Rod Bearing Changed 80k miles and BlackStone Report

[M3_Dylan]

Hi guys I just picked up a used 08 E90 M3 about 2 months ago as a weekend/track day car for a ridiculously low price.


This car was not loved or babied by any stretch of the imagination I don't even think they ever changed the rotors during the entire life of the car because I had never seen some in such poor shape. Talked to the dealership and they confirmed they car had at LEAST had all the bare maintenance done by them i.e. 15K oil changes. Of course reading this board made me paranoid about rod bearings so I sent the oil off to blackstone and they did not help the matter Luckily enough I just had a 2 post lift installed in my garage so I bit the bullet and did a DIY. I'm not going to pretend I know about building engines but they look pretty rough to me. What do you guys think?



Close up of first 4



Close Up of Last 4

[gobuffs]

They don't look too bad....for 80k miles.

[1MOREMOD]

Not that bad but good job on diy!

[debom3]

What did the black stone report say?

[squartus]

Look better than mine did at 30k.

[FISH22]

Originally Posted by debom3

What did the black stone report say?

x2

[chris719]

Better than some S65s. You aren't into the copper yet although looks like soon on a few.

[admranger]

Blackstone report is attached as a pdf to the first post. Lead was 22ppm! Copper was 7. Iron was 12.

OP: Please help me understand what a "ridiculously low price" means. I may have to go shopping...

[s85e90]

Looked fine to me.

[gazosnic]

Bearings look to be in pretty good shape for mileage. I don't see any copper. Doesn't sound in line with your black stone report.

[SenorFunkyPants]

They look pretty good...nice even light wear across the top shells (the "lead" layer is extremely thin - somewhere around .0005" to .0008" thick IIRC) and unworn lower shells.
Follows the trend for DIY bearing replacements showing far less wear than those typically reported for shop replacements.

[Ezio]

rofl. a M3 that wasnt taken extra good care of didnt blow up.

guys its luck of the draw sometimes.

[X5-User]

I am interested to know what is "ridiculously low price" as well. So far I didn't see any M3 sold below 20k (even if it had salvage/rebuild title) as long as the motor and transmission is fine of course

[Killerfish2012]

Should be in the mid-high 20s by now with 80K or more miles, especially for 6mts. As funkypants said, the shops who scared everyone showed you what they wanted you to see. OP, a waste of $.

[Killerfish2012]

Originally Posted by Dylan335i

This car was not loved or babied by any stretch of the imagination I don't even think they ever changed the rotors during the entire life of the car because I had never seen some in such poor shape. Talked to the dealership and they confirmed they car had at LEAST had all the bare maintenance done by them i.e. 15K oil changes.

Your story is the exact same as mine! Welcome to the M3 club. I have your exact stable, and added the M, last May. You're right about the rotors never being changed. Mine had so much rust on it, it was shocking. Do what I did, do at least 2-3 motor flushes, when you change the oil! You'd be surprised by the muddy goop that will come out, stemming from the 15K change intervals. Also, change those rotors before you hit the track, or at least pull out and spray them down to get the rust out of the holes, or else you'll cook your pads in no time!

[squartus]

No, they showed you what is really going on. I saw first hand what mine looked like at 30k, worn through to the copper on several thats with being very well taken care of.
Some of these engines are just ticking bombs from the factory, many more show bearing wear but will make it to 100k fine. Some show basically no wear over 100k.

Its not wasting money or being stupid by being prudent, I would of been in sad sad shape if I would not of changed my bearings ill tell you that. 2k beats 20k any day of the week.

[debom3]

Originally Posted by admranger

Blackstone report is attached as a pdf to the first post. Lead was 22ppm! Copper was 7. Iron was 12.

OP: Please help me understand what a "ridiculously low price" means. I may have to go shopping...

Thanks, the attachments dont show up when using the bimmerpost app.

[Killerfish2012]

Originally Posted by squartus

No, they showed you what is really going on. I saw first hand what mine looked like at 30k, worn through to the copper on several thats with being very well taken care of.
Some of these engines are just ticking bombs from the factory, many more show bearing wear but will make it to 100k fine. Some show basically no wear over 100k.

Its not wasting money or being stupid by being prudent, I would of been in sad sad shape if I would not of changed my bearings ill tell you that. 2k beats 20k any day of the week.

Before or after your blower?

[squartus]

I had bearings and rod bolts changed at 30k when I installed the blower, iv only put about 7k on the new bearings/blower.

[M3_Dylan]

Originally Posted by 1MOREMOD

Not that bad but good job on diy!

Thank you sir! Def a pain in the ass but it was well worth it as it also let me do some more hands on learning with the S65

Originally Posted by admranger

Blackstone report is attached as a pdf to the first post. Lead was 22ppm! Copper was 7. Iron was 12.

OP: Please help me understand what a "ridiculously low price" means. I may have to go shopping...

Originally Posted by Bimmer-M3

I am interested to know what is "ridiculously low price" as well. So far I didn't see any M3 sold below 20k (even if it had salvage/rebuild title) as long as the motor and transmission is fine of course

Ok so maybe the deal wasn't that good , but with my budget I thought only an e46 M would be within my reach. Here's the specs
08 E90 M3
78,000 miles
Alpine white/ black interior
6mt
I drive & cold weather package
2 owners and 0 accidents everything 100% functional
20k

Originally Posted by gazosnic

Bearings look to be in pretty good shape for mileage. I don't see any copper. Doesn't sound in line with your black stone report.

Originally Posted by SenorFunkyPants

They look pretty good...nice even light wear across the top shells (the "lead" layer is extremely thin - somewhere around .0005" to .0008" thick IIRC) and unworn lower shells.
Follows the trend for DIY bearing replacements showing far less wear than those typically reported for shop replacements.

Originally Posted by Ezio

rofl. a M3 that wasnt taken extra good care of didnt blow up.

guys its luck of the draw sometimes.

Yeah I honestly can't seem to make heads or tails of this whole black stone report. But maybe this will help someone who is on the fence about changing them sleep better at night

Originally Posted by Killerfish2012

Your story is the exact same as mine! Welcome to the M3 club. I have your exact stable, and added the M, last May. You're right about the rotors never being changed. Mine had so much rust on it, it was shocking. Do what I did, do at least 2-3 motor flushes, when you change the oil! You'd be surprised by the muddy goop that will come out, stemming from the 15K change intervals. Also, change those rotors before you hit the track, or at least pull out and spray them down to get the rust out of the holes, or else you'll cook your pads in no time!

Hey man nice to meet you and thanks for the welcome! Yeah I love my 335's power band but man this is a totally different animal. Those rotors were the first thing on my list. I did a full brake refresh with some high temp fluid, apex wheels and KW V3's. Signed up for my first track day in May so needless to say I'm beyond excited

[Killerfish2012]

Originally Posted by Dylan335i

Hey man nice to meet you and thanks for the welcome! Yeah I love my 335's power band but man this is a totally different animal. Those rotors were the first thing on my list. I did a full brake refresh with some high temp fluid, apex wheels and KW V3's. Signed up for my first track day in May so needless to say I'm beyond excited

Stock the M3 isn't all too much impressive in terms of acceleration compared to the FBO 335I, However it's much easier to run faster times with the M3 at the track. Once you mod the M3, Lord have mercy, the acceleration is shockingly fast. I honestly wasn't expecting it to be as fast as it is, but it puts my 335I to shame. Enjoy your car, and please pay a lot of attention to maintenance. Push fluids, because M3 owners, don't maintain their cars, and change a couple of worn parts. If you'd like me to list some key ones I've replaced, or have failed, just Let me know.

[FormulaMMM]

Originally Posted by Dylan335i

08 E90 M3
78,000 miles
Alpine white/ black interior
6mt
I drive & cold weather package
2 owners and 0 accidents everything 100% functional
20k

Wow. 20k even??