Gotcha..

I did a rebuild on an N62B44 in my 545i a year or so ago. Alusil blocks are not so fun. Sold it not long after though

http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=731948 if you ever want to see entirely too many pictures

 

I just went through the first 50 of what appears to be thousands of pics, and man let me tell you that you are a brave soul!! Lol No way that I could EVER attempt to tackle that project and on top of that take that many pics. Wow remind me again why not to buy a bmw lol

 

lol yeah, that one got a little long. Kept me busy though! Ran great at the end, I just never trusted it again. I should have sold the damn thing as-is when the original engine went out. The technology they put into cars is pretty incredible, but obviously the downside of that is the complexity. This thing had a hydraulically controlled sway bar that the computer could use to push on whatever wheel it wanted to, variable ratio steering (so in a parking lot it'd take like 3/4 of a turn to go all the way right to all the way left, then on the interstate it'd take a lot more..). I think I miss the heated steering wheel the most though, lol

I always laugh when people say engine bays on Corvette's are tight after working on that thing. You literally can't even see the headers with the engine installed it's such a tight fit

 

I ALWAYS tell anyone who wants an honest opinion on buying a BMW to stay away from the V8 models. From the old M60/62 to the N62/62TU to the N63, they've all been high maintenance motors that are a PIA to work on. The current N63 may be the worst of all yet with two turbos cooking in the valley area.

With the exception of my E90 M3, all mine have been inline 6 models and been rock solid. The current N55 is a great engine. I'm considering an M235i for my DD if I ever get tired of my 335.

You're spot on about the technology. In the almost 13 years I've been involved with the company, they've been head and shoulders above just about any other manufacturer I'm aware of. At least as far as innovation goes. Ever since the N54 came out in 2006, I've dreamed about owning a 6.0+ liter small block that shares it's technology and power output. Almost 10 years later, GM has almost done it with the LT4.

I'll have to check out that thread of your build. Did the Alusil block fail? I've heard of that happening on some 90's engines, but nothing modern.

PS: I work with Bimmerfest owner Jon Shafer. Good guy.

 

Jon should like me, my threads over there have like 300K views at this point total, lol

I've been casually looking around at some 6 cylinder models.. if I ever get back into one, it will be with one of those. They are really solid engines. I love the look of the E60, but getting a higher mileage N62 was a bad idea, no doubt about it. I've heard the N63's are worse for the reasons you've already mentioned. I also heard something about it being very easy to fry the DME's on those when working on the car, but I can't remember the specifics.

On mine.. I was cleaning out the secondary air ports using the AGA kit, finally got them cleared out, turned engine over for a bit with spark plugs out to make sure I didn't hydrolock it if solvent made it to the cylinders.. went to start it, started fine but smelled sweet, ran rough. Steam coming out of the exhaust, oil was like a milkshake. Turns out I cracked the #2 cylinder somehow.

Bought a replacement engine for cheap (like $500 cheap), turned out that one needed a rebuild and some parts from the old engine. Someone had rebuilt the heads and not tightened the cam bolts correctly, so timing was off on it. No bent valves, but a few pistons were messed up (I'm assuming it had jumped time before which necessitated the rebuilding of the heads). I ended up rebuilding it with new rings/bearings, a hodgepodge of pistons from both engines based on weight/sizing. It ran great in the end

The neatest part to me was "honing" the alusil cylinders. You use a special paste + felt pads to do it.. the engine that I pulled out had over 200K miles on it and there was not even a HINT of a lip at the top of the cylinders

 

Wow.... that sounds like a pretty major cluster f%ck. I really don't enjoy working on any N62 car. Between the valve guide issues (and related smoking problems) to the coolant pipe O-ring inside the timing cover that will eventually leak (and cause a major teardown of aftermarket part to fix), not to mention the oil leaks that spring from nearly every gasket once you get near 100k -- I'd never buy one. Sounds like you found out the hard way about the secondary air clogging thing. I'll say you were pretty brave taking that on though.

BMW is in damage-control mode with the N63 cars right now. Swapping the intake and exhaust ports was a great idea from a thermal efficiency standpoint, and it makes for nearly zero turbo-lag, but it created lots of other issues. To sum it up: the oil service intervals were too long to start with -- and that's an engine that produces a lot of heat. Everything in the valley area starts to cook within short order. The plastic PCV lines basically disintegrate, the turbo inlets start seeping oil into the hot exhaust area, the coolant feed lines to the turbos get warped from heat. Basically everything in that valley area takes a beating. In a worst case scenario, the timing chains are wearing out due to poor lubrication. At least that's what BMW is telling us the cause is.

And yeah, if you don't tighten one of the ignition coil harness bolts properly (or switch it with the wrong length bolt), you can damage the DME or alternator. Not exactly a DIY friendly engine. They do run good, but I don't recommend them to anyone.

I'm a fan of E90s and am on my 3rd one. The N54 has had it's issues over the years, but they've been pretty much sorted out with the newer design high pressure pumps and injectors. Mine hasn't had any issues other than some turbo rattle that I fixed under that extended settlement warranty. I just wish the current Fxx models had the same type of chassis tuning as an E9x. None of the new ones have convinced me I need to upgrade just yet. I'd love an M4, but they're not exactly giving those things away right now.

 

Yeah.. it was a mess. Yep, I had every one of those issues. Leaky valve seals, coolant crossover pipe (I used one of the aftermarket replacements to avoid having to pull the lower timing cover, worked great), etc. The N62's are oil leaking pigs.. I was fairly lucky with mine that I never had any catastrophic leaks, when I pulled it out it was leaking oil from every crack and crevice. I put a super thin layer of sealant on everything when I put it together (except head gasket). BMW says not to, but I figured why not at that point.. if I didn't it was going to leak anyways. Didn't leak any, but I didn't put many miles on it either

After I saw how the oil pump plumbing worked, I quickly realized why that alternator seal is such a horrible setup. The design of the mount is setup so that there's a hard stop so you can't over compress the seal/gasket. That's great until the gasket has been pounded with hot oil for 10 years and it starts breaking down

Knowing BMW they're probably running a 220* thermostat in the N63 too.. I've always said the reason they didn't put a coolant temp gauge in the E60's is because people would freak if they saw how hot they run

Didn't the M54 have some issues with heads too? Something about lifter noise? I'll PM you in a second. Little off subject for this forum, lol

 

How did this turn into a BMW THREAD? Back on topic please! This is a Corvette board!

 

Sorry, I was having traumatic flash backs of my BMW days

Back on topic

 

 

I'm curious to see how big the aftermarket world is for these cars. I mean to make 707ish horsepower the car has to come pretty "modded" so to speak from the factory. Just a thought...

 

Oh, they're selling them faster than they can make them. Hence, a freeze on new sales. I can guarantee you that the aftermarket will be all over this like a duck on a junebug. Or maybe like white on rice. Forged pistons, powder-forged connecting rods (whateverthehell that is), and a forged crank probably mean this kitty should be mod friendly. Whether the rest of the combo is up to the task remains to be seen. Good start though.

I've already had my last Dodge/Chrysler product. I do applaud them for raising, or at least supporting, the bar though

 

So what can the aftermarket provide to make up for the extra 1000 lbs those cars carry around?

 

Force feed that pig more Air & Fuel... And/Or a kit or two of nitrous... Don't be surprised to see high 3 or 4 digits RWHP...

 

Mo' powa....plain and simple. Whether the platform can be competitive with a Vette? Hell, I don't think so. But, I'm way past being biased. The engine isn't any bigger than our LS3's. Maybe a little stronger underpinnings, but there's more to a sports car than just the motor. At least, that's what I've always been told. I think Andy said it, it has to be true

 

Some families need 4 doors and a bigger car. The Hellcat is a perfect fit if they can afford it.
The gearhead dad can carry a couple of kids in the back seat and momma will be happy with the automatic and nice ride.

No, its not a Corvette and is not meant to compete with a 2 seater sports car.

I think Dodge hit a homerun with this one.

 

I can't argue with their fan base. When you're trying to sell something and it sells faster than your company can make it.....well, I'm the worst saleman on the planet and I could sell these things. Bravo for Dodge. If I needed 4 doors, it'd be a CTS-V Caddy though. Not quite as fast, more refined though. Check around....plenty of stupid fast CTS-V's trotting around. You don't notice them because their owners are usually old and sneaky. I can relate

 

Well, the truth is that -- at least from what I've seen -- the Hellcats have been beating C7Zs from a typical roll-on. The Hellcat seems to do pretty well for it's advertised power/weight. I'd like to see one run a ZR1 from a roll.

I guess the real question is what kind of power they'll be able to get out of that motor. I'd have to assume everything is pretty overbuilt. Add some bolt-ons to the Hellcat, and it might be a different story vs. a ~650 whp C6.

 

From what I understand the Kitty makes 12 lbs of boost, so not much left on the table there, if the plan is to use pump gas. The only advantage that Hemi has is the two spark plugs per cylinder and a beefy bottom end.

 

I was interested in seeing those heads and found this..