Do I really need rod bearing replacement on 2012.5?

[Merlin_83]

Greetings,

Been a lot of recent posts in the forums that doing a rod bearing replacement is a 'must-do' item for owners planning to keep their M3's...what's particularly concerning is that I see more and more vendors offering service packages, and while nice to have options and know the price upfront - are we all suppose to just do this ?

My last Blackstone was perfect, but I've read on the forums that due to material change in 2011+ engines you cannot detect early on if the bearings are prematurely wearing or not ? is this true ?

Everyone time I have asked either a BMW tech or SA they've not once said anything about doing any replacements [ever] - granted I'm not asking an objective source but asking several different tech's and SA's from the two different BMW dealers in town I have never had even a slight acknowledgement, when I ask I look for tell-tale signs of a lie or omitting information and see none.

Cheers

[pbonsalb]

Maybe yes maybe no. Most of these cars are on their original rod bearings.

I changed mine when my extended warranty expired.

[Ervin87]

Keep monitoring your oil reports and make a decision later down the road. If your reports are good now, no reason to change them.

[mdm9]

Big reason the SA's and tech's are looking at you funny is because you're asking at the dealership. Nobody gets the bearings done there. I think if you ask for a quote it'll be somewhere around 6-8k.

A good indy shop known for doing performance mods to M's is gonna be the place with the most experience and the cheapest price for this job.

[mdm9]

Yes it is true, in 2011 they changed to tin/aluminum coatings on the bearings, so you can't look to lead and copper as your indicator metals for rod bearing wear unfortunately.

[SYT_Shadow]

OP, the year of your M has nothing to do with whether bearing replacement is needed

Most cars are on their original bearings, that said, pretty much everyone who has opened them up finds excessively worn bearings.

It's up to you. There's a DIY in my sig with the info, you may be able to DIY

[merakulous]

Originally Posted by mdm9

Yes it is true, in 2011 they changed to tin/aluminum coatings on the bearings, so you can't look to lead and copper as your indicator metals for rod bearing wear unfortunately.

So rather than look for high lead and copper in a Blackstone analysis, can you look for elevated aluminum and tin? If levels are abnormally high then you can do the bearings and see if the levels go back down. Seem reasonable?

[schnell1982]

I have asked many BMW tech's as well and get the same reply.
But my conclusion is that most cars out of warranty don't re-visit the dealership.
They did confirm with me many engine failures due to rod bearing failure but not for service which makes sense under the dealership.
2010.5 and later did change to tin/aluminum but that still needs to be addressed for a few reasons. 1 is that the bearing will still wear and another is that tin is harder then copper and when the bearing fails you will have more damage.
Bearings still need to be replaced and when you do VAC and other popular vendors will sell you bearings made from copper.
I would not bet all my money on just an oil sample report. They machines have to detect the material and a specific microscopic level.

[SYT_Shadow]

Originally Posted by merakulous

So rather than look for high lead and copper in a Blackstone analysis, can you look for elevated aluminum and tin? If levels are abnormally high then you can do the bearings and see if the levels go back down. Seem reasonable?

No one has, as of yet, shown any correlation between the tin/alu blackstone results and bearing wear.

This works on the older lead/copper ones

[loveskiing]

Can I ask why this is the very first time I'm hearing about rod bearings? What exactly are rod bearings and is it a simple fix I can do on my lunch break?

[65fastback]

Originally Posted by loveskiing

Can I ask why this is the very first time I'm hearing about rod bearings? What exactly are rod bearings and is it a simple fix I can do on my lunch break?

That's pretty damn funny right there!

Looks like by the time my lunch break happens today my rod bearings will be out of my car and I will know whether or not my third party National Warranty will cover the repair.

[doogee]

Stop getting oil analysis since it's a waste of money period.

If you can afford to spend $10k+ replacing your motor then don't worry about it, if you prefer the $2000 piece of mind, then get them changed. Pretty simple.

[Powashiftin]

Originally Posted by doogee

Stop getting oil analysis since it's a waste of money period.

If you can afford to spend $10k+ replacing your motor then don't worry about it, if you prefer the $2000 piece of mind, then get them changed. Pretty simple.

1000%.

[KawBoy]

March 2012 (no idea on ".5"). 27,400 miles.