Cost to replace timing chain guides/tensioners on M62 (4.6is in particular?)

[Adas]

Thanks, Trasportador - that's good to have the 'lower' end of the range, so I guess I should probably be budgeting for somewhere between $3-4k...

Plattus1000 - you are quite adept with prose, sir! Nicely written! Re: your first post about 'smiles per gallon'. Well said, I completely agree. I moved to Colorado from New Zealand back in Oct 2014 - my last car in NZ being an E39 M5. I moved here to marry my girlfriend - giving up my M5 for her, it must be love! I'm sure on M5 boards there is much wailing and gnashing of teeth about massive running costs of M5s etc., but like you say, that is really missing the point. I loved my M5 (had it 4 years before I moved here and had I not moved, probably would have driven it for another 5 or 6 years) and that was after having and E34 M5 for 5 years. Don't get me wrong, I don't LIKE to drop thousands on car repairs, but at least with the M5 it didn't bother me too much because I LOVED the car so much. So I can definitely empathise with your commentary. You just have to budget that into your cost of ownership on a car, and like us on this board, the car is more than just a way of getting from point A to B - it becomes a hobby, a passion. And yes, now living in the mountains of CO, an E39 M5 would not be a practical proposition, but I always loved the 4.6is and saw it as the M5 of the X5 world back in the day. I know the 4.8is came along and there are numerous threads on this board about "4.6is v 4.8is" so I won't go there - it all comes down to personal preference and while the 4.8is might have a few more ponies and be a bit quicker, I just love the 4.6is. There is a similar argument in the E34 M5 world (3.6 v 3.8) and I personally prefer the look and the drive of the 3.6 (which is what I had). But again - it comes down to preference, and at the end of the day, they're both awesome cars (the same with the 4.6is and 4.8is).

As for your follow-up comment - yes, I agree - I will just have to get one! And factor in at least $3-4k per annum of maintenance (over and above standard servicing) - that is, if I keep it long enough (3+ years). I know your spending of $12k in one year throws that calculation out the window somewhat! Unfortunately I am about as handy as an extremely unhandy thing, so doing any work on the car myself would be courting disaster. Hence the need to find a really competent (but hopefully not gouging) local independent specialist. I will actually go and talk to them next week about getting an estimate on timing chain work so I go into it with my eyes open should I buy one that hasn't had the work done...

Your description of the engine etc. really excites me. I haven't actually driven a 4.6is yet! But that said, the first time I drove an E39 M5 was the day before I bought it (and my first time driving the E34 M5 was the day I bought it). Now I'm not suggesting that the 4.6is is comparable to M5s, but I am expecting that same level of "wow, this is a great car, I MUST have it" And good to know that it can handle the snow. When you say you have winter feet, did you still run the 20" rims but with studs? Or did you swap out (like I know many folk do) into a dedicated set of smaller rims (18")? I'm hoping that I can run the 20" all year round, albeit with different tires in the winter - because I just love the look of the 4.6is rims (which again, not that I want to get into a 4.6 v 4.8 slinging match - because everyone has their own rightful opinions, but I personally find the 4.6 rims a lot nicer than the 4.8). So I'm just wondering whether a decent set of winter studs on the 20" rims still makes it drivable in the CO winters...

[X53Jay4.8is]

Originally Posted by Adas

Thanks Plattus1000. Wow, $4k. Ouch! I figured it might be around the $3-4k mark...definitely needs to be considered when buying one. I think I've seen your 4.6is on another thread - a beautiful black one, in Washington, right? Looks really clean - but yes, if you've already spent $12k on it in the last year (double ouch! Should I be reconsidering getting a 4.6is...?) then you probably want/need to get more than what my budget would allow!

If the vehicle has been maintained and mileage is not too high you should not have to worry about timing chain guides and timing chain. I replaced the set on my wagon (99 540it 4.4L) when I purchased it at 163K miles. The second owner did not take care of the vehicle as well as the first owner. The first owner sold the car to the second owner at 140K miles and clearly they could not care for this caliber of car. My brother and I rescued it at 23K miles later. If you are buying one over 150K miles and the guides and chains have been done then ride on into the 200K mile territory. The 4.6is is a very good engine especially when it has been cared for. I love mine in the X5

[Adas]

DYPWICK - thanks for the tip! Definitely worth a consideration (like you say, "if you're in there...") You're right, we probably don't get down to the depths of cold like you do in MN, but having said that, my car will (unfortunately) be outside all year round so it will be exposed to some 5 months of fairly cold temps on a regular basis. We're getting dumped on at the moment (I live in Snowmass) and the forecast low for today is something like 9, and it's only early November...so I guess we're in for a long winter! When I got married here last year (on the 8th - so my 1st anniversary coming up this weekend!) it was 70 on the day. So quite a different start to winter this year compared to last!

[DYPWICK]

FWIW I run a squared 275 winter tire setup on the stock staggered 20" 4.6 wheels. It gets around here in MN winter with no problems at all. That said we don't have nearly the snowfall you do out there and I'm not driving it through winding passes with massive elevation change either.

[Trasportador]

Originally Posted by DYPWICK

Something to consider if you end up finding one that needs TC guides done is retrofitting the oil separator setup out of the 740/540's. Maybe its not as much of an issue in CO winters but here in Minnesota the oil separator & CCV's fail with regularity due to the cold temps. I work at one of the BMW dealers here in Mpls and come winter time we see e53's come in all the time with failed separators and it's not always due to age, more so due to the poor design/external location of the separator where the moisture collects then freezes causing pressure buildup that ultimately finds a release through one of the various gaskets causing serious oil leak and in some cases hydrolock.

The separator on the 540/740's are located internally under the lower timing cover and thus do not suffer from the same failure because they don't freeze up . I myself just did this retrofit this summer but a few of the techs here own 4.4/4.6's which they have performed this modification on and have had ZERO separator issues combined between all of them going back as far as the past 5 winters since doing it.

It may not be an issue out there because the temps typically are not as cold on average as they are here in MN but just thought I would throw it out there. If you are already in there doing guides it is not that much extra work/money to do this preventative modification.

Cheers and happy hunting!

Yea, I like living in the south at times. The above makes me a little happier. I hate snow. Good job you guys are doing tackling the little nuances that these motors have.

[Trasportador]

Originally Posted by trader4

BMW? Poor design? How is that possible? Whenever I point out
something that's a poor design, I get attacked as if I'm attacking
all of BMW and everything they built. They tell me it's my
fault for the way I drive, driving in cold weather, that part really doesn't
have a high failure rate, no problems, etc. Just for the record,
I agree with you 100% on the CCV.

Gotta be a salesperson telling you that drivel. Salespeople cannot even talk to me if I go to the dealership. I tell them up front I want to talk to the lead tech. "He's not available to customers" they say. Yeah, I know, cuz he'll tell me most of the stuff on the lot is garbage.

[Trasportador]

Originally Posted by Adas

Thanks, Trasportador - that's good to have the 'lower' end of the range, so I guess I should probably be budgeting for somewhere between $3-4k...

Plattus1000 - you are quite adept with prose, sir! Nicely written! Re: your first post about 'smiles per gallon'. Well said, I completely agree. I moved to Colorado from New Zealand back in Oct 2014 - my last car in NZ being an E39 M5. I moved here to marry my girlfriend - giving up my M5 for her, it must be love! I'm sure on M5 boards there is much wailing and gnashing of teeth about massive running costs of M5s etc., but like you say, that is really missing the point. I loved my M5 (had it 4 years before I moved here and had I not moved, probably would have driven it for another 5 or 6 years) and that was after having and E34 M5 for 5 years. Don't get me wrong, I don't LIKE to drop thousands on car repairs, but at least with the M5 it didn't bother me too much because I LOVED the car so much. So I can definitely empathise with your commentary. You just have to budget that into your cost of ownership on a car, and like us on this board, the car is more than just a way of getting from point A to B - it becomes a hobby, a passion. And yes, now living in the mountains of CO, an E39 M5 would not be a practical proposition, but I always loved the 4.6is and saw it as the M5 of the X5 world back in the day. I know the 4.8is came along and there are numerous threads on this board about "4.6is v 4.8is" so I won't go there - it all comes down to personal preference and while the 4.8is might have a few more ponies and be a bit quicker, I just love the 4.6is. There is a similar argument in the E34 M5 world (3.6 v 3.8) and I personally prefer the look and the drive of the 3.6 (which is what I had). But again - it comes down to preference, and at the end of the day, they're both awesome cars (the same with the 4.6is and 4.8is).

As for your follow-up comment - yes, I agree - I will just have to get one! And factor in at least $3-4k per annum of maintenance (over and above standard servicing) - that is, if I keep it long enough (3+ years). I know your spending of $12k in one year throws that calculation out the window somewhat! Unfortunately I am about as handy as an extremely unhandy thing, so doing any work on the car myself would be courting disaster. Hence the need to find a really competent (but hopefully not gouging) local independent specialist. I will actually go and talk to them next week about getting an estimate on timing chain work so I go into it with my eyes open should I buy one that hasn't had the work done...

Your description of the engine etc. really excites me. I haven't actually driven a 4.6is yet! But that said, the first time I drove an E39 M5 was the day before I bought it (and my first time driving the E34 M5 was the day I bought it). Now I'm not suggesting that the 4.6is is comparable to M5s, but I am expecting that same level of "wow, this is a great car, I MUST have it" And good to know that it can handle the snow. When you say you have winter feet, did you still run the 20" rims but with studs? Or did you swap out (like I know many folk do) into a dedicated set of smaller rims (18")? I'm hoping that I can run the 20" all year round, albeit with different tires in the winter - because I just love the look of the 4.6is rims (which again, not that I want to get into a 4.6 v 4.8 slinging match - because everyone has their own rightful opinions, but I personally find the 4.6 rims a lot nicer than the 4.8). So I'm just wondering whether a decent set of winter studs on the 20" rims still makes it drivable in the CO winters...

You had an e34 M5?? Reeeealllllyyy...... My dream car to have, but I'm old and lazy now(and don't want to go to jail for speeding anymore), so the E34 540 will have to suffice. Post up some pics of that thing man!!

This is my old white 540/6, next to my even older 530i/5. Both are gone now



Imola love for those that love imola



Had this black one for a minute, but got rid of it as something better came along


"Something better"


How she sits today, but with a 20% tint job

[Plattus1000]

ADAS---
Love NZ and CO. Sorry about the M5 loss. Enjoy the journey looking. I was having fun last night but there was truth in what I was saying about the 4.6.

Transportador---
Just having a laugh. I've lived near Canada long enough to recognize "labour" I also noticed an uncommon clarity and style in your writing I now only see in books... Cherish that education and pass it on to your kids if that's as issue. Mostly I'm still very impressed with your garage buddies and your efforts. They sound like good friends to have. Cheers mate.

[bcredliner]

I bought my 4.6 new. Just over 115,000 miles on it now. Have done many engine and suspension mods and I drive hard. This is the first daily driver I have kept over 4 years. Has been very reliable. Keep searching until you find one with lots of documentation and history-one or two owners. Good luck.

[Trasportador]

Originally Posted by Plattus1000

ADAS---
Love NZ and CO. Sorry about the M5 loss. Enjoy the journey looking. I was having fun last night but there was truth in what I was saying about the 4.6.

Transportador---
Just having a laugh. I've lived near Canada long enough to recognize "labour" I also noticed an uncommon clarity and style in your writing I now only see in books... Cherish that education and pass it on to your kids if that's as issue. Mostly I'm still very impressed with your garage buddies and your efforts. They sound like good friends to have. Cheers mate.

Thanks for the kind words doc. I will be forcibly passing the knowledge I think I possess onto my daughter. Lol. The guys I run with down here are a great bunch. The main reason we keep the swath of cars we have is because we have every bloody thing we need to keep them for quite a long time.