[messyhead86]

Hi

I’ve got a 2014 330d non X-drive touring which I’ve had around 6 months. At low revs when going on and off the throttle there’s a noise which sounds like a metal tinging. When the engine is under load the noise compeletely goes and then only returns when letting off when it’s not under load.

My understanding is that the previous N57 engines that had some issues was due to the chain tensioners failing which I’m wondering is what could be what is happening when the noise is present when not under load.

I know generally the N57 in the F30 isn’t known for timing chain issues, whereas the N47 is a lot more prone to problem. Has anyone has any similar problems whcih have turned out to be something completely different or is it worth booking the car in with an indie to see what’s going on.

Thanks

[Watsey]

How miles has the car done ?

I went to see a knowledgeable BMW indy who gave me some advice :

- N57 chains tend to stretch as the mileage increases, but they are not prone to snapping (unlike the N47).

- You can often hear the chain passing over the tensioners - get your ear towards the rear of the engine block and listen for a continuous "shshshsh". This is perfectly normal.

- As the chain stretches it no longer passes over the tensioner is a steady 'flow'. Instead it tends to go over the tensioner in waves and makes more of a "sh sh sh sh" noise.

- Start-stop is not good for the engine (which we know). The start-stop cycle places the timing chain under additional slack-jolt loads which will increase the wear rate.

As always, good quality engine oil and regular servicing are essential. I also do intermediate oils/filter changes every 7K miles and use Archoil friction modifier (AR9100) with every oil fill. I coded-out start-stop as soon as I bought the car - it was the first mod that I did.

My car has done 95K miles and the timing chain noise is continuous, i.e. not giving any audible signs of stretch yet.

[messyhead86]

Thanks for the reply. The car is on 55k and has been serviced four times in that time. I intend to service it every 10k as most of my driving is done on the motorway, so not massively stressful on the engine. I’ll have a look into archoil friction modifier, is it just an additive to the oil?

The noise is fairly smooth and is coming from behind the centre of the dashboard. What’s odd is that it’s not there all the time. Generally only under light driving or sometimes not at all.

[Watsey]

Yes, AR9100 (or AR9200, both are fine) has a dosing recommendation of 28:1 (oil/Archoil), from memory, and simply added via the oil filler. I have the engine running when I do this so that the product is immediately mixed with the engine oil.

I also use a good quality engine oil flush as part of my oil servicing routine - either Archoil 2820 or Liqui Moli. You must follow these instructions, i.e. the engine needs to be running but you must not drive the car while the flushing product is in the oil.

[BimmerItaly]

Hi, my 30d with ppk also started making noise at idle and around 2000 rpm. I bought the official tool from Bmw to check the elongation of the upper chain and the measurement gave a positive result, the elongation is not excessive. For now I have decided to wait a few months, then since I want to keep this splendid car for a long time I will try to change the chain in my garage.

Mine is a F31 '15 N57 with PowerKit at 180.000km

[BimmerItaly]

The tool is a tensioner that works as a gauge. You mount it in place of the tensioner and let the motor do 4 full revolutions. The protrusion of the central pin that you can measure indicates the elongation of the upper chain, in my case it resulted in tolerance while remaining even with the upper edge.