Quote:
Originally Posted by andrewsmith335i
Hello all, I am currently looking at a few e46 m3s I would like to buy. I know that the post LCI cars are better in terms of rod bearings, but what about the subframe? Did BMW ever improve it over the course of M3 production?
Also if anyone has gone from E9x 335 to M3 how was the transition?
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I don't think pre or post LCI cars are exempt from rod bearing failure. It's been a problem that plagues the V10 M5's and M6's and plenty of other M production models.
Something important to note is that if/when you're doing a rod bearing replacement on a pre-facelift E46 S54, BMW doesn't sell the rod bolts (M11) separately because they're suppose to be paired with the con rod, and I'm assuming BMW wants you to shell out for new connecting rods if you were replacing the bolts, because they're meant to be together for life. I personally would re-use the rod bolts on pre-facelift M3s because they're paired to your rods, I've never heard of anyone blowing their motors because of bad rod bolts, have you?
If you're buying a facelift M3, they have the (M10) bolts and they are absolutely able to be replaced with OEM or aftermarket bolts. They're a tad bit more difficult in terms of the tightening sequence, so a lot more people go with the ARP bolts in this case. You'll definitely need a stretch gauge to do it accurately if you're going with that facelift S54 rebuild.