L322 BMW M62 Engine

My car is a BMW car manufactured in 2003, these engines have a bad reputation for timing chain guides to disintegrate, resulting in a lump of metal that can only be recycled. The reason being the timing chain guides are well, plastic. All is not lost, depending on how the car has been looked after prior to you buying it. If the oil has been changed at regular intervals, like every 8 to 10k or 1 year with good quality oil that is, you should be ok. Timm explains it better, I know I have mentioned him before about batteries, he knows his stuff tho'. I know it is mainly BMW, which some on here may have, you never know.

Yep terrible engines, I've rebuilt a few.

Oil changes should be 5 to 7k ideally with a 5w50 oil.

Henry_b said:

Yep terrible engines, I've rebuilt a few.

Oil changes should be 5 to 7k ideally with a 5w50 oil.

Click to expand...

Rebuilt, how much did that cost, in terms of parts and labour?

Vogueman said:

Rebuilt, how much did that cost, in terms of parts and labour?

Click to expand...

The ones I did cost in the region of £3500 to rebuild.

That is pulling the motor and refitting too.

Henry_b said:

The ones I did cost in the region of £3500 to rebuild.

That is pulling the motor and refitting too.

Click to expand...

OUCH, that is more than my car is worth.

Vogueman said:

OUCH, that is more than my car is worth.

Click to expand...

Yep unfortunately.

Henry_b said:

Yep unfortunately.

Click to expand...

Well, I think I may have dodged a major engine failure for the time being anyway. it sounds pretty good at the moment.

I will be redoing mine shortly looks like 1 of the new hg has failed

Henry_b said:

Yep terrible engines, I've rebuilt a few.

Oil changes should be 5 to 7k ideally with a 5w50 oil.

Click to expand...

German engineering at it's best

Vogueman said:

My car is a BMW car manufactured in 2003, these engines have a bad reputation for timing chain guides to disintegrate, resulting in a lump of metal that can only be recycled. The reason being the timing chain guides are well, plastic.

Click to expand...

It's not the plastic guides that cause the issue, it's the lack of timely servicing.
The M42 (4 cylinder version) is renowned for doing well in excess of 250k miles, and uses the same guides. Ok the 6 pot will have 8 extra valves to drive, but that's not a huge increase in chain torque.
As said, servicing often is the key, and replacing the guides the moment the chain starts sounds more noisy than it should, will avoid expensive damage.

Nodge68 said:

It's not the plastic guides that cause the issue, it's the lack of timely servicing.
The M42 (4 cylinder version) is renowned for doing well in excess of 250k miles, and uses the same guides. Ok the 6 pot will have 8 extra valves to drive, but that's not a huge increase in chain torque.
As said, servicing often is the key, and replacing the guides the moment the chain starts sounds more noisy than it should, will avoid expensive damage.

Click to expand...

One litre of oil or in my case 8, is far cheaper than a major overhaul

Datatek said:

German engineering at it's best

Click to expand...

That it is Keith!