When we bought our 2004 BMW M3, a big, big question loomed: How were those rod bearings?
The E46-chassis M3 has a bad rap regarding rod bearings issues, and even though our car was built after BMW made an update, we were still concerned. Hey, we like to worry. Was the engine about to come apart? Should we plan to …
I'm half tempted to send Blackstone a sample of my oil just to see what their response is. I'm thinking Bill Cosby in the Noah's Ark sketch.
Would a block heater help with a short commute car? Get the engine up to temp faster?
Having lived in extreme north (Fairbanks, Alaska) and having vehicles with block heaters. Block heaters won't heat the oil, they are installed in freeze plug openings and keep the coolant from freezing. Now if you can find an oil heater, like for an air-cooled motor and/or modify it or something along that line in the oil sump, that may work. But then you'll have heated oil circulating in a cold engine. Have no idea if that would be beneficial or not.
You can get heating pads that adhere to the oil pan.
Many European cars have coolant-oil heat exchangers, warm coolant WILL warm the oil up. I would be shocked if an M3 did not have such a device.
wlkelley3 wrote: Having lived in extreme north (Fairbanks, Alaska) and having vehicles with block heaters. Block heaters won't heat the oil, they are installed in freeze plug openings and keep the coolant from freezing. Now if you can find an oil heater, like for an air-cooled motor and/or modify it or something along that line in the oil sump, that may work. But then you'll have heated oil circulating in a cold engine. Have no idea if that would be beneficial or not.
Warm coolant heats the engine block which would heat the oil.. A couple gallons of oil would heat up pretty fast when interfacing with a few hundred pounds of aluminum and coolant, I would think.
Here's the report for those who are coming here from the message board and are skipping the formal project car post:
The entire process was quite painless.
Good stuff and looks pretty similar to my last one at 47k... Iron and copper about right, lead staying low, etc. I am also not (yet) too worried about rod bearings...
I didn't realize they had gotten so expensive.
getfast wrote: Good stuff and looks pretty similar to my last one at 47k... Iron and copper about right, lead staying low, etc. I am also not (yet) too worried about rod bearings...
That's good to hear (all of it).
It is Christmas, and my reading skills may be impaired by holiday cheer, but what exactly is James Clay recommending for track driven cars? It seems you are using 15w50, then there is some advice about using 10w60 for cars that are worked hard (BMW specs this weight), and then Clay says 15w50, not 40t. I am a bit confused.
No prob:
For street, 15W50 or possibly even 10W40.
For track, 15W50.
You can get oil heaters with a big magnet that stick to the pan, assuming it's not aluminum. Having raced on ice for years with a full race engine, it can be tricky getting them to even start. You sure as hell want warm oil when it does. Used the magnet heater on the pan and a circulating inline hose heater/pump to get the block and oil thoroughly warm before even cranking it over.
Excellent timing, I just got my first ever Blackstone report on my LS1 donor. I got an "Overall, good report!" 
10W60 sounds like witchcraft.
pres589 wrote: 10W60 sounds like witchcraft.
It's made out of pure unicorn horn, judging by how much it costs per quart.
dculberson wrote:wlkelley3 wrote: Having lived in extreme north (Fairbanks, Alaska) and having vehicles with block heaters. Block heaters won't heat the oil, they are installed in freeze plug openings and keep the coolant from freezing. Now if you can find an oil heater, like for an air-cooled motor and/or modify it or something along that line in the oil sump, that may work. But then you'll have heated oil circulating in a cold engine. Have no idea if that would be beneficial or not.Warm coolant heats the engine block which would heat the oil.. A couple gallons of oil would heat up pretty fast when interfacing with a few hundred pounds of aluminum and coolant, I would think.
If you call just above freezing warm. Block heaters just keep the coolant in the block from freezing when temp is below freezing. One area by the heater may be warmer than the rest of the engine. Recirc heaters may be a little warmer because fluid is circulating, with block heater fluid isn't circulating. Oil isn't in the block during this time, below the block in the pan and not getting any heat. Maybe if worked in conjunction with a pan heater it would warm the engine and oil up. Seems to me I've heard of race team that will circulate warm coolant and/or oil through the engine to warm the engine before start. Impractical for daily use though.
Several years ago, I remember noting an extension cord plugged into the fuel door on a Grand-Am Cup BMW--the car was in the garage at the time. Its use? Heater for the oil tank.
wlkelly3, I think the Formula 1 guys circulate warm fluids to have the engine completely warmed up before startup. I think I saw that on the same show that told me that they don't let them idle, they constantly rev them to keep harmonics from setting up and breaking E36 M3.
In reply to David S. Wallens:
We had these pads Moroso made on the oil pan, dry sump tank, transmission and rear end for our stock car. We only got one lap for qualifying and needed everything up to temperature.
If we had the time, I could explain a lot about the S-54 bearings to you!
I have been swapping the rod bearings out in the '01/'02 Z3/M Coupes/Rdstrs for close to ten (<10) years. The Z3/Ms were not included in those initial recalls because of their 400 RPM lower redline.
The original bearings were tri-metal (lead, copper, tin-alloy on a steel shell) and all the recall bearings (and M3s built after 04/03) as well as all the Z4/Ms use a bi-metal (tin/aluminum alloy, aluminum on a steel shell). As such, the Blackstone reports aren't nearly as effective, due to the harder wear surface of the newer bearings.
I've been doing my own polymer coating (dry-film lubricant) since 1992, and have applied the same process to these; contrary to popular belief, it does not reduce the clearances, which admittedly are marginally tight when the process is done properly.
I just did two cars (for the same owner within the last couple of months); take a look at these Z4/M bearings with only 26,992 miles on them:
For comparison, here are some Z4/M bearings with right at 60,000 miles:
The owner (of the Z3/M & Z4/M) is also scheduled to bring me his E-92 M3 (S-65 engine) but for that car, were planning to use some specially made bearings with an additional .0005" clearance (per shell, .001"gain, ideally yielding about .0025" running clearance). I'm hopeful that these bearings will soon be available for the S-54 engines too.
GRM/CM: I'm practically in your backyard, you should stop by sometime!
snailmont5oh wrote: wlkelly3, I think the Formula 1 guys circulate warm fluids to have the engine completely warmed up before startup. I think I saw that on the same show that told me that they don't let them idle, they constantly rev them to keep harmonics from setting up and breaking E36 M3.
My understanding is that the clearances are so tight, if the engines aren't warmed up with fluid pre-start..............they simply will not start.
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