Dropped this part in the head during valve cover swap! Help please.

tmontel · 04-12-2026, 10:02 PM

Hey everyone, I’m completely new to BMWs, while I’ve built a few motors in my life all of them being the LS platform, so this is same same but VERY VERY different.

I got a smoking deal on a 2015 335xi manual and I’ve been doing some preventative maintenance. And some much needed regular maintenance. I got the car so cheap for a leaking valve cover and the notorious grind into second.

So my question is. (This isn’t my photo)

But the part circled in red was laying on top of the eccentric shaft between two of the retaining springs.

I have no idea if it was laying there since the last time the cover was changed, or if I knocked it off removing the cover.

The part circled in green is a absolutely no where to be found, I spent about an hour and a half looking for it in the head I poked around with a pick I used a mirror I used a bore scope I couldn’t find it anywhere.

Now my worry here is that this will lodge itself into an oil passage somewhere and cause a real kerfuffle in the engine somewhere.

I was curious if anyone knows or has a diagram for the oil passages? Or does the head just feed back to the oil pan?

LA1Z24 · 04-13-2026, 05:56 AM

It'll be fine. There is no way for it to be pumped into a pressurized oil passage, so long as there is a screen on your oil pickup. There should be, unless it's broken. The piece is going to fall down an oil drain hole and sit in the oil pan till you drop it.

scubajim · 04-13-2026, 01:49 PM

get one of the small endoscope cameras and do a little searching I purchased an inexpensive one on amazon with decent optics.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MYTHWK4..._asin_title_18

tmontel · 04-13-2026, 01:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scubajim

get one of the small endoscope cameras and do a little searching I purchased an inexpensive one on amazon with decent optics.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MYTHWK4?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_ti tle_18

Yeah I have a nice bore scope, as I mentioned I searched for over an hour using it and multiple other tools. Couldn’t find it.

scubajim · 04-15-2026, 04:28 AM

oops, sorry my bad I guess I just skimmed right over that part

qx · 04-22-2026, 11:11 PM

To me it looks like the holder for the oil squirter:

04-12-2026, 10:02 PM	#1
tmontel New to BMW 2 Rep 14 Posts Drives: BMW 335i Join Date: Apr 2026 Location: Colorado, USA iTrader: (0)	Dropped this part in the head during valve cover swap! Help please. Hey everyone, I’m completely new to BMWs, while I’ve built a few motors in my life all of them being the LS platform, so this is same same but VERY VERY different. I got a smoking deal on a 2015 335xi manual and I’ve been doing some preventative maintenance. And some much needed regular maintenance. I got the car so cheap for a leaking valve cover and the notorious grind into second. So my question is. (This isn’t my photo) But the part circled in red was laying on top of the eccentric shaft between two of the retaining springs. I have no idea if it was laying there since the last time the cover was changed, or if I knocked it off removing the cover. The part circled in green is a absolutely no where to be found, I spent about an hour and a half looking for it in the head I poked around with a pick I used a mirror I used a bore scope I couldn’t find it anywhere. Now my worry here is that this will lodge itself into an oil passage somewhere and cause a real kerfuffle in the engine somewhere. I was curious if anyone knows or has a diagram for the oil passages? Or does the head just feed back to the oil pan? Attached Images
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04-13-2026, 05:56 AM	#2
LA1Z24 Major 668 Rep 1,306 Posts Drives: 2014 435i M Sport Join Date: Oct 2020 Location: Long Island iTrader: (0)	It'll be fine. There is no way for it to be pumped into a pressurized oil passage, so long as there is a screen on your oil pickup. There should be, unless it's broken. The piece is going to fall down an oil drain hole and sit in the oil pan till you drop it.
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04-13-2026, 01:49 PM	#3
scubajim Second Lieutenant 167 Rep 262 Posts Drives: 16 BMW 435 F33 Join Date: Oct 2023 Location: Milford CT iTrader: (0)	get one of the small endoscope cameras and do a little searching I purchased an inexpensive one on amazon with decent optics. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MYTHWK4..._asin_title_18 __________________
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04-15-2026, 04:28 AM	#5
scubajim Second Lieutenant 167 Rep 262 Posts Drives: 16 BMW 435 F33 Join Date: Oct 2023 Location: Milford CT iTrader: (0)	oops, sorry my bad I guess I just skimmed right over that part __________________
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04-22-2026, 11:11 PM	#6
qx Lieutenant 209 Rep 538 Posts Drives: F25 xDrive N55 PWG Join Date: Mar 2025 Location: US iTrader: (0)	To me it looks like the holder for the oil squirter: Attached Images Last edited by qx; 04-22-2026 at 11:22 PM..
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