2013 Rod bearings removed @ 55k miles

[yidgyi]

Hi,

I swapped my OEM bearings with BE Bearings and ARP bolts. Picture is down below and I have a question. How come majority of the bearings have black stains/pits on them? Looking at the condition of these bearings they look odd compared to others I've seen. I'm glad I swapped them out.

[SYT_Shadow]

I believe that is debris in the oil which was incrusted into the rod bearing surface

In the signature there's the rod bearing DIY and you can see my 2013 bearings... they look quite similar to yours

[jcolley]

Originally Posted by yidgyi

Hi,

I swapped my OEM bearings with BE Bearings and ARP bolts. Picture is down below and I have a question. How come majority of the bearings have black stains/pits on them? Looking at the condition of these bearings they look odd compared to others I've seen. I'm glad I swapped them out.

Oddball question, but has this car had any history of electrical problems? Did it sit for a very long period unused?

Years ago the shipyard I worked at had a large diesel generator they pulled the crankshaft on (massive job). The thrust bearing surfaces on that machine had pitting on the faces that were described to me (I never saw them personally) as looking like yours. The problem ended up being a faulty grounding device on the crankshaft of that machine. I never really thought about this in the terms of an automobile engine though.

[jlo0109]

These look much better than a lot of RB pulled from a 08-10 model with around the same miles.

Do you mind sharing a bit more additional info like what was your OCI? Driving habit, etc?

[yidgyi]

Originally Posted by jlo0109

These look much better than a lot of RB pulled from a 08-10 model with around the same miles.

Do you mind sharing a bit more additional info like what was your OCI? Driving habit, etc?

Bought the vehicle with 31k on the clock. Since then I've changed oil every 5k miles with Castrol 10w-60 TWS euro formula. The first year I put on 20k miles as a daily. According to Mike at BPM, the car has hit red line about ~850 times (has gone up since that). I religiously let it warm up to operating temps before pushing it. I let it idle for about a minute before taking off. I like to hit redline at least once a day traffic permitting but usually driving in the 2-4k rpm range. Been garaged for 95% of the time its been with me. No track days with me as owner. If you want more info lmk.

[yidgyi]

Originally Posted by jcolley

Oddball question, but has this car had any history of electrical problems? Did it sit for a very long period unused?

Years ago the shipyard I worked at had a large diesel generator they pulled the crankshaft on (massive job). The thrust bearing surfaces on that machine had pitting on the faces that were described to me (I never saw them personally) as looking like yours. The problem ended up being a faulty grounding device on the crankshaft of that machine. I never really thought about this in the terms of an automobile engine though.

When I bought the car it had a "weak" or dead battery for sitting so long. Was replaced with an OEM battery. The dealership had it for a summer until winter that year when I bought it. While ownership I was involved in a rear end collision which stopped the vehicle for about 5 months for repairs. Never had any electrical issues. The vehicle has sat for a while but never caused me issues. Some garage queen M3's sit for months.

[BayE30]

Originally Posted by jlo0109

These look much better than a lot of RB pulled from a 08-10 model with around the same miles.

Do you mind sharing a bit more additional info like what was your OCI? Driving habit, etc?

different rod bearing material on late model cars, so they are going to look different. My '11 rod bearings looked similar to these, see link : http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1402845

[Dave07997S]

Originally Posted by yidgyi

Hi,

I swapped my OEM bearings with BE Bearings and ARP bolts. Picture is down below and I have a question. How come majority of the bearings have black stains/pits on them? Looking at the condition of these bearings they look odd compared to others I've seen. I'm glad I swapped them out.

Even though there is a different material being used vs. the 08-10 models, those don't look so bad. Deensbimmer 2011 bearings look pretty bad and those were of the newer materials.

Dave

[carenthuziast]

Post 2011 cars have the tin-aluminum bearings which are harder. Pre 2011 have copper-lead.

[TrAcK TRaP]

I would install them back and run another 55K miles..

[pbonsalb]

You guarantee the motor?

[XIX]

Originally Posted by carenthuziast

Post 2011 cars have the tin-aluminum bearings which are harder. Pre 2011 have copper-lead.

2010 on have the new bearings. Not all 2010, but the change was made ~mid year, I think it coincided with the other major upgrades of that year.

[CSBM5]

Originally Posted by XIX

2010 on have the new bearings. Not all 2010, but the change was made ~mid year, I think it coincided with the other major upgrades of that year.

In the NA delivered cars at least, the switchover was the 2011 model year which started production in Mar 2010.

[deansbimmer]

The specks are hard materials (metals/dirt/carbon/etc) embedded in the babbit layer. Part of the function of the soft bearing surface is to allow easy embedding of foreign debris in order to prevent damage to the journals. That's part of the gripe we have against BMW's change to harder bi-metal materials vs the softer lead/copper makeup of the earlier type (or the BE/VAC type Clevite bearings).

Your condition could be due to infrequent oil changes, low oil levels, poor filter choice/installation or just the engine had been opened previously for work and the job was not done with cleanliness in mind. Good that you've got fresh bearings in there now. Cheers!

[XIX]

Originally Posted by CSBM5

In the NA delivered cars at least, the switchover was the 2011 model year which started production in Mar 2010.

Sounds like we are saying the same thing. I was talking about build date.