Official S65 Rod Bearing Condition Example Thread

[Scharbag]

Originally Posted by eswaroop

Thank for sharing - good info there! So how do the new bearings address the issue? Are they harder material (which seems to be detrimental from the article) or are they built with more clearance ? (Which could make things worse if the original tolerances properly stacked up for a particular car ) Or are they replacing the worn parts but not necessarily addressing the issue longer term and will need to be eventually replaced again)

Here.

Here.

Some great information at those locations. Make yourself some popped corn and crack a beer!!

And just ignore everything that SneakyPete says...

Cheers,

[deansbimmer]

Here are some from the last couple of weeks. Had a run of some really bad ones lately. Some of these are a miracle there was no journal damage...







And then, we get a set from a time capsule that had the best oem bearings I've ever seen come out of an S65. German lottery winner! This is how we wish all S65 bearings looked.

[wfdeacon88]

Originally Posted by deansbimmer

Here are some from the last couple of weeks. Had a run of some really bad ones lately. Some of these are a miracle there was no journal damage...







And then, we get a set from a time capsule that had the best oem bearings I've ever seen come out of an S65. German lottery winner! This is how we wish all S65 bearings looked.

That's like buying a winning a $2500 lotto scratch off, but not knowing it, and then throwing it away... Still the right thing to do but sucks to find out they are flawless. I wonder if those are somehow out of spec in terms of measurements?

[pbonsalb]

Those 2008 bearings with 26k look great. Wish more looked like that!

[Helmsman]

Clearly an owner who understand about warming up and keep engine with fresh oil. 26k is only broken in so the way it should be, although seldom the case.

[NeverL8]

Originally Posted by Helmsman

Clearly an owner who understand about warming up and keep engine with fresh oil. 26k is only broken in so the way it should be, although seldom the case.

Not always the case, I’ve talked to original owners who did exactly that and bearings looked like crap close to that mileage.

[Helmsman]

Originally Posted by TheRussski

Not always the case, I’ve talked to original owners who did exactly that and bearings looked like crap close to that mileage.

Yep, as said, like it should be but seldom the case i.e. even with owners claiming they've warmed up.
Then again, swapped mine at 37k and they could have run for a long time to come.

[houston]

Any chance those pretty bearings were fresh replacements and the new owner didn’t realize it? (Me being jealous)

[Bartledoo]

That is the first set of supposedly oem bearings I've seen photos of that are unscathed...

[Helmsman]

Originally Posted by Bartledoo

That is the first set of supposedly oem bearings I've seen photos of that are unscathed...

Yeah, first I've seen too that seem completely un touched, nice. I would not put in extended clearance shell back, maybe VAC/ACL standard that are a tad more open then the 88/89 which I guess came out.

[SoCalRPM]

Originally Posted by deansbimmer

Our shop is in Dallas. We get Austin/Houston folks driving up all the time.

Originally Posted by eswaroop

Any good shop recommended to get the rod bearings done here near Austin Texas ?

**Annotation to this post - I'm an idiot. You said Austin, not Houston.**

I had a PPI done for my car at ABR in North Houston. It was a good experience overall and they seemed highly familiar with these cars.

Still, do your own research. I'm not sure what ABR recommends as replacement RB parts.

I think you'll find plenty of people on this forum who would recommend you make the trip to Dallas for deansbimmer

[Solo_M_Tech]

Originally Posted by deansbimmer

Here are some from the last couple of weeks. Had a run of some really bad ones lately. Some of these are a miracle there was no journal damage...







And then, we get a set from a time capsule that had the best oem bearings I've ever seen come out of an S65. German lottery winner! This is how we wish all S65 bearings looked.

Feckin wow.... that last set is OE new. I've never, s65 or s85, ever seen any bearings looking that fresh. There is hope.

[blueliner]

Well I finally succumbed to the hysteria and had my rod bearings done.

I have also included an older Blackstone report from when I first bought the car - about 9K miles before the bearings were changed. During my ownership my oil change intervals were very short (less than 2K miles) so I couldn't glean anything useful from those. Not great, but it's the only one I have.

2008
46K miles
Warm-ups/track days/supercharger unknown - I am both the 5th and 7th owner of this car, but there were perfect warm ups and no track days on my watch.

Replacement done by Cantech Auto in Syracuse, NY. Replaced with ARP bolts and VAC bearings.

I am not sure which are the tops and which are the bottoms but they are in order from left (1) to right (8).

[pbonsalb]

Not as bad as many. Better than my 2008 looked with 60k, but maybe mine would have looked like yours when mine had 46K. Too bad you are able to drive the car only 2000 miles per year. I’d probably sell mine if I did not use it much and buy a fun car I would use more.

[blueliner]

Originally Posted by pbonsalb

Not as bad as many. Better than my 2008 looked with 60k, but maybe mine would have looked like yours when mine had 46K. Too bad you are able to drive the car only 2000 miles per year. I’d probably sell mine if I did not use it much and buy a fun car I would use more.

Yes, I need to drive it more. I think part of me not driving it was from fear of bearing wear. That and I don’t like driving it in the rain. Or snow. Or wind.

[Frozen]

Originally Posted by Scharbag

Problem is, this is not just a mileage thing. The probability of failure is based on how tight your bearings are. Some peoples will never blow up and others are dusted at very low mileage.

Rod bearings are not wear items.

Purchase some properly designed BE bearings and do it once. BE-ARP bolts make it easier but new factory bolts work too.

Cheers,

This. Mine has 32k miles and the rod bearings are being replaced next week for peace of mind.

[SSR Performance]

Here are some results from cars that we did this weekend at the shop! What do you guys think?

3/16/19


3/16/19

[Kisenwether]

2009 E92 M3 6MT
60k miles
10w-60

[IamFODI]

Originally Posted by SSR Performance

Here are some results from cars that we did this weekend at the shop! What do you guys think?

3/16/19


3/16/19

I think the first one had a major dirt ingress problem, and the second one ran for a while with some kind of serious issue on Bank 1.

[SSR Performance]

Originally Posted by IamFODI

I think the first one had a major dirt ingress problem, and the second one ran for a while with some kind of serious issue on Bank 1.

Agreed. Bank 1 seems much further worn than the other.

[Helmsman]

Originally Posted by SSR Performance

Here are some results from cars that we did this weekend at the shop! What do you guys think?

First one 11k miles??

[Scharbag]

Originally Posted by Helmsman

First one 11k miles??

I think it is 77K Miles.

Either way, both sets look terrible.