[MAMSport]

I am one of thousands of drivers who had to replace the rod bearings. On my '02 M3, it had bearings changed as part of the service action (NOT technically a recall). I was aware of the potential for further wear, so I monitored the condition by having regular oil analysis (every other change). This pointed to increase in lead and some copper in the oil about 100k miles after the service action, so the decision was made to replace the replaced bearings. My indy tech, a former BMW master tech who specialized in E46 M3s and who had previously owned an E30 M3, and I discussed the different alternatives. We concluded that OE bearings made the most sense, and if we got to another 100k miles and needed to change again, it would be acceptable. I ended up selling shortly after the bearings and oil pump replacement though (total miles about 135k and 100k after original replacement).