3.0 engine failure...

[Cyrix2k]

The X5 I fixed & sold on to a friend just had its engine blow up. He reported a tapping sound followed by the engine locking up & smoke out the exhaust. It won't turn over at all. He said he never got an oil pressure light and it sounded like tapping (top end), not knocking (bottom end). At this point we assume it needs a new engine.

As far as N52s are concerned, does anyone know what the interchange looks like? I think all 2nd gen (plastic valve cover) N52 short blocks are interchangeable and only differ in terms of what's bolted onto them, right? So an N52N from a 328i should work if we swap over all the E70 bits? Any gotchas? Also worth noting is this E70 does have adaptive drive. The interchange mentions that for some reason.

On to what I think happened. This engine previously through VANOS codes about 20k miles ago and it's always had a bit of an idle stumble when it first starts up. I replaced the VANOS "filters" (non-return valves) and found metal back then, and I replaced the VANOS solenoids with new, genuine BMW solenoids. I also found the center of the oil filter housing cap to be loose and possibly broken, so I replaced the cap with a completely new cap. The engine ran better and the codes never came back although the "stumble" / idle issue never completely went away. I understand this is common with N52s though. About 500 miles before I sold it, I replaced the VANOS filters again. This time they were perfectly clean with absolutely no indication of metal. The oil filter has always come out clean.

BMW has a recall for N51 and N52 engines produced from September 2009 to November 2011. The updated recall is here https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/201...4V176-2716.pdf However, the original recall shows them recalling vehicles by model year - 2010 through 2012, as seen here https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/201...4V176-3214.pdf This is a very late production 2009 X5 with a production date of September 24th 2009. It is my opinion that this vehicle should have been included as part of the recall campaign but was not. This was not an open recall on this vehicle and I don't recall seeing any documentation of this recall being performed; I did have complete records for the vehicle. We won't know for certain what happened until we tear the engine down, but the symptoms of cam bolt failure are certainly consistent with what happened and it would explain the lack of an oil pressure warning during failure. I assume at this point BMW will not stand behind this...

[B4_685]

When exactly did the engine lock up? Was it during cruise or just went to start it and it wouldnt turn over?


2012 E70 N63 50i

[Cyrix2k]

Cruising down an interstate highway.


:edit: catastrophic for sure

[ard]

Blood on the Highway....

[Magnesiumnitrate]

Jesus I have a very similar production date x5... now you have me considering taking my valve cover off for an inspection.

Once you open it up give us an update.

[smassey321]

I have seen a few people ask this question but there is never a response from someone who has actually done it. N52 block part numbers are the same but short block part numbers are different. Adaptive drive is a different power steering pump.

For you, getting an E90 N52 is a somewhat safe bet. They are in the $500 range for a 2011 w/ 100k miles. I see the motors all the time in the pick n pull yards. People take the cradle but leave the engine as they are not in demand. Complete 2011 E90 from copart are $500-1000. Worst case, if the motor does not work, you can sell it and get a lot of your money back.

It is funny that used E70 N52s are significantly more money. I would prefer an N52 from an E90 that has spent its life moving around a much lighter car while tuned to output much less HP.

[Cyrix2k]

Thanks for the response! Do you know if there's any difference, other than oil pan, between manual & auto N52s? Realoem has an AT crank noted so we're afraid to grab a manual, but there's a nice one available locally.

And of course I'll post once we open the engine up. I got more back story on what happened. My friends said they were cruising on the highway and it started tapping. They thought it was lifter tap and were going to get off on the next exit. It started losing power, automatically downshifted pretty hard (4k rpm), and the engine almost immediately went boom. That almost does sound like bottom end to me (why else would it lose power?)... The most recent work done to this engine would be the fuel pump, CCV hose, intake manifold gaskets, non-return valves, spark plugs, coils, and air filter about 2k-2500 miles ago. Outside of what I noted in the original post, the engine has never made any weird noises or behaved oddly. It's been extremely well maintained and documented so it's frustrating to have such a failure occur, but I guess that's life.

[ard]

Im of the opinion that BMW will not make the same exact part, but use two differnt part numbers....


There has GOT to be differneces...bolt holes drilled and tapped on one, not the other- or vice versa.


THink of it: Why would they have the same crankcase, identical, but inventory them as two separate 'bins'? They wouldnt. There would be one part, one part number- and 'can be used in A or B'.


Someone else here or BF did an engine swap..bert..ben.. F. Dangit. Cant recall. Will look later



IMO most seriously catastrophic failures happen pretty dang quick. Its not like you hear noises for months on end, then a rod shows up outside.

[Cyrix2k]

Originally Posted by ard

Im of the opinion that BMW will not make the same exact part, but use two differnt part numbers....

The blocks are the same part number.




The short engines include the oil pan which we know changes depending on model & options. Side note: BMW's definition of a short engine is more along what I'd consider to be a long block.

[ard]

There you go.