Engine Diagnosing Help

[sbay]

Hello fellow members,

Just purchased a 2002 M3 with “rod knock” as the diagnosis from the seller. Testing my luck to see if maybe the noise is the VANOS, or something else, before I go purchase a used engine/rebuild. Appreciate any advice or help!

Link to video:
https://youtube.com/shorts/L8THhM-rV...70AKr9zFPqrTrv

[BOOSTED]

Bad news Its rod knock.

[Arith2]

Hopefully you paid half price. That's a pretty knarly knock.

[sbay]

Was worth a shot lol, thank you as always!

[Arith2]

At least you bought a car worth fixing regardless. No matter what, after enough time you can most likely break even at a minimum

[sapote]

Hopefully the crank bearing journal is not badly damaged.

[Syfon]

Just pull the oil filter. If it's knocking, there will be metal in the oil. No need to keep running it. Time to tear it down and do a full rebuild. Can't just slap new bearings in and call it a day

[sbay]

I will update this thread down the line with pictures of the findings for anyone interested!

[Arith2]

I will update this thread down the line with pictures of the findings for anyone interested!

This is the kind of post that peaks my interest. I love a good mystery. Even after all the warranty bs and retarded politics at my dealership, it's this very thing that keeps the passion for working on BMWs. Good luck with it and hopefully it isn't too terrible to fix. Once you figure out what is wrong, it may be good to give Achilles Motorsports a call in Cali. The guy knows S54s very well and is worth talking to for some perspective at a minimum.

[ChapterM3]

sbay Definitely interested to see what findings you come of this - that is pretty damn bad rod knock! Wonder what it's going to look like once you pull it apart