[67R60]

Originally Posted by AydenBensink

Hello everyone, I have been doing some research on N55 rod bearing problems because I am afraid that I am the next victim of this tragic news. I recently purchased a 2011 bmw 335i coupe with ~75k miles on it. I now have ~80k miles and today I heard the awful knocking noise, FML. I didn't know what it was at first but I knew it didn't sound good. I am afraid that I have a bad rod bearing. After reading all the horror stories on various forums a few have caught my eye. Multiple people claimed that a faulty gasket in the oil filter housing caused coolant to leak into the oil and basically cause mass destruction. I found this interesting due to the fact that about a month ago I got my oil filter housing replaced by a mechanic (not BMW) for the hefty price of $1400. I'm wondering if the job wasn't done properly and is the cause for this problem or if it's purely coincidence. I'm hoping I caught it early because I have seen other videos and the knocking is definitely quieter. I appreciate any help you can give me and for the time being my baby girl will be sitting, definitely not driving it.

If you google Bmw N55 engine seize, you will find that there are a number of engine seized posts after the OFHG were replaced. This issue has come up too many times. I personally have read too many posts about it. Bmw knows it’s an issue. I would get it towed to a BMW dealer and fight. If you have past maintenance records of oil changes, that will help your cause.

https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1614465

Sorry to hear the news.

[999]

I've been reading through this thread since it started. Just the other day I came upon fatty335's thread where he documented the preventative replacement of his rod bearings. Full of good info, brainstorming, and debate. This thought of rod bearing wear and failure has consumed me since the day I bought the car. I can offer a data point as someone who has not yet had any symptoms of rod bearing issues.

My 2013 135i is currently just over 90k miles. I've owned it since 39k. Oil changes every 5k with Liqui Moly 5w-40. During normal conditions, my daily commute was ~50 miles round-trip. Half highway, half city. I'm in Michigan so this driving took place through both extremes of winter and summer. I have not yet done OFHG replacement.

My question to you, Pladi: being 2 years since your last post in this thread, have you moved on from your N55 335i?

And Ozzie335i--how has your experience been since your preventative bearing replacement? Still own and drive the car?

[Vivek.]

Originally Posted by 999

I've been reading through this thread since it started. Just the other day I came upon fatty335's thread where he documented the preventative replacement of his rod bearings. Full of good info, brainstorming, and debate. This thought of rod bearing wear and failure has consumed me since the day I bought the car. I can offer a data point as someone who has not yet had any symptoms of rod bearing issues.

My 2013 135i is currently just over 90k miles. I've owned it since 39k. Oil changes every 5k with Liqui Moly 5w-40. During normal conditions, my daily commute was ~50 miles round-trip. Half highway, half city. I'm in Michigan so this driving took place through both extremes of winter and summer. I have not yet done OFHG replacement.

My question to you, Pladi: being 2 years since your last post in this thread, have you moved on from your N55 335i?

And Ozzie335i--how has your experience been since your preventative bearing replacement? Still own and drive the car?

Could you share a bit more about how it was driven? Doesn't pertain to me but I think it could help the discussion.

Specifically: what's your warmup process--do you start the car and let it sit for 5 min before driving it? Is there a certain rule you follow for procedure ie "until oil temp is past 165 I don't go over 2.5k rpm"? Is this a car that you drive as a commuter at the speed limit or do you hit WOT and high RPMs on a regular basis?

[999]

Originally Posted by Vivek.

Could you share a bit more about how it was driven?

Of course! I was gonna include that in my last post but didn't want it to get too long.

One key thing I left out--the previous owner installed a JB4 at unknown mileage which has remained installed since. I keep it in map 2.

I have always let the car warm up 5-10 minutes before I drive it at all. Lots of debate on pros and cons of this across the internet. It has just always made some sense to me. Until oil temp gets over 160º, I drive very lightly. Usually shift between 2,000 and 2,500 RPM. I would say I'm a "spirited" driver on average. I rarely actually go WOT. Being catless with BMW Perf exhaust, the car makes great noises without needing to mat the accelerator. I drive somewhat aggressively without beating on the car.

This is daily driven as it's my only vehicle. My entire ownership I have used Shell (90% of the time) and Mobil 93 Octane. The previous owner would occasionally fill with half a tank of e85. Not my cup of tea

[fatty335]

Originally Posted by 999

I've been reading through this thread since it started. Just the other day I came upon fatty335's thread where he documented the preventative replacement of his rod bearings. Full of good info, brainstorming, and debate. This thought of rod bearing wear and failure has consumed me since the day I bought the car. I can offer a data point as someone who has not yet had any symptoms of rod bearing issues.

My 2013 135i is currently just over 90k miles. I've owned it since 39k. Oil changes every 5k with Liqui Moly 5w-40. During normal conditions, my daily commute was ~50 miles round-trip. Half highway, half city. I'm in Michigan so this driving took place through both extremes of winter and summer. I have not yet done OFHG replacement.

My question to you, Pladi: being 2 years since your last post in this thread, have you moved on from your N55 335i?

And Ozzie335i--how has your experience been since your preventative bearing replacement? Still own and drive the car?

Not that you asked, but I'm still here; still own my e90, drive it every day and it's still running great. You're right though, this particular forum has gotten pretty quiet as of late. Just out of curiosity, are you considering replacing the rod bearings? If so, what do you plan to go with?

[999]

Originally Posted by fatty335

still own my e90, drive it every day and it's still running great.

Dude thank you much for chiming in. That is great news!

I'm really thinking I should get my bearings done. Like you mentioned in your thread, I plan to make this car last as long as I can. For me it ticks all of the boxes. I've been scratching my head thinking about what car I would actually want to replace it with.

Unsure of what I should pick for the new bearings to put in. I like Ozzie's choice of more clearance. But I also like the idea of OE with OE like you decided on.

[fatty335]

Originally Posted by 999

Unsure of what I should pick for the new bearings to put in. I like Ozzie's choice of more clearance. But I also like the idea of OE with OE like you decided on.

In your case, given you wish to keep the car long-term, replacing with OE or any high-quality aftermarket bearing like VAC or King will be better than doing nothing (of course, my opinion only - I've never really been one to consider hope as a valid course of action). Good luck and keep us posted. If you end up inspecting or replacing, please post pics of your old bearings to contribute to our collective knowledge of the N55.

[Ozzie335i]

Hey 999, I don't have anywhere near the mileage fatty does. I had an accident that kept the car out of commission for over a year. From the subframe out to the wheel hubs is all new. A shop worked with what I finally got out of my insurance company. As I sunk money into everything: Pure 2 / PI, tranny mods, LSD, brakes, suspension... I was not going to lose my investment, nor allow my insurance company know I had double the stock power under the hood. The dog that ran out in the road lived. So there is that.

If you go with the bearings you end up resolving an oil pan gasket leak that likely is there. I did it for peace of mind, as this is my old age retirement car, and garage queen. I would definitely do it again.

[TunafishE93]

So 20 pages to tell someone a street car doesnt cut out for a track car..

[Ozzie335i]

Originally Posted by TunafishE93

So 20 pages to tell someone a street car doesnt cut out for a track car..

As funny cars and rail job engines must be rebuilt after every pass, they must not cut it either. And then there is F1. While I can't speak for the rest, I didn't buy a "track car." I bought a nice riding, comfortable 328 with balls for that occasional WOT, and for the fun of further tweaking it. Do note that the e92 does not suffer from costly roof leaks. So there is that.

[Aceway]

FWIW my N55 135i is at 163k miles. PPK tune most of its life so nothing crazy. Rod bearings haven't been changed but I'll do that when the turbo goes. It wasn't driven hard by the PO from what I've seen and it's just my daily.

[anjuna]

I think threads like this are just cautionary tales.

People who use "BMW approved" oils, maintenance schedules, and the likes are in nothing but trouble.

People who use the component manufacturer's maintenance schedules, fluids, and the likes are properly maintaining their vehicle. Take just the ZF trans for example - it says "fill for life" in BMW documentation, but ZF suggests 60k fluid changes.

I regularly run 20psi on the daily. I change my oil in 10k intervals(0w40 - fight me). I changed my trans fluid as soon as I got the vehicle, and have a maintenance schedule for transmission, differentials, engine, filters.... everything.

Treat your vehicle right and it will treat you right.

Every single forum has a "OMG THIS ENG1N3 WILL DDIIEEEEE" thread. Trust me if it's built, it can be destroyed.

Just use common sense.

-Do I disapprove of changing rod bearings? No.
-Do I feel like everyone should stop what they're doing, run out, and change them? No.
-Do I feel like "if yer already in that area and it's not much extra work" you should change them? Yeah, sure, if you want.

[Pladi]

Originally Posted by 999

I've been reading through this thread since it started. Just the other day I came upon fatty335's thread where he documented the preventative replacement of his rod bearings. Full of good info, brainstorming, and debate. This thought of rod bearing wear and failure has consumed me since the day I bought the car. I can offer a data point as someone who has not yet had any symptoms of rod bearing issues.

My 2013 135i is currently just over 90k miles. I've owned it since 39k. Oil changes every 5k with Liqui Moly 5w-40. During normal conditions, my daily commute was ~50 miles round-trip. Half highway, half city. I'm in Michigan so this driving took place through both extremes of winter and summer. I have not yet done OFHG replacement.

My question to you, Pladi: being 2 years since your last post in this thread, have you moved on from your N55 335i?

And Ozzie335i--how has your experience been since your preventative bearing replacement? Still own and drive the car?

Hey 999. Like your name is unique

To answer your question

I still own the car and drive it often.

I love the e90 platform. I am a huge critic of the platform as well. I think BMW nails some things and then some things i just scratch my head. But thats why i have the car. I enjoy it's quirks.. if that makes any sense.

I have made up my mind that if my bearings fail i am going to try and install f30 n55 in it. Not going to bother with maintenance changing the bearings.(Nothing wrong with that avenue) Thats my philisophy there. I plan on keeping the car for a long time becausr of fcp warranty. I bought many parts from thrm.

Upcoming work for me is a complete suspension job. I bought 1500 dollars worth of parts.

My car has less than 100k miles.

I check the forum way less because i have a 2 year old. Some people will understand that. Hence ur timeline of 2 years inactivity lol. My car was my kid until my real kid lol

[Welcome to NBA Jam]

Originally Posted by anjuna

I think threads like this are just cautionary tales.

People who use "BMW approved" oils, maintenance schedules, and the likes are in nothing but trouble.

People who use the component manufacturer's maintenance schedules, fluids, and the likes are properly maintaining their vehicle. Take just the ZF trans for example - it says "fill for life" in BMW documentation, but ZF suggests 60k fluid changes.

I regularly run 20psi on the daily. I change my oil in 10k intervals(0w40 - fight me). I changed my trans fluid as soon as I got the vehicle, and have a maintenance schedule for transmission, differentials, engine, filters.... everything.

Treat your vehicle right and it will treat you right.

Every single forum has a "OMG THIS ENG1N3 WILL DDIIEEEEE" thread. Trust me if it's built, it can be destroyed.

Just use common sense.

-Do I disapprove of changing rod bearings? No.
-Do I feel like everyone should stop what they're doing, run out, and change them? No.
-Do I feel like "if yer already in that area and it's not much extra work" you should change them? Yeah, sure, if you want.

I'm nearly at 130k here and the worst I've dealt with are valve cover and oil pan gaskets. Same stuff that happens in every bmw. 1 year CBS based oil changes. The only paranoia I've gotten is adding MOS2 at each oil change.

[Malteser_wfj]

I recently bought a 2012 335i with 119k on the clocks and long (10k+) oil changes throughout its life.

The owner before me had the sump gasket replaced & I have no idea if the engine was primed or not. & I only found out about priming due to my research in the rod bearings having just gone...

Also I discovered that when my previous owner changed the oil, the basket was missing from the oil filter housing, so who knows for how long during his 8 years of ownership that was missing.

No tune or mods AFAIK - just an M performance exhaust.


Having found all of these things out I guess you could say the writing was on the wall for my engine.

I'm now looking at reconditioned engines in case the damage is mine is not worth rebuilding.

Will an N55B30A/N55B30T0 be able to connect up to my 2012 DME N55B30M0 (presume it's an M0 being a euro car manufactured in 03/2012) if I swap my oil pans over? I notice the intake piping is different too from early to later N55s so I'm curious if a later one can be swapped into mine. Are the turbo/manifold interchangeable as I'm worried that metal oil flowing through the turbo could have reduced its life expectancy too. My guess is that an EWG turbo can't be used on a chassis & DME that had PWG?

Another potential issue is mine being a manual and I'm not sure if the bell housing bolts changed pattern throughout the N55's life cycle?


Thanks

[Dynamics99]

Originally Posted by Malteser_wfj

I recently bought a 2012 335i with 119k on the clocks and long (10k+) oil changes throughout its life.

The owner before me had the sump gasket replaced & I have no idea if the engine was primed or not. & I only found out about priming due to my research in the rod bearings having just gone...

Also I discovered that when my previous owner changed the oil, the basket was missing from the oil filter housing, so who knows for how long during his 8 years of ownership that was missing.

No tune or mods AFAIK - just an M performance exhaust.


Having found all of these things out I guess you could say the writing was on the wall for my engine.

I'm now looking at reconditioned engines in case the damage is mine is not worth rebuilding.

Will an N55B30A/N55B30T0 be able to connect up to my 2012 DME N55B30M0 (presume it's an M0 being a euro car manufactured in 03/2012) if I swap my oil pans over? I notice the intake piping is different too from early to later N55s so I'm curious if a later one can be swapped into mine. Are the turbo/manifold interchangeable as I'm worried that metal oil flowing through the turbo could have reduced its life expectancy too. My guess is that an EWG turbo can't be used on a chassis & DME that had PWG?

Another potential issue is mine being a manual and I'm not sure if the bell housing bolts changed pattern throughout the N55's life cycle?


Thanks

I believe the vacuum pump is different from the B30M0 vs the 30A. I think the turbo downpipe increases from 3.5 to 4 inches. Trans should be fine. EWG could be an issue though. Another member might have to shed light on that.

[yupetc]

Vacuum pump between PWG and EWG looks very much the same except on the PWG that there's an open port that points straight up for a vacuum plastic pipe that'll lead to the valve cover near the ccv blow-by heater. That pipe supplies the vacuum necessary for proper functioning of the PWG through the valvecover's integrated vacuum chamber. If you are going to use a EWG turbo here, mechancially you'll only need to plug that port on the vacuum pump; but electronically, you'll likely going to need some ECU update to utilize the EWG control along with fitting the correct harness. I don't know enough to say that both ECU's under EWG and PWG are of the same hardware, so if they aren't, then you'll have more issues to get through.

Bellhousing bolt pattern appears to be the same for both manual and auto on the N55. At least that's how I recalled it when I worked on them. The only difference is on the oil pan, the auto oil pan will have a different bolt pattern between the pan to the block. It'll also have a window that you can visit the flext plate bolt to the torque converter where as on the manual version this window is completely missing with a different oil pan design.

That basket in the oil filter cap being missing is a big worry I have on your motor. The basket provides rigidity to the oil filter so that it won't collapse as easy. Another main function of that basket is that at the end tip of the basket there's a small 1cm give or take size O-ring. That O-ring helps provide the retention pressure so that once you shut the motor down, all the oil stays in the tracts through capilary force. If the O-ring is absent, then on every engine shut-off, all oil will be gravity pulled down to the lowest of their relative position. To this end, you're pretty much starting up your engine "dry" on every startup, the longer you leave the car off the dryer it gets. That's bad for engine life. Also if I'm not mistaken, that small hole where the basket inserts into, should go directly into your VANOS plumbing. If this basket is absent, VANOS may not get what it needs to operate properly (I'm recalling this from DiagnoseDan of Youtube when he demonstrated a diagnosis of a BMW VANOS system). That's more than 3 years back, so call me an idiot if you catch me recall incorrectly.

[Malteser_wfj]

Originally Posted by yupetc

Vacuum pump between PWG and EWG looks very much the same except on the PWG that there's an open port that points straight up for a vacuum plastic pipe that'll lead to the valve cover near the ccv blow-by heater. That pipe supplies the vacuum necessary for proper functioning of the PWG through the valvecover's integrated vacuum chamber. If you are going to use a EWG turbo here, mechancially you'll only need to plug that port on the vacuum pump; but electronically, you'll likely going to need some ECU update to utilize the EWG control along with fitting the correct harness. I don't know enough to say that both ECU's under EWG and PWG are of the same hardware, so if they aren't, then you'll have more issues to get through.

Bellhousing bolt pattern appears to be the same for both manual and auto on the N55. At least that's how I recalled it when I worked on them. The only difference is on the oil pan, the auto oil pan will have a different bolt pattern between the pan to the block. It'll also have a window that you can visit the flext plate bolt to the torque converter where as on the manual version this window is completely missing with a different oil pan design.

That basket in the oil filter cap being missing is a big worry I have on your motor. The basket provides rigidity to the oil filter so that it won't collapse as easy. Another main function of that basket is that at the end tip of the basket there's a small 1cm give or take size O-ring. That O-ring helps provide the retention pressure so that once you shut the motor down, all the oil stays in the tracts through capilary force. If the O-ring is absent, then on every engine shut-off, all oil will be gravity pulled down to the lowest of their relative position. To this end, you're pretty much starting up your engine "dry" on every startup, the longer you leave the car off the dryer it gets. That's bad for engine life. Also if I'm not mistaken, that small hole where the basket inserts into, should go directly into your VANOS plumbing. If this basket is absent, VANOS may not get what it needs to operate properly (I'm recalling this from DiagnoseDan of Youtube when he demonstrated a diagnosis of a BMW VANOS system). That's more than 3 years back, so call me an idiot if you catch me recall incorrectly.

Thank you for such a comprehensive reply!

So currently the plan is to get my current engine rebuilt while keeping all of my ancilliaries and turbo etc. If my block/crank is too badly damaged, the garage I'm taking it to have a spare block and crank they can use if needed - again swapping all of my bits over.

What you say about the bolt pattern being the same for auto/manual & different for DCT checks out as the garage asked me what I had and were happy when I said manual as there spare is an auto/manual pattern.

I've got a new valve cover from BMW so that will be going on with the rebuild, as will a VAC motorsport sump baffle, and they use ACL race big end bearings. Should be re-using my PWG turbo (I asked if metal in the oil will have harmed it or reduced it's life by much and they said it shouldn't have).

Yeah I only found out about the oil filter basket too late and I have no idea how long it was missing for. I'm just gutted I'm having to fork out a load of money that I hadn't budgeted for, yet I want to keep hold of this car as it's a gorgeous spec.

[Dynamics99]

Originally Posted by Malteser_wfj

Thank you for such a comprehensive reply!

So currently the plan is to get my current engine rebuilt while keeping all of my ancilliaries and turbo etc. If my block/crank is too badly damaged, the garage I'm taking it to have a spare block and crank they can use if needed - again swapping all of my bits over.

What you say about the bolt pattern being the same for auto/manual & different for DCT checks out as the garage asked me what I had and were happy when I said manual as there spare is an auto/manual pattern.

I've got a new valve cover from BMW so that will be going on with the rebuild, as will a VAC motorsport sump baffle, and they use ACL race big end bearings. Should be re-using my PWG turbo (I asked if metal in the oil will have harmed it or reduced it's life by much and they said it shouldn't have).

Yeah I only found out about the oil filter basket too late and I have no idea how long it was missing for. I'm just gutted I'm having to fork out a load of money that I hadn't budgeted for, yet I want to keep hold of this car as it's a gorgeous spec.

FCP Euro recently made an in-depth tutorial on the rod bearing change for the N55. Does anyone have an idea as to why the N55 would spin a bearing or two or need to be changed? Mainly I think the early iterations are the ones I see online that have rod knock.

[bmw335ie90]

Originally Posted by Dynamics99

FCP Euro recently made an in-depth tutorial on the rod bearing change for the N55. Does anyone have an idea as to why the N55 would spin a bearing or two or need to be changed? Mainly I think the early iterations are the ones I see online that have rod knock.

On the FCP video, Gareth said the rod bearings looked fine on the 160K miles 135i. There is no issue with the rod bearings on N55. It’s an oil starvation problem which nobody knows how to solve. This motor can spin a bearing at any time, especially after an OFHG replacement. Brand new bearings are not going to prevent a spun bearing from oil starvation.

If you want to change the rod bearings go for it but it’s a waste of time if you arent doing an oil pan gasket. You really should be also replacing the oil pump and oil pressure regulator if you want to throw parts at your car.

[Malteser_wfj]

Originally Posted by Dynamics99

FCP Euro recently made an in-depth tutorial on the rod bearing change for the N55. Does anyone have an idea as to why the N55 would spin a bearing or two or need to be changed? Mainly I think the early iterations are the ones I see online that have rod knock.

From what I've read and seen it could one of multiple things that lead to early rod bearing failure:

* Not priming the engine properly after changing OFHG, or sump gasket etc
* Lack of oil pressure from hard driving and high G braking
* Some idiot mechanic loses your oil filter cage

[whyzee125]

People say it's an oil starvation issue but I don't know that I agree. The oiling system is supposedly better on the N55 than the N54 but it's always the N55's spinning bearings with no warning. Additionally, it's not always after an OFHG change (often is, but not always).

Lastly, if they are having oil starvation issues this commonly, I doubt it's one event in the life of the car that takes it out, but multiple events and eventually they let go. IMO putting fresh bearings gives you a better buffer of protection against wear or oil starvation events.