353,000 mile M3 now a Forum car

[DrFerry]

5 minutes left in the auction and it's currently at $7300. SOLD for $9390. I was close when I estimated $10K-$12K.
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[smmmurf]

Hello, my friend and I bought this car. We're taking it to MRF for rod bearings and will let you know how they come out. Thanks for bringing it to our attention!

[DrFerry]

Originally Posted by smmmurf

Hello, my friend and I bought this car. We're taking it to MRF for rod bearings and will let you know how they come out. Thanks for bringing it to our attention!

Congratulations! Now you'll have to send us (post) some photos here.... or it didn't happen. MRF (Malek) is a great choice for RBs and inspection. I suggest you use B.E. Bearings and ARP (B.E.) bolts which are the "gold standard" and a real, longterm engineering solution. The main bearings should probably be looked at too. Did you check the CarFax (or similar) maintenance report/records before hand? If so how did it look? Good luck with whatever you're doing with the car. Heck, you could make your own thread just showing what all you find with the car.

[smmmurf]

Originally Posted by DrFerry

Congratulations! Now you'll have to send us (post) some photos here.... or it didn't happen. MRF (Malek) is a great choice for RBs and inspection. I suggest you use B.E. Bearings and ARP (B.E.) bolts which are the "gold standard" and a real, longterm engineering solution. The main bearings should probably be looked at too. Did you check the CarFax (or similar) maintenance report/records before hand? If so how did it look? Good luck with whatever you're doing with the car. Heck, you could make your own thread just showing what all you find with the car.

We will follow Malek's recommendations on what bearings to use and look forward to the feedback that he has on the rest of the car. We ran the Carfax and inspected the car in person prior to bidding. I have a 2009 M3 6MT that I've owned since European Delivery and look forward to the journey with this DCT car!

[Three Pedal Steve]

Originally Posted by smmmurf

Hello, my friend and I bought this car. We're taking it to MRF for rod bearings and will let you know how they come out. Thanks for bringing it to our attention!

smmmurf- If you want to continue this thread, I will be glad to change the title and add an intro paragraph to the first post. It would make an interesting thread for the forum to follow the progress on what appears to be the highest mileage M3 known by the group.

We are eager to see the old rod bearings that come out of this beast.

[quiksi]

Oh man… this person has out-M3’ed every one of us

[smmmurf]

Originally Posted by Three Pedal Steve

smmmurf- If you want to continue this thread, I will be glad to change the title and add an intro paragraph to the first post. It would make an interesting thread for the forum to follow the progress on what appears to be the highest mileage M3 known by the group.

We are eager to see the old rod bearings that come out of this beast.

Thanks for the offer! The car drove on its own power to MRF Engineering after replacing the dead battery. I will do my best to keep the forum apprised of what happens to the car after Malek takes a look.

[a5m]

This is incredible. Imagine if it's on original RBs...

[DrFerry]

Originally Posted by a5m

This is incredible. Imagine if it's on original RBs...

Possible, but not likely IMO. I'm guessing this particular car is already on B.E. Bearings and has been well taken care of with decent maintenance along the way and regular oil changes. Consequently, perhaps that's why its S65 motor has lasted such a long, long time. But what about the DCT and the clutch pack as well as the cylinder compression values? Admittedly, the above is speculation on my part, but 353,000 miles on original OEM bearings....now that really would be one for the forum history books. The mind boggles and the saga continues. smmmurf Might be worth contacting the original owner for some tips on E9X M3 mega longevity. Or perhaps it's all low RPM, low stress highway miles most of its life. Didn't the Ad listing say "one owner"?

[DanMpower]

Originally Posted by smmmurf

Thanks for the offer! The car drove on its own power to MRF Engineering after replacing the dead battery. I will do my best to keep the forum apprised of what happens to the car after Malek takes a look.

Great purchase! She cleans up nicely too. Was the car misfiring like the ad says, was it in limp mode?

[smmmurf]

Originally Posted by DanMpower

Great purchase! She cleans up nicely too. Was the car misfiring like the ad says, was it in limp mode?

We cleared the code for the misfire after replacing the battery. It did not come back on the 30-minute drive to MRF, but we suspect it might be related to a faulty spark plug or ignition coil.

[amg6975]

This right here is why they created the internet. Awesome that we all get to see what a 383,000 mile M3 is like!

[charliev68]

I want to know what bearings are in that car!

[Tragiclil]

I’ll def be following this. Fascinating to hear the story about this car.

[Redd]

Subbed. I'm so excited to hear the story on this car!

[Reddevils7]

Wow this was a single owner too?! I'm the second owner of my E92 at 18k miles. This is very inspiring as this will be a forever car and likely passed down

[DrFerry]

Is it just me or do its valve covers look new?
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I wonder what the previous owner could tell us about Throttle Actuator lifespan, wheel bearing lifespan, DCT clutch pack wear-life, oil filter housing gasket replacement intervals, valve cover replacement intervals, or other wear items such as the differential bearings, and driveshaft center bearing lifespan not to mention the catalytic converters and emissions testing. The ebay listing shows the word 'Ken' in the license plate?
>
LIC: 6KEN819
VIN: WBSWD9C5XAP363062
>
smmmurf How about posting the CarFax or similar maintenance data showing how the car was cared for?

[smmmurf]

Originally Posted by charliev68

I want to know what bearings are in that car!

We're anxiously waiting for an update from Malek who started disassembling the car to get to the rod bearings yesterday.

Originally Posted by DrFerry

How about posting the CarFax or similar maintenance data showing how the car was cared for?

We obtained the CarFax as well as the full BMW service history and will post it soon. There are a lot of lines to consolidate!

So far, it seems that the car was donated by the original owner, a surgeon from the Inland Empire who commuted just under 100 miles per day roundtrip. It was maintained at BMW of Ontario for most of its life. There are no indications that the rod bearings were ever replaced, but the throttle actuators were replaced in 2021 at 313k miles. We will share an update when we know more!

For now, enjoy a video of it starting up!

[Scrippy]

I love it! I’m at 261,XXX and it’s still running strong! I’ve had some issues but nothing too narly. I would love to know the general use of the car to the original owner. Did they track ever and if so how frequently? What kind of work do they do that has them driving this much? I love me some E9X M’s!

[DrFerry]

Originally Posted by Scrippy

I love it! I’m at 261,XXX and it’s still running strong! I’ve had some issues but nothing too narly. I would love to know the general use of the car to the original owner. Did they track ever and if so how frequently? What kind of work do they do that has them driving this much? I love me some E9X M’a!

From the earlier post: "The car was donated by the original owner, a surgeon from the Inland Empire who commuted just under 100 miles per day roundtrip. It was maintained at BMW of Ontario for most of its life. There are no indications that the rod bearings were ever replaced, but the throttle actuators were replaced in 2021 at 313k miles. We will share an update when we know more!"

[Scrippy]

Originally Posted by DrFerry

From the earlier post: "The car was donated by the original owner, a surgeon from the Inland Empire who commuted just under 100 miles per day roundtrip. It was maintained at BMW of Ontario for most of its life. There are no indications that the rod bearings were ever replaced, but the throttle actuators were replaced in 2021 at 313k miles. We will share an update when we know more!"

So it kinda sounds like basic daily driving was this cars life. So cool to be up there in this mileage! To me it seems like a great pickup that if given some love could really provide more life to a happy owner. Can’t wait to here where this goes.

[FrznM3]

It’s my birthday today, and my morning birthday wish is for there to be an update on this over the weekend!