The BMW N63 series of 4.0-and 4.4-liter 8-cylinder engines have been produced since 2008 and is installed on almost all modern large models of the German automaker. There are a number of sports versions of this engine under the S63 index and with a power of up to 600 hp. Despite the huge success and ahead of its time, it faced numerous engine problems. If you’re curious about the owner of the N63, here’s our list of 5 issues that are most common with the N63 engine.
From 63 General maintenance Repair
- Recommended to replace ignition coils every 45,000 miles or so. It makes sense to replace them in the same way as the spark plugs. The symptoms are the same symptoms of bad ignition coils.
- Spark plugs – this is the first BMW engine model with three(!) modifications to the spark plugs. The first BMW engine, where the flimsy spark plug made by BOSCH really “blows away”. Well, in fact, of course, it does not blow out, but “short circuits” at high pressure-even brand-new plugs from the ” box ” can cause jumps. This is why for M engines, BOSCH produces reinforced plugs in the same form factor. They are guaranteed to be fine.
5 Most Common Problems with the BMW N63 Engine:
- Malfunction of the fuel injector.
- Excessive oil consumption
- Faulty timing chain.
- Quick discharge of the battery.
- Valve stem seal leak.
N63 Fuel injector problems
The pump itself does not cause any problems (unless it starts to knock noticeably), it just works dumber, which is noticeable only when comparing the response (time/pressure) of the new pump and the old one. Replacing the old one gives you a sharper throttle response, and you’ll immediately notice that the car has regained its original responsiveness.
Symptoms of fuel injector failure N63:
1. Poor acceleration.
2. Rough idle.
3. Black exhaust tips and bumper residue from unburned fuel.
4. Flash in the pan.
5. Check the engine light.
If you notice any of these symptoms, it’s probably the injectors. But these symptoms are almost identical to the symptoms of poor spark plugs and ignition of coils, so it is recommended to replace these parts. Replacing all the injectors at once will be expensive, given that they cost about $ 300 EACH, but can save you time in the long run.
More: Fuel injector problems
Excessive oil consumption
The N63 is notorious for its thirst for oil. This problem is mainly due to the engine design, where the turbos are in the middle of the ‘V’ of the engine. This area is very hot and makes the engine to burn too much oil and even causes the gaskets to dry out, which can lead to bad leaks. Well, the BMW specs say the normal value is about 1 kilogram per 1,000 miles, but some owners say it’s a quart for every 600 miles.
Despite the oil burning, people still love the engine and say that they change the oil ones every 4-6 thousand miles and stock up on a few quarts when the lights go out. These cars don’t have a dipstick, so there’s no need to fumble around under the bonnet.
More: https://bimmerlife.com/2018/10/20/bmw-settles-n63-v8-oil-consumption-lawsuit/
N63 timing chain failure
N63s timing chains able to stretch over time, and that is causing additional wear on the valve chain and adversely affecting performance. The belts stretch and they can jump over and bend the cylinder valves, leading to costly repairs.
Rough idle and an engine warning light can be early clues to this problem, but can still be a silent engine killer. If it’s not repaired, you can get bent valves or worse, engine failure. Fortunately, BMW has taken it upon itself to fix the problem with a major service bulletin, which we’ll look at a little later.
Forum: N63 Timing Chain Issue
BMW says: “We know that timing chains on the N63 can stretch and wear prematurely, which is leading to premature valve wear and reduces engine performance.”
Rapid battery discharge
Although not technically an engines part, it is a very important component. In BMW’s quest for efficient dynamics. BMW promotes components to improve fuel economy possible. With the N63, this system relied on rolling the car to recharge the batteries and not charging from the belt coils.
While this did help take the strain off the engine and improve fuel economy, people who own a 50i don’t roll much. Also, the electronic systems were left on after the car was switched off to allow the cooling system to cool the turbines, which were placed in the mid-V in the engine. It is known that the N63 batteries do not live very long. BMW’s specification requires the battery to be replaced at every other oil change.
BMW did suggest replacing the old batteries with new, larger versions, but this seemed to hide the bigger problem with the patch.
Tight valve stem seals
You only just finished the burnout, or you see smoke coming from your engine? Due to the high temperatures created by the exhaust and turbos in the engine valley, those seals failed, causing leaks and huge bags of white smoke coming out. Link to post with pictures and story here.
The N63 Symptoms of a faulty valve system seal:
- White smoke from the exhaust;
- Excessive oil consumption (more than 1kt within 5-7 days).
If you see white smoke coming out, the problem is probably the valve stem seal. The bad news: you have to reset the engine to replace them. Some people claim that they know how to replace them by themselves, but unless you are an expert mechanic, you shouldn’t try to do it yourself.
Support package
Great news if this list of 5 common problems didn’t make you run for the hills. The company noticed that there was a big problem with these engines and released a customer support package in 2014 and 2015. A customer support package was launched to address most of the N63 issues, such as seals, timing chain, fuel injectors, and head gasket. This is great considering that most of these issues were on our list of common problems.
The customer support package from 2014 and 2015 was a great attempt to fix a big problem, most owners appreciated what BMW did to fix it. Most owners and enthusiasts will admit that there are some problems with this engine that you will have to deal with, but in the end, the joy outweighs the problems.
Also, it’s always a good idea to do a pre-sale inspection to make sure there are no other unresolved issues under the hood. However, keep in mind that this is a high-performance engine that requires attention and care. Not for the pretense of the heart, but for those who are willing to take care of the engine, which is known to bring a huge amount of energy and joy to the future.
More: N63 Customer Care Package
Reliability rating: 1-highest, 4-lowest
Score: 3.5
I can’t give him a full B this time. There are excellent examples with more than 100,000 miles, and with the care package released by BMW, there is hope that it will last a long time. However, there is a lot of risk and huge store bills if something goes wrong (and it probably will).
The prices of these models become very cheap due to maintenance costs. When considering owning an N63, due diligence is a key consideration before buying to make sure you minimize future headaches.