S63TU engine seized - seeking advice

[I Luv BMW]

Hello

I posted the below in the F86 forum yesterday. Thought I would do the same here and seek thoughts/advice/comments given obviously the F10 uses the same S63TU engine and from reading through this forum, seized engines seem to have been more prevalent on the F10 platform.

My F86 engine has seized.

I have owned this car since new, and while always serviced at a BMW dealership, I made some foolish decisions (now, in hindsight) which I now realise almost definitely contributed in some way.

I had a Boodmod3 OTS Stage 2 tune + catless DPs. The performance and sound were absolutely spectacular, but alas my enjoyment was short lived. I had previously ran a Bootmo3 Stage 2 tune + catless DP on an F30 328i for around 50,000km and for some reason I though the tune would be "safe" on my F86. Stupid. Let this be a warning for anyone thinking about flash tuning.

Also, while the car was serviced on time at a BMW dealership, this meant super long (i.e., 20,000km) oil change intervals. I also neglected to properly check that the oil was up to temp before driving. Seriously, stupid, I know.

Anyway, pulled away from standstill and the car suddenly went into "N". Pulled over and restarted engine, about 5 minutes later hear a very loud ticking noise which was worse at lower RPMs. Very shortly after (maybe 100m or so), got a drivetrain error and low engine oil pressure error. The rest is history.

The preliminary diagnosis is that it is a spun bearing or bent/broken rod. I am now left with 3 options:
- Repair/rebuild the engine (assuming) this is possible;
- Replace the engine with a used engine (new engine from BMW does not make economic sense); or
- Relinquish - sell the car as is and move on.

As mentioned, I have an emotional attachment to this car and would prefer the first 2 options, but only if I can gain some comfort that the issue would not repeat itself after XXXX kms. It would be of more comfort to know that my stupidity caused the engine failure. Obviously, if I was to go with one of the first 2 options, I would run the car on stock and make sure oil is up to correct temp, etc, and do 5,000km oil changes

My question is, what is the general prospective outlook (in terms of longevity) for a rebuilt s63tu engine, keeping in my I am in Australia and the engine rebuilding capacity may not be anyway near as advanced as the US.

With a used engine replacement, assuming that it is a low km engine (i.e., less than 30,000 km), what are my long term prospects? If I do all the right things with the replacement engine, i.e., stock, correct oil temp, frequent oil changes, do I have a greater likelihood of the engine making it past 100,000kms? Or are the s63tu engines such that "you just never know"?

Third option means cutting my losses and selling the car at approximately 20% of market value, and "downgrading" to something like a G20 M340i (these are great cars, but it is no F86!).

Would appreciate your thoughts/advice/recommendation/sharing of experiences, and would obviously welcome thoughts from Australian members.

Thanks in advance!

BTW, seeking goodwill contribution from BMW is likely to be a waste of time given the tune, etc.

[M5Rick]

Originally Posted by X6MJC

Hello

I posted the below in the F86 forum yesterday. Thought I would do the same here and seek thoughts/advice/comments given obviously the F10 uses the same S63TU engine and from reading through this forum, seized engines seem to have been more prevalent on the F10 platform.

Hi everyone

Long time lurker, first time poster.

My F86 X6M engine seized at just over 100,000km. Happened about 3 months ago, and fair to say I am still distraught as I absolutely loved this car.

I have owned this car since new, and while always serviced at a BMW dealership, I made some foolish decisions (now, in hindsight) which I now realise almost definitely contributed in some way.

Once the car passed warranty period and was around 90,000kms, I got a Bootmod3 OTS Stage 1 tune. About 5,000km later I got bored and upgraded to a Boodmod3 OTS Stage 2 tune + catless DPs. The performance and sound were absolutely spectacular, but alas my enjoyment was short lived. I had previously ran a Bootmo3 Stage 2 tune + catless DP on an F30 328i for around 50,000km and for some reason I though the tune would be "safe" on my F86. Stupid. Let this be a warning for anyone thinking about flash tuning.

Also, while the car was serviced on time at a BMW dealership, this meant super long (i.e., 20,000km) oil change intervals. I also neglected to properly check that the oil was up to temp before driving. Seriously, stupid, I know.

Anyway, 3 months ago, while pulling away from standstill, the car suddenly went into "N". Pulled over and restarted engine, about 5 minutes later hear a very loud ticking noise which was worse at lower RPMs. Very shortly after (maybe 100m or so), got a drivetrain error and low engine oil pressure error. The rest is history.

The preliminary diagnosis is that it is a spun bearing or bent/broken rod. I am now left with 3 options:
- Repair/rebuild the engine (assuming) this is possible;
- Replace the engine with a used engine (new engine from BMW does not make economic sense); or
- Relinquish - sell the car as is and move on.

As mentioned, I have an emotional attachment to this car and would prefer the first 2 options, but only if I can gain some comfort that the issue would not repeat itself after XXXX kms. It would be of more comfort to know that my stupidity caused the engine failure. Obviously, if I was to go with one of the first 2 options, I would run the car on stock and make sure oil is up to correct temp, etc, and do 5,000km oil changes

My question is, what is the general prospective outlook (in terms of longevity) for a rebuilt s63tu engine, keeping in my I am in Australia and the engine rebuilding capacity may not be anyway near as advanced as the US.

With a used engine replacement, assuming that it is a low km engine (i.e., less than 30,000 km), what are my long term prospects? If I do all the right things with the replacement engine, i.e., stock, correct oil temp, frequent oil changes, do I have a greater likelihood of the engine making it past 100,000kms? Or are the s63tu engines such that "you just never know"?

Third option means cutting my losses and selling the car at approximately 20% of market value, and "downgrading" to something like a G20 M340i (these are great cars, but it is no F86!).

Would appreciate your thoughts/advice/recommendation/sharing of experiences, and would obviously welcome thoughts from Australian members.

Thanks in advance!

BTW, seeking goodwill contribution from BMW is likely to be a waste of time given the tune, etc.

If you are attached to the X (like I am to my M ) I'd find a specialist PU rebuilder with a good write up to strip it down and if it's just rod bearings then do that with any other things beside..like worn valve guide seals for instance.
If the damage is too much (like block and crank beyond repair) then a guaranteed re-built exchange short block would be the way to go.
People in the US have transported their M's half way across the country to have their damaged engines rebuilt at preferred garages.

[M5Rick]

You said yourself also that having a 'boot mod 3' tune doesn't help PU longevity in the long run so I'd keep it standard for reliability if you decide to go this way, 560-575 hp is quite enough for me.

[M5_Raz]

Carbahn and RKAutowerks have shipped engines overseas, not sure about the costs of shipping. They even make forged engines (good for 1,000-1,200hp), which could theoretically run much longer than stock at conservative power levels.

As for your engine, unfortunately it might be your fault more than the tune. These really need to be warmed up slowly and oil changed very often. Also need to check the oil level often as they burn on average about a quart per 1,000-3,000 miles.

However, the many horror stories is why I was not driving on my BM3 stage 2 tune and only used the program for data logging. So far I’ve had a pleasant experience with a more custom tune, done by BPMSport.

There are many users here with over 100k miles without much issues, some even above 150k miles, both stock and stage 2 tunes. A big factor that can be overlooked is changing your spark plugs every 30k miles. When tuned on stage 2 you should change them with colder spark plugs before loading the tune, and ~15k miles after that.

Hope you get it fixed, this car and engine is something special! I wouldn’t want to give mine up.

[I Luv BMW]

Thank you very much for the responses.

I would actually feel more comfortable replacing the engine knowing that I am the one that caused my engine to blow - whether that be via the tune or negligence. Because theoretically, I could put in a low mileage engine and treat it correctly going forward, it should hopefully give me many miles of trouble-free motoring. I may also look into whether RK Autowerks can ship to Australia.

Whereas, if it just a "luck" thing, then no way I would be comfortable driving around thinking that the replacement engine could blow any day.

Question - could the seized engine cause damage to other components, such as the turbos or the exhaust?