DIY: S65 M3 Rod Bearing

[SYT_Shadow]

Thank you for the followup! Glad it all worked out!

[jhu321]

starting the shopping for the bearing job.. i'm pretty sure i'm going with BE per everyone's recommendation. that being said, I do have a question on the bolts. there's the BE ARP bolts and then there's the ARP bolts. FCP wants like 500 bucks for the ARP bolts but ECS wants 300 for the BE ARP bolts. that's a pretty big price difference for what i can figure.. the BE one is better? it seems the forum here use the the BE one. is there any reason why the 500 dollar one exists? it just doesn't make sense if they're both made by ARP.

also this may seem like a stupid question. plastigauging the bearings... when i did the S54 bearings i plastigauged them and if there was a scenario where the tolerance was off, i can order a different size from bmw oem. But with the S65 BE, there's no alternative sizing... so if the tolerances are off, then what's the course of correction here? like it feels kinda weird to even plastigauge it knowing that there's no course of correction available, i must be missing something. Thanks

[jvictormp]

Originally Posted by jhu321

starting the shopping for the bearing job.. i'm pretty sure i'm going with BE per everyone's recommendation. that being said, I do have a question on the bolts. there's the BE ARP bolts and then there's the ARP bolts. FCP wants like 500 bucks for the ARP bolts but ECS wants 300 for the BE ARP bolts. that's a pretty big price difference for what i can figure.. the BE one is better? it seems the forum here use the the BE one. is there any reason why the 500 dollar one exists? it just doesn't make sense if they're both made by ARP.

also this may seem like a stupid question. plastigauging the bearings... when i did the S54 bearings i plastigauged them and if there was a scenario where the tolerance was off, i can order a different size from bmw oem. But with the S65 BE, there's no alternative sizing... so if the tolerances are off, then what's the course of correction here? like it feels kinda weird to even plastigauge it knowing that there's no course of correction available, i must be missing something. Thanks

simply put, BE-ARP bolts are less strong than ARP. ARP "pure" product is on the market before S65 came with the bearings demand, and was employed on more powerful applications than the S65.

BE-ARP is a specific design, enough for the application even when supercharged, thus cheaper.

Also, with the decrease in the strenght, BE was able to achieve less bore distortion with their design.

About plastigauge, if you going with BE, don't bother yourself with it. It's hand-measured before packaging.

[sebm3]

Hey all, looking for some feedback on the BE Bearings.

Are these the right ones to order or is there another version?

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-be-beari...527hkstds65~b/

[SYT_Shadow]

Originally Posted by sebm3

Hey all, looking for some feedback on the BE Bearings.

Are these the right ones to order or is there another version?

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-be-beari...527hkstds65~b/

Those are the right ones!

[sebm3]

Originally Posted by SYT_Shadow

Those are the right ones!

Thank you!

[sebm3]

FYI for anyone planning to order the BE Rod Bearings from ECS… their website shows shipping in 4 or so days but got an email from them after I ordered saying the rod bearings are delayed by 2-3 months…

[SYT_Shadow]

Originally Posted by sebm3

FYI for anyone planning to order the BE Rod Bearings from ECS… their website shows shipping in 4 or so days but got an email from them after I ordered saying the rod bearings are delayed by 2-3 months…

I always order straight from the be website

[sebm3]

Originally Posted by SYT_Shadow

I always order straight from the be website

I’ve sent them an email to see if they have an earlier ship date.

[M3JayM]

I had an order in with ECS, but cancelled when they quoted 2-3 months wait time. Placed an order directly through BE’s website which was showing a July 1 ship date. Fingers crossed.

[sebm3]

Folks who DIY the Rod Bearings, which torque wrench do you use/recommend?

[SYT_Shadow]

Originally Posted by sebm3

Folks who DIY the Rod Bearings, which torque wrench do you use/recommend?

I used a cdi electronic one, but nowadays gearwrench sells one for under 200, also electronic.

[M3JayM]

Originally Posted by sebm3

I’ve sent them an email to see if they have an earlier ship date.

Did they ever respond?

[sebm3]

Originally Posted by M3JayM

Did they ever respond?

Yes, said they’ll ship in 2-3 weeks.

[M3JayM]

Got an email from BE saying my bearings shipped

[sebm3]

Yup, they shipped mine as well

[M3JayM]

Bearings finally arrived today (shipped July 3 with fedex 2 day smh).

[sebm3]

Originally Posted by M3JayM

Bearings finally arrived today (shipped July 3 with fedex 2 day smh).

Yup mine were delivered today as well.
The packaging wasn’t great to be honest. The bolts were loose in the box…

[cesh35]

just followed write up to do the bearing job and motor mounts on my car. went well and all went smooth. 20 mile test drive after oil top up and engine sounds healthy and no issues to report. used BE bearings, ARP bolts, turner motorsport poly motor mounts and liquimoly 10w60.

[sebm3]

Originally Posted by cesh35

just followed write up to do the bearing job and motor mounts on my car. went well and all went smooth. 20 mile test drive after oil top up and engine sounds healthy and no issues to report. used BE bearings, ARP bolts, turner motorsport poly motor mounts and liquimoly 10w60.

Nice!
I’m planning to get this done hopefully next weekend. I’m still trying to figure out which torque wrench to buy lol

[jvictormp]

Originally Posted by sebm3

Nice!
I’m planning to get this done hopefully next weekend. I’m still trying to figure out which torque wrench to buy lol

I've done it with a click wrench and a stick wrench combined.

A tip:
Don't adjust the click for the desired torque from the beginning. You need to know if that position of your arms won't prejudice the click mechanism to occur. Let's say your click torque wrench has a range of 28Nm through 200Nm, and your desired torque to the bolts is 67Nm (50ftlb, can't remember if it's right). You adjust to let's say 35Nm and torque down to confirm if it clicks. If it doesn't you avoid overtorque.
Try to change your position until it clicks, if you can't find the best, use the stick torque wrench, where you can actually see the torque indication.

[M3JayM]

Shop finished up the job on Friday and I can’t believe how much smoother the car feels with the fresh engine mounts (just under 80k miles). I haven’t even driven it very aggressively yet, but I can still feel the power being put down more.

I didn’t ask for the pics of the worn bearings to share, but the mechanic showed me them when I picked up my car and a couple were pretty bad. I’m very happy that I got the replacements installed when I did.