Connecting Rod Bearings.. shot

[Oreokid24]

Well, it has happened to me too. 2011 E93 M3 ~35100 miles. Was getting on the highway and felt just a bit of a shudder in the car. I could hear a slight ticking noise. When I let off the gas, it was more of a flutter sound (but was going 60mph). Drove about 45 min and the oil light came on. Looked urgent, add oil asap. Stopped at a gas station and added 2 qts of Mobil 1. Backed out of the parking spot and looked for drops.. nothing! I looked underneath and could see no dripping. Drove about 30 more min and the oil warning came on again. Went about 10 min and stopped at where I was going. Did my activity for about 2 hrs, came out to the car.. looked for drips (nothing) and added 2 more qts of oil. The electronic gauge display seemed way below the minimum.
On the way home (still the ticking noise) I got a warning message again, saying there was too MUCH oil and to see the dealer. About 10 min later, I felt another shudder and now the noise was definatelly louder. I was near a rest stop on the highway and decided to pull in there. Right after the shudder, I got the warning of being low on oil "add 1 qt". WTF!
I stopped at the rest area, making quite a racket. I added 1 more qt and started to pull away,hoping to limp home (another 45 min). But when I backed out of the parking spot.. I knew it was done. Called for a tow.
The car was towed to the dealer and they looked at the next afternoon, but couldn't really get to it until the next day. Attached are photos. Bearings on #2 and #5 were shot. The shop said that BMW autherized a new (rebuilt) engine. They started on it this week. I've stopped by the shop several times and the guys there have been great in letting me watch and take photos. They said they drained an extra 5 qts of oil from the engine. Parts from the bearings had clogged the sensor and that's why I got the reading. Guess a dip stick would have helped!!
Some of the photos the tech took, some I took.
Steve

[Z K]

I would have stopped adding oil after the first time it asked for it... there should be no reason you'd ever need to add more than 1 quart of oil at any time.

If it did and it was making noises, stop driving immediately and call for a tow.

[m3ray]

35K miles..wtf? This is a legit problem it seems.

Why hasn't a class action lawsuit been launched?

[Amirsm3]

I feel like the 5 quarts of oil exacerbated your problem...

[1MOREMOD]

Originally Posted by Z K

I would have stopped adding oil after the first time it asked for it... there should be no reason you'd ever need to add more than 1 quart of oil at any time.

If it did and it was making noises, stop driving immediately and call for a tow.

+1 did an entire oil change.

[aus]

Sorry to hear this OP.

How long did it take BMW to authorize the new motor?

[Verify]

Thats pretty nice of them to replace even with having a BPM tune on it

[Obioban]

The idea of a dealership disassembling my car that much TERRIFIES me when I think about how poorly they handle simple things, like oil changes.

[Beemdog]

Originally Posted by Obioban

The idea of a dealership disassembling my car that much TERRIFIES me when I think about how poorly they handle simple things, like oil changes.

I know, right? Why did they need to take off the entire exhaust system???

[JPH704]

Originally Posted by m3ray

35K miles..wtf? This is a legit problem it seems.

Why hasn't a class action lawsuit been launched?

^ this!

It's also interesting to see see so many 2011-2013 models. When the buzz first started years ago it was just 2008-2009. Obviously due to mileage. All S65 M3's need to take note!

[SilentAttack]

another one bites the dust

[X5-User]

There is an average one member per day reporting rod bearing problem. A law suit has to start to fix this issue

[m3ray]

In retrospect that oil light probably came on due to low oil pressure as the bearings were being starved for oil

Either way I think you bearings were already shot and adding of oil did little to change that.

[TheSnail]

Being as I just spent $54k for my first M3 less than 2 weeks ago. This is starting to become troubling...

[Oreokid24]

I was really concerned about the messages saying that the oil was low. In hindsight and due to remarks from others, I now realize that I didn't need oil.
They found the problem on Tuesday and by Thursday had the OK to replace the engine.

[chris719]

I'd file a complaint with NHTSA, could have easily given out while you were merging back on to the highway. A little investigation would go a long way to getting owners a recall.

[BMRLVR]

There is no rod bearing issue :roll eyes:....... Myself and a few others who were just trying to help out by sharing our knowledge were mocked, ridiculed, had our posts forensically analyzed then picked apart and were even banned for suggesting such a thing, now it is a daily thing to see pictures of S65's with excessively worn bearings or engine failures...... Funny isn't it? Who would have thought that three guys that are inside engines and looking at bearings on a daily basis would have a clue anyway!?!?

P.S.:To the OP, things sure got hot inside your engine by looking at the the crank and the rod caps, looks like a lack of clearance to me. Congrats on having your engine covered under warranty, hope the new one lasts longer!

[kawasaki00]

Originally Posted by BMRLVR

There is no rod bearing issue :roll eyes:....... Myself and a few others who were just trying to help out by sharing our knowledge were mocked, ridiculed, had our posts forensically analyzed then picked apart and were even banned for suggesting such a thing, now it is a daily thing to see pictures of S65's with excessively worn bearings or engine failures...... Funny isn't it? Who would have thought that three guys that are inside engines and looking at bearings on a daily basis would have a clue anyway!?!?

P.S.:To the OP, things sure got hot inside your engine by looking at the the crank and the rod caps, looks like a lack of clearance to me. Congrats on having your engine covered under warranty, hope the new one lasts longer!

I know right, preach on brother

[vastano]

I'd like to know if we were to run 0w-40 from the beginning if this would be such a common issue. IMO Running 10w-60 at 15k intervals is whats setting these bearing issues up from the beginning.

[Oreokid24]

chris719,
I did file a report with NHTSA. Maybe they will eventually look into it.

[JPH704]

Originally Posted by Bimmer-M3

There is an average one member per day reporting rod bearing problem. A law suit has to start to fix this issue

[Bubbles]

Your profile indicates you have a 2011.75, given that you have the new bearings (non-lead bearings). Best of luck with the repairs.