Thanks! 🙌

Voted it up, because this is the truth.

Yepper. Dats wot I fought two.

You are correct. It is a common misconception that the locator tabs keep journal bearings from spinning, even among pro mechanics. The tabs are there simply for installation ease. As a real world example, I built a Ford FE V8 and had to use main journal bearings from a Cleveland which have the tabs in the wrong location so I filed off the tabs. The result is a great running engine with no spun bearings. You will spin a bearing if you lose oil flow.

Always regardless of the engine

Why do you think that soooo many in the auto business -knowledgeable people-go out of their way to explain that you ***don’t*** need to warm up your engine? I always do. Just the N52 that I have in 2 cars, I let it idle for 5 minutes then drive it slowly in lower gears, keeping revs below 3,000, for 10 minutes. I hope that this will pay off.

@@Bmwguy2011 It's so simple.

@@EvolveAutomotive that's right 👍

no you don't need to let the car sit and idle for many minutes before driving. You DO need to drive the car fairly slowly and easily for the first few minutes, as that will get the engine up to operating temperature faster than just letting it sit there and idle. However if this problem still happens even just driving it easy for the first few minutes, then the OEM oil spec is too thick at cold startup.

Cheers. We do like a time lapse video 😁

why now that you saw you will fix it alone in you house? come on men...bmw-audi should be in the court paying retarded money back to owners..when 40.000km m3 are in mechanic for 4.000 euro fixes...demand you pay you need to demand..they are getting away with very bad things because of brainwashed zombis...status freaks.....the non reliable cars should be the cheapest ones....what the fuck the shit cars to be expensive..but reliable ones the cheapest

@@EvolveAutomotive Why don t you use aftermarket rod bearings, those with "Designed to address and fix the rod bearing clearance issue" by adding an extra 0.0005? A lot of tuners sell kits that addresses both material quality and tolerances.They are from 500 to 800 Euros, so not a big difference.

@@commantrosexetlos4700 every car has it's issues, reliable cars are not blessed with great handling and speed, they don't use expensive lighter alloys. If you want a car to run errands and commute, don't buy a performance vehicle. I can drive my Ford Focus like a rally car, bumpy city roads don't bother it, used my BMW to commute for 4 months, the suspension and tires took a beating on the crappy roads. Since I love my BMW I accept that I have to pay to play, my solution is to have a second car that is more reliable to share the workload.

Thanks for watching 😁

Every engine needs this but most people who get these types of cars new lease them and don't care.

@@EvolveAutomotive exactly. They lease them, get a new one in two or three years and if anything breaks the warranty covers it...

Its crazy because every engine feels like its struggling and unhappy when you don't warm it up.

you only need 30 sec of warm up and just drive it normally until the oil temp reaches normal. Problem is ppl start their car and bonce the rev limiter...

Happy Cupcake i would warm it up longer then that. i let my tsx warm up for 1-2 min then drive it below 2k

Thanks Ian ✌️

Actually there is another video on youtube of an American shop that explains the connecting rod bearing tolerances are just too tight for the engine's design. Worth searching to find.

I think they did mention someone that'll help. If the car is properly warmed up then the actual problem is reduced. (:

Thanks!

😁

Cheers

Thanks Ian! Glad you enjoyed it

Thanks!

they also fit indicators....

@@pokiou underrated comment of the year right here

Chris, I'm worried about your intellect my guy....

The fact BMW have updated the shells proves that they are the issue, the damage is done every time you turn the key.

@@330driver330 Actually I would say - Cold Start, Short Trips reving that glorious V8 and initial owners who were just not aware of the Rod Bearing Issue as it had not spread then is probably the greatest contributor.

Thanks! Appreciate the comments. We love the E9x. Maybe time to buy another one.

@@EvolveAutomotive Thanks for replying Imran. That would be awesome, I really miss your old shop car. Maybe an E90 M3 this time or maybe an S65 swapped chassis? Arent the Z4 Roadsters equipped with an S65 in Europe? That would be awesome as well. Question if you have time, what hp levels are the factory DCT clutches and trans good for on the E9X? Tried researching but never really found a solid answer. Also do you guys use the BE Bearings? Which connecting rod bolts do you recommend?

well why should you remove engine when you can just remove the sump ? its normal thinking nothing impressive...

Chostera lol some people are easily impressed

Yeah you can change the rod bearings without pulling the motor but it’s difficult

@@Silas_cv1 It's not

That's how in frame rebuilds are done on heavy diesel engines btw

See you soon 😎

100% True, I agree with you, the rod bearings its mith

@itsmillertime1999 Definitely!

Thanks for watching

Yeah you are right about the warm up procedure... Most people don't read the manual. I have read about a lot of people who think they are doing good by leaving it on in their garage for 10-15 minutes. Idle is not good for these engines.

@@FastEditDemon11 what's the operating temperature for these cars?

@@00302998 Around 210 Fahrenheit should be around where the temp sits. I think they say 190-240 is okay, but I have never got my temps near 240 even with a stage 3 evolve tune and driving the doors off. These are just numbers from the top of my head they aren't exact.

@@FastEditDemon11 gotcha, my technique is to drive it slow until the REV limiter reduces to the optimal range (the orange and yellow thing on the RPM dial). I still drive slow until she's around 150 or so - i guess I should stretch it out a bit more and wait before going higher on the RPM's

@@00302998 I think 190-210°F is the ideal oil temperature for most vehicles.

Glad you enjoyed it.

John Romaine - eisch, sorry man. Clearly a sore subject for you and you have a right to be a little upset - I’m sorry it cost you a motor but the issue is hyped-up with a tremendous amount of incorrect information, no-one can deny that but the point that most are missing is that the issue is completely nulled by preventative replacement and proper care. It’s not that big-bad or problem engine that people hype into a huge issue, it’s not like it breaks every 2 minutes or cracks in half if you look at it sideways. It’s a performance engine with corresponding stresses and maintenance requirements - do the correct maintenance at the right time and you won’t blow it up. It sucks that it cost you an engine, I get that and truthfully I’m crying a little because the bills for those replacements are going to hurt, both for my M3 & my M5, but not nearly as much as having to replace the whole engine. That’s all I meant - people go on and on about how it’s a problem engine and it’s a faulty design but it’s simply not true and it’s not that big a deal to prevent something bad from happening if you have the facts. Sorry about your motor man. But I bet it’s super now isn’t it?😁

John Romaine yeah man, again, seems like you got a raw deal and it’s clearly upset you. I’m sure I’d be upset as well. It just seems to me that the instances of “blown up” motors are more from lack of care and bad driver habits than outright failure - I’m not denying the wear, anything mechanical wears and I’ll even concede that perhaps it could have been better engineered, all I’m saying is that it’s been blown out of proportion in my own opinion - if that’s contrary to your opinion and your experience / research then so be it. As to your own car - if the unit was 2 years old and bmw didn’t replace it under motor plan I’d be interested in knowing why? (I don’t know how motorplan works in your country?)

@John Romaine No BMW good will? What a shame. That would have been covered by warranty in USA.

If it was overhyped why did BMW change the bearing design?

It should be a known issue!

Thanks for the extra input. Appreciate it

Great description! Tabless bearing shells have been around for years, the tab doesn't stop the shell rotating. Land Rover 2.7 TDCi engines have a bad rep for spinning bearings, people blame the tabless design but its more likely low oil level and poor tolerances that do it!

I have ground off the locating tabs(tangs) on the Honda bearings( reason being b16 bearings used on d16 engine) and they don't spin. I think BMW bearings spun because of the clearance ( tolerance is different) and the crank touching the bearings. Not because of the locating tabs. Locating means just that . Locating. Bearing crush ensures bearing is pressed against the rods. Again 'tolerance' is not correct word.

Thanks!

Yes but the upper section will die. I stick with 10w 60, use manual mode when code up shift force shitft at every 1500 rpm

@@timcheou5649 very good point.

"not having any problems" YET. You forgot the YET :) They will all have problems eventually IMO. You just don't want to be the one holding the bunny.

We will do at some point

@@EvolveAutomotive any news on this?

Very true

Same here. I sold mine at 32K miles. Bought an RS3 instead.

@@TheRavsingh damn I was thinking of getting a mustang gt, g37, m3 or a 335i but everyone keeps crying about the. Maintenance

@@Mr.Hashira NO shit. Especially when you lease an 2017 M240i and the dealer charges $2,200 to replace the radiator due to a leak so small that you need a 20X ZOOM to see it. Sorry BMW, but i'll stay with my trusted 3.0TFSI audi.

@@BoghyFL hows the 3.0 tfsi holding up for you?

Don’t let it put you off, they are fantastic cars 🙌🏻

I haven't been looking at the F80 chassis. Maybe now I'll take a look and see what is common to fail on those. (:

Too often I see people revving their engines while standing still. Not a good idea. I've see a couple of Ferrari F458 blowing some blue oil smoke and I've seen quite a few of those cars being run hard without waiting for the oil temp to get to a proper oil temp. I know, it can be difficult to stop that impulse when listening to that engine rev up a bit.

@@Rhaspun People who rev in neutral should all be shoved in woodchippers. A motor spinning under no load only sounds good to idiots anyway.

M2 will certainly feel more similar to your 135i with both having Turbo i6’s. Neither are a bad choice!

Evolve Automotive enjoyed both, but preferred the M2 as a daily. M3 lovely emotional engine though. My 135i has full Birds conversion inc the Quaife LSD. If it’d been a DCT I would have kept. You video helps though re E92 M3s. I test drove a 13 plate at Barons BMW.

Cheers Steven

Definitely not for the faint of heart!

@@EvolveAutomotive Agreed! Was £100 just for the con rod bearing bolts from BMW & Shell's were like £200? But still cheaper than a new engine 100%

@@ashleyburton8605 Prob way cheaper than sending it to a shop, but skill and courage is needed, haha..

Yeah it's not for the faint hearted

I'm in Ontario Canada, need to find a shop that does rod bearings. I'd think bmw dealers will hammer me hard!! 2011 m3

I would be so so so enlightened so see the paper they showed you that says it will be $23k lol.

yikes, im surprised carmax didn't honor the warranty. What was their justification?

@@TheCarBro Would not surprise me. My last BMW dealer service, they called to tell me my serpentine belt was worn, and they could change it while they were replacing my rear wheel bearing I'd brought it in for...for $395. Insanity. The OEM belt is $30. I bought it, brought it with me when I picked the car up, went to the gas station down the street, cut the old belt, and had the new belt on before my gas was done pumping. Their labor rate is like $300/hr. Their quote might have been like $5-7k for the engine and then all the labor, add-on parts, suggested 'services', and tax...$23k doesn't seem far-fetched to me. My rear wheel bearing BTW, on a 1996 328is E36, was $700 at my favorite dealer. The other side recently went bad in early 2018, so I decided to buy the tools and do it myself, and I did, for less than $300 for BOTH sides, and it only took a day. Now I'm setup and experienced for the next time and it'll go even easier.

John Porter wow first time i read that carmax refuses to pay,did you sue them?

@@TheCarBro He cant because he has a e90 328i just look at his page...complete BS

The truth is BMW fucked up. But fanboys won't admit it. Rod bearings aren't regular maintenance.

I agree with this sooo much, alot of srt's in my lot wit keeps, rams etc. I'll I hear at lunch or after work is motors that are being pushed with 0 time to warm up. I jus cringe everytime jus knowing it kills the life of a engine. Treat the motor like your body, itll do you better

Every car ( i have owned 16 last count ) iv'e always warmed up before driving. From my shitty daily driver to my 83 911. Now looking at a 2008 BMW M3 convertible.

@@TheRonin508 Exactly! Regular maintenance my ass.

REDACTED new bearings should be of a higher quality and last the life of the engine. Also only some cars have the bearing issue

I find it odd that planning to change the rod bearings on a Bmw is fine with you guys.You shouldn't have to change rod bearings like tires.Its not like its a performance icon it ISN'T.If the Vette,Camaro ss z28,1LE,mustang gt,gt350 or any American performance car had defects like BMWs you wouldn't buy them.You're the kind of guys that would pay 50 grand more for an m4 take it to the track and get smoked by a Vettes z28s Ss1les zl1 1les and still think your BMW is better than domestic cars.

​@@realisrealite5554they are, actually.

Every year the respective top spec American or Japanese car has been faster than german crap boxes that inevitably self destructs. Its been this way since about 2011ish. Lexus > Crappy unreliable BMWs too.​@@Arayig1982

Once you do this it's all good.

This isn't a commuting car or a first car, heavy on gas and extremely expensive to repair, this is a weekend car.

@@Kealen69 Absolutely. Gave my wife one (E93, 2010) and it's only used for special occasions.

@@Kealen69 Lol what? Its a car. Its job is to be a car. I wonder why Lexus never got that memo. This is back to shit design and a fail from BMW. They could've done a better job. They just didn't. The only special occasion the car has is when its being raced in an event. Besides that it starts, runs and drives as it should for the last 130k miles without an issue. BMW should probably stop under engineering their motors.

@@d1sturb3d119 I wanted a Lexus but BMW has better handling

I know. People also say we are scaremongering 😅

Nope you are saying people open your eyes there is an issue.people are dumb to not listen,they do spin shells I know a few who have and the cost to repair is massive over just replacing them. No scaremongering just facts here 👍🏻

Look forward to seeing you Luke! Sadly the truth is you just don’t know, you have no idea how it was driven in that 37k miles before you owned it. And whilst you may not have put any considerable wear on them since then, they could still well be very worn, especially if it’s the bearings with copper in. Feel free to give us a call if you want to discuss it more, but our advice would be to get them changed, as it is the lesser of two evils. Plus the oil gets changed at the same time, so you’d save yourself a little there if you’re already having that done.

If you do not know the complete operational history and service history, or if it has been done by a competent shop, you absolutely must budget this service for any used BMW with the S65 or S85. Preventative maintenance may not be inexpensive, but it is compared to risking an engine rebuild.

@@EvolveAutomotive what mileage do you recommend changing them and what bearing do you use?

@@dalehennessey6265 It's not mile oriented mate, firstly depends which gen you have, pre lci or lci. If lci then depends how the car is driven, if you are first owner and always warmed engine, changed oil max 5k miles.. you would never need to do the rod bearings. If you don't know how the car has been driven before, then you will never know for certain. If you have the pre lci and 40k and above.. do them. So it all depends on situation. My BMW M5 F10 40k miles 2 previous owners and full BMW history, 2 rod bearings went and caused engine damage.

Thanks kind sir

that's what I take from the video, although of course it can always happen I have some 40k km on mine, never revving it cold, driving slowly util the oil gets up to temperature and even then, very rarely go over 8,000 rpm anyhow, it's too fast to go with that RPM on public roads anyhow

couldn't agree with you more mate

Yeah but that's par for the course for any internal combustion engine. Get it up to temp before driving it hard, no matter what car or engine is in question. Doesn't really seem like the M3 is different than any other internal combustion engine vehicle in that respect.

@@Patrick94GSR its different because others may not bite you in the ass so hard.

Overhyping the s65... „truely race derived motors with tight tolerances“ bullshit. every engine needs pretty much the same warming up and the only reason the s65 breaks faster without proper warm up is because of its high rpm limit. Any car that revs that high will spin bearings when not warmed up properly. Nothing to do with the s65, and even less to do with being race derived. Let‘s be honest, by todays standards and already by 2008 standards the s65 was a pretty weak motor.. yikes

@@yll-6889 Funny why the Honda VTEC engines do not suffer from rod bearing failures and wear and some have over 9000rpm rev limit stock. I think the BMW issue is mostly because of too tight bearing clearance and the ultra thick 10w60 oil BMW recommends. This is what you get with that combo... PS: I dont own a Honda.

ouch.

That's freaking crazy man ! 21k miles! Unbelievable!

i bet you never warmed up you engine?

Thanks Junior

Good. More for me.

Because bmw has nothing to do with it. A performance car that revs as high as the m3 e92 WILL receive lots, lots of damage if not properly cared for. And then its a bmw. Lots of bmw driver will drive an e92 m3 like an asshole and do cold start burnouts and shit like that

@@yll-6889 I agree with the driving like assholes, but the fact is the tolerances on the connecting rod bearings is way tight and obviously it is a problem that could be fixed by BMW. With todays tech, BMW should be embarrassed by this. I really like the car but spending thousands above the price of the car is unacceptable to me. Just saying....

1970PMD yes I also agree a major car maker such as bmw should be embarrassed by this. It almost seems as they didn‘t really thoroughly test the car for road uses. But then again, people should know higher performance cars such as Ms and AMGs really do require proper warming up, and cooling down after hot rides (and of course proper maintenance). The s65 being a high revving bmw engine does not add any good to the already above mentioned lol. Search in youtube m3 e92 donuts, there‘s a german kid doing donuts on a parking lot. That‘s how around 90% of m3 get treated. The 10% left are the ones who got loved by their owners and the ones people complain about being up for sale for a ridiculous price (at least where i‘m from). I mean another comment said something about the s2k being more reliable but I‘ve never seen anyone torture an s2k in real life and in real life i‘ve already seen countless Ms and AMGs being irresponsibly raped by „cool“ guys

@@yll-6889 agreed. also going back to the e46, the connecting points for the rear subframe cracking like a cookie just kills it. that's another matter that BMW should correct. unacceptable.

change it bro its not that expensive and there probally down to the wire by now and even if there not at least its peace of mind any s65 engine making to those kind of milage deserve a checking

Hell you've made it that far I doubt they're gonna fail soon.

Have you changed them since this post? I hope so cos if you havent then youre playing a dangerous game !

That is fine in summer or hotter climates, I guess; but yes, that’s very thick when up to temperature. Mabye 5w40 would be a better alternative? BMW recommend 0-30 for My M140i.

@@roadreg1820 i would use 5w40 fully synthetic for the b48/b58 engine. Liqui Moly leichtlauf high tech 5w40 is the best oil for those engines

Agreed, or even the pretty rare Mobil 1 5W50 used by the Lexus LFA would be a good compromise.

A lower weight wouldn't have prevented this. Lower weights have weaker film strengths, and they also decrease oil pressure. The system is designed for that weight of oil, and the additives in the oil ensure protection and keep the oil moving well. Aside from that, a "five or zero" only refers to winter temp viscosity... it means nothing once the engine is warm, regardless if summer or winter.

@@jmayor88 Well part of the problem is the 10W60 oil being too thick when cold, and not becoming thin fast enough to fill the bearing clearances and protect against wear. Hence most of the wear would occur when driving with a cold engine. Once warmed up, yes, a little film strength would be lost, but I think that's a trade-off many have tried and is working, especially during winter. Unless you track the car hard during winter, there's no reason why a 5W40 or 5W50 wouldn't be a decent trade-off.

If you cant afford 2, you can't afford 1.

dumb comment

Get rid of your BMW before the warranty expires. They aren't built to last, and that's intentional.

@@DivadNoodeldehm-lz2gm Good comment!

Not a rental car

@@p1fly Rental car and society car are made to be destroy !

It does already

or don't drive it during winter too :D But rod bearings is just a thing you should do if you buy a e92 m3 2nd hand with mileage nearing 100k, cheaper than buying a new engine ;D

U can use 0-40 any season in s65. Mobil 1 0-40 is great for this engine.

@@boji4apa852 0/40 is a sweet spec

Yes. I've seen a couple of different views about this. One person thinks BMW is specifying too heavy of an oil spec. Check out this web page: 540ratblog.wordpress.com/2013/06/20/motor-oil-wear-test-ranking/

How about Rotella T6 5w40?

We haven’t heard of the issue being widespread on N54’s. Those engines have their own set of problems however.

ha ha ha ha ha comparing an SUV engine to a supercar V10. You know a dragster engine last from 1-7 races, so it gets only 1/4 mile to 1.5 miles. No excuse for that

Performance oriented chevy small blocks can easily last over 200k. There are tons of 300K Corvettes on them with normal oil analyses still going strong. This is a flaw in BMW; poor design actually.

The technologies, power, rpm, and materials vary greatly from engine to engine. While BMW clearly changed the makeup of the rod bearings, you can't at all denounce one engine because of experience from an entirely different one with different specifications and engineering goals.

They've gone soft and heavy. Why not just remake the E30 with modern tech?

That’s great except your sewing machine doesn’t rev to 8400rpm producing over 100bhp/litre 😬

Agreed. I love the folks saying this is a high strung motor and some kind of pseudo supercar that needs all this care. The best is the claim that owners who bought this car didn't know. But apparently every ISF or AMG owner takes the time to warm their car up always. 130k miles on my ISF without a single issue besides normal maintenance.

@@d1sturb3d119 Yup.. Eurocar fans always have an excuse. Similarly, the excuse for Mercedes' and BMW's poor overall reliability is because they are sophisticated and complicated luxury cars.. And yet, again, Lexus cars are also extremely sophisticated and complex, and still manage to maintain excellent reliability.

@@bliglum Sadly Mercedes was indeed bulletproof while being complicated back in the 90's. I'd still purchase a late 80's early 90's Mercedes without a hint of hesitation. We owned an 1988 E320 back in the day. Little low on power but great handling. Not one issue. Just bullet proof. Even the SEC from that era was fantastic. Then Chrysler bought them over and screwed the whole company. My hope is they get back to being reliable but let see.

@@d1sturb3d119 Yeah, I remember the good Mercedes, I'd say more 80's and before, mid to late 90's is when they started going to crap. My dad sold MB's in the 70's and early 80's. Family car was the W123 300TD. Solid as a tank, vault like doors, and that distinctive sound and interior smell.. Ahh memories... But from what I remember, when we had that in the 90's as a kid, it was pretty solid and reliable. More reliable than the newer Taurus we got to replace it anyways. Newer ones though... Money pits to own... Very nice lease vehicles for those with heaps of disposable income though!

@@bliglum I search for older mercs in the line up where issues are well documented. If I had more money to throw it would be a fun project. But for now I'll have to stick to cars that can't be killed. My SC400 with a 1uz is kinda frustrating sometimes. It drifts when its cold, when its hot, when its overheating, just whatever lol. Good car with 280k on the clock.

Exactly

Thank you and we will