BMW timing belt [chain]

Peintre Celebre

Hi lads

I have an 08 320d M sport. I know there were issues with the timing belts on these models. I've 127,000 miles on the clock. Wondering whether I should get the timing belt done? It seems to be running fine but I know I heard of some horror stories. What is the failure rate like on these engines? I know 0 about cars really any help would be appreciated. Thanks

bazz26

First off it's a timing chain rather than a belt and yes they have a reputation for stretching and/or breaking. However if the chain is not rattling I'd leave it alone. If you do want peace of mind then your looking at around €1500 to change it from a good independent garage. It's a fairly awkward job involving taking the engine out so it's quite labour intensive, a good bit cheaper these days than a few years back though due to the experience many independent garages have of doing them now.

Peintre Celebre

bazz26 wrote: »

First off it's a timing chain rather than a belt and yes they have a reputation for stretching and/or breaking. However if the chain is not rattling I'd leave it alone. If you do want peace of mind then your looking at around €1500 to change it from a good independent garage. It's a fairly awkward job involving taking the engine out so it's quite labour intensive, a good bit cheaper these days than a few years back though due to the experience many independent garages have of doing them now.

Cheers bazz sorry meant the chain alright. Would it be a noticeable rattle coming from it?

Stallingrad

Peintre Celebre wrote: »

Cheers bazz sorry meant the chain alright. Would it be a noticeable rattle coming from it?

Yes, from around the bulkhead. Examples on YouTube. Can be tricky to hear in the early stages as it's such a noisy unit.

EPAndlee

I done my chain about 18 months ago, genuine parts came in at about 1000 euro. If it isn't rattling I'd leave it alone

Peintre Celebre

Thanks lads

intro

I had pretty much the same situation in December last year. 2008 320D estate which I imported in Jan 2009 from the UK. I had 160,000 miles on it. Always serviced with BMW for the first 3 years andd then independents. Oil changes every 9000 miles as well.
When i was in with the mechanic he said that the noise from the engine was the timing chain starting to go. He suggested that I contact BMW as they were doing them under "goodwill". I was extremely sceptical about this but done as suggested and contacted them on line via their web site.
I was contacted by a lady from bmw uk who told me I would need to leave it into a bmw main dealer where they would do a test using some listening device (my words, i cant remember the exact term) which i would have to pay for (around €60 i think). She was confident that there would be a contribution.
Booked it in with Joe Duffy (there was also a couple of recalls to be done).
Short story, it was the timing chain on the way out with a possible bill of €2,500. The guy in Duffys really doubted that BMW would cover little if anything of the bill!!
I contacted BMW again. They stated that once Joe Duffys made a report to them they would definitely cover some if not all of the bill. Two days later the guy in Joe Duffys contacted me to say that BMW came back and was covering 100% labour and 100% parts. He was genuinely surprised as much as me.
Job done and two year warrenty on it as i had to cover the cost of oil and couple of items ancillary to the job.
I wonder if the change in BMW's attitude is related to the court cases being taken in relation to timing chains? I saw the solicitor involved stating that BMW had settled 30 of the cases. Also there may be very few left with the timing chanis left to do.
Anyway its most definitely worth contacting BMW to see if they will cover this before doing anything else.
Best of luck!

intro

Just a quick follow up on this. I spoke to my mechanic this morning. He tells me that BMW is replacing large numbers of timing chains under "goodwill".

Wildly Boaring

Had I known this 3 months ago i might have kept the 5 series.

Was looking at a clutch and flywheel and doing the chain at same time.

Just traded the car as got decent value for it and this hefty bill coming down the tracks fast.

intro

Hi Wildly Boaring,

I had intended to post this earlier but unfortunately illness over the christmas period curtailed things a lot.

Wildly Boaring

intro wrote: »

Hi Wildly Boaring,

I had intended to post this earlier but unfortunately illness over the christmas period curtailed things a lot.

Oh no worries. I just assumed going near BMW be a complete waste of time.

Learn something new everyday

ArrBee

intro wrote: »

Just a quick follow up on this. I spoke to my mechanic this morning. He tells me that BMW is replacing large numbers of timing chains under "goodwill".

Thanks for sharing

timple23

Are they replacing them as goodwill when have already gone or when they start noising?

If I had a wand test done by bmw and it was shown to be noising could I ask them about getting it done before it snaps/loosens?

intro

I didnt really notice it getting any noiser ( they are a noisy engine) but I was in with the mechanic booking in my wifes car for a service. When I started my car he was on the phone and whipped around to have a look. He said to contact BMW first. I did this via the BMW website, gave details of the car, servicing and milage etc. They contacted me to explain the procedure and it went from there. I'm not sure what the procedure is if they have already broken.

Ruairi.g

Are BMW still replacing timing chains as a goodwill gesture,
Or was there ever a recall regarding these!

Reason I ask, is that I’m looking at a 09 520d but am put off by the timing chain issue!
Beautiful car....... but! I have a niggling feeling in the back of my mind due to this!
If the timing chain was done, or BMW would replace it for me, it would alleviate a lot of my fears!!

Seth Brundle

Ruairi.g wrote: »

Are BMW still replacing timing chains as a goodwill gesture,
Or was there ever a recall regarding these!

Reason I ask, is that I’m looking at a 09 520d but am put off by the timing chain issue!
Beautiful car....... but! I have a niggling feeling in the back of my mind due to this!
If the timing chain was done, or BMW would replace it for me, it would alleviate a lot of my fears!!

You would have to work off the assumption that they will say "no".
What's the mileage and service history like?

Ruairi.g

Not sure about service history, but mileage is about 285,000km

Seth Brundle

Has a mechanic familiar with BMWs seen the car? Get their advice on whether it's a good buy.
My 09 520d is on about 240k kms with a decent history. I still wouldn't assume that BMW would think that I'm a valued customer driving an 11 year old high mileage low value car.
My mechanic told me that I should get the pre-emptive fix done (doesn't seem noisy to me). I will at some point but as I'm cycling more and more these days I'm not too pushed about it.

Ruairi.g

I’m reading figures of about €1,500 to get that done! And while I could factor that into the life of the car, I’d much prefer if someone else (BMW) would pay it! 😅

Ruairi.g

Seth Brundle wrote: »

Has a mechanic familiar with BMWs seen the car? Get their advice on whether it's a good buy.
My 09 520d is on about 240k kms with a decent history. I still wouldn't assume that BMW would think that I'm a valued customer driving an 11 year old high mileage low value car.
My mechanic told me that I should get the pre-emptive fix done (doesn't seem noisy to me). I will at some point but as I'm cycling more and more these days I'm not too pushed about it.

I’m based in Mayo, are there any good indie BMW mechanics here that anyone knows about!
I’ve never had a BMW before, so wouldn’t be sure!

Ruairi.g

Seth Brundle wrote: »

Has a mechanic familiar with BMWs seen the car? Get their advice on whether it's a good buy.
My 09 520d is on about 240k kms with a decent history. I still wouldn't assume that BMW would think that I'm a valued customer driving an 11 year old high mileage low value car.
My mechanic told me that I should get the pre-emptive fix done (doesn't seem noisy to me). I will at some point but as I'm cycling more and more these days I'm not too pushed about it.

I’m based in Mayo, are there any good indie BMW mechanics here that anyone knows about!
I’ve never had a BMW before, so wouldn’t be sure!

Ruairi.g

I’m reading figures of about €1,500 to get that done! And while I could factor that into the life of the car, I’d much prefer if someone else (BMW) would pay it! 😅