Three problems related to engine have been reported for the 2002 BMW M3. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
I own a 2002 BMW M3. There are six camshaft bolts behind a plate cover. BMW speced bolts that were too soft until 2004 when they changed bolt spec to a hardened steel with loctite. Prior to this the bolts had no loctite. The issue is starting to surface all over the web. The failure is that the bolts do not stay screwed in. They back out and stop against the plate cover. Eventually they shear off and if this happens it causes catastrophic failure to your engine. In my case I was going 15mph so the damage was only $10,000. The car hammered to a stop. BMW is refusing to acknowledge the issue suggesting out of warranty. My concern is that I have 60k on the car when the issue occurred first. A p0011 camshaft timing fault comes up. A BMW service center cleared the fault and replaced some coils and sparkplugs ($663) and sent me on my way. Three days later the bolts sheared. The dealership said they "had never seen this before". They also said BMW had issued no bulletins to address the bolts. Every independent BMW facility I interviewed in portland was well aware of the issue and already doing engine rebuilds for their customers. I think this is gross negligence on BMW's part for not acknowledging the issue and dealing with it. I also think the dealer is guilty of clearing the fault without checking further. The bid on my work is $10,000 (two valve heads and a vanos system plus 50 hours of labor). This is an estimate until they pull the engine apart more. Online you can see on you tube my issue by watching this video. On all the forums there are threads to see the issue. . Read more...
Multiple problems with the vehicel. The engine was replaced at 16000, the transmission (smg) was re[;aced at 20000, now the engine rev high at idel and send stron vibration to the cabin and steering column. BMW of houston north, a local dealer in houston, TX, were less than helpful in trying to solve the current problem. It appears that they want to keep the problems with M3 quiet.
Engine destroyed by rod bearing failure.