First media mention of BMW NA limited six-year/100,000 mile warranty extension on all S54 motors. "The company told owners it is 'conducting an in-depth engineering analysis to determine the reason for the failure.' In December, AutoWeek reported that more than 100 M3 owners had logged complaints online about potential engine problems. Some owners estimated that as many as 500 vehicles could be affected (AW, Dec. 2)..."

I spoke with BMW reps at the L.A. Auto Show, pressing them on the engine failure issue, the weak warranty extension, and the possibility of a recall. One guy there had a really bad attitude, dismissing the seriousness of the safety concern and acting like the limited warranty extension was extremely generous. Once he walked away, another rep told me that BMW has not yet determined the exact cause or causes of the failures and so has not yet fixed the problem!

The article, as we've been able to decipher the German text, seems to say that BMW may recall M3's delivered in the North American market between November 2001 and February 2002. It says that "a certain series of engines it is suspected that particles/residue caused within the production process are being transfered from the oilpump in to the oilcirculation, which has caused severe problems at the rod bearings." It goes on to say "BMW did verify that all owners of vehicles produced within this certain timeframe are going to be notified in writing," which suggests that BMW has admitted the problem and the recall, though this cannot yet be confirmed.

John Stoll of AutoWeek scooped the other mags with this story covering the M3 engine failure issue. This is not an in-depth article, and it does miss a few points, but this is a significant development, with one of the serious auto magazines covering the story. Mr. Stoll mistakenly states that the problem is confined to 11/01 and 12/01 production cars; he also does not mention the documented bearing specification changes (he also mis-spelled my name, but I can live with that). At least the issue has been brought to BMW's doorstep and is in the press.

See also AutoWeek's Combustion Chamber discussion forum.

Here is my response to this article.

In this message, Gene states basically what he said to me on the phone earlier in the day. Is this a change in policy, or just another delaying tactic? One thing that annoyed me in the content of Gene's message is mention of maintanance. Again with the maintenance!

In this letter, Mr. Forgie (Failure #66, I believe, in Jason's Archive), mentions that his September '01 production M3 blew the motor at a BMW CCA driving event. A point he makes clear is that BMW NA is not communicating adequately with owners. Further, he illustrates the dangerous potential of a catastrophic engine failure such as what he experienced, saying "I can only imagine the outcome if this had happened on a busy Interstate." He goes on to say "I can't afford to have a repeat performance. I might not be so lucky the next time!"

This TSB details the main bearing spec change, which we believe began in October.

Mr. Lee give a concise overview of the technical issues and how most failures cluster around the November '01 production time when the bearing spec was changed. He, too, takes issue with the lack of communication with M3 owners. He also mentions how BMW NA, in their none-too-informative form letters, harp on proper maintenance and avoidance of over rev, saying "Frankly, this is insulting to most M3 owners."