Thanks for the info Cristalworks. You aren’t kidding about 4.6 scarcity and price. A quick search finds one or two 4.6 long blocks, both in the 5k range, while there are many 4.4 M62 examples between 500 and 2000 bucks.

Most are out of 5 and 7 series cars, which begs the question of if the oil pans and diff will bolt on without drama. Nathan’s BMW YouTube channels has a video of him replacing a blown 4.4 from an X5 with one he says came from a 5 or 740. He mentions that the pans, etc. from the X5 will bolt right on.