. But the car feels fine and is supposedly running fine.

Question #1 - What do I need to look in to for fixing this?

Question #2 - I have a 5 hour drive today, would the car be fine to make the drive?

[ShocknAwe]

Think that's a version of the exhaust vanos code. When was the last time the oil was changed? Think you can clean your vanos solenoids yourself?

IF that's a vanos code, I would change the oil and filter, clean both vanos solenoids with carb cleaner and high pressure air and swap them Intake->Exhaust and vice versa. IF that doesn't fix it, next steps would be new solenoids, then new cam ledge bearings.

I just went through this a few months ago. Assuming it is just a vanos code, the car is fine to drive normally, but if cleaning things out doesn't fix it, you'll want to address the real problem soon.

[FreeMan12406]

Originally Posted by ShocknAwe

Think that's a version of the exhaust vanos code. When was the last time the oil was changed?

Within the last couple of months. It hasn't been that long.

Originally Posted by ShocknAwe

Think you can clean your vanos solenoids yourself?

I'm at the office all day and leaving immediately after. I have a buddy coming over to install my carbon fiber diffuser while I'm at work, I can have him do that too just to see if that would fix it.

Originally Posted by ShocknAwe

IF that's a vanos code, I would change the oil and filter, clean both vanos solenoids with carb cleaner and high pressure air and swap them Intake->Exhaust and vice versa. IF that doesn't fix it, next step would be cam ledge bearing.

I just went through this a few months ago. Assuming it is just a vanos code, the car is fine to drive normally, but if cleaning things out doesn't fix it, you'll want to address the real problem soon.

Awesome. Thanks for the roadmap to victory! I'll see if the first mentioned steps work and go from there. Thanks again.

[ShocknAwe]

Originally Posted by FreeMan12406

Within the last couple of months. It hasn't been that long.
I'm at the office all day and leaving immediately after. I have a buddy coming over to install my carbon fiber diffuser while I'm at work, I can have him do that too just to see if that would fix it.
Awesome. Thanks for the roadmap to victory! I'll see if the first mentioned steps work and go from there. Thanks again.

Again, confirm that it is an exhaust vanos code. I'm not used to the pXXXX codes.