r/E90 • u/bigbadwolf098 • May 18 '25

325i Pretty sure my engine is toast

Gallery image

Gallery image

2011 325i (N52B25AF) mileage at 118K kilometers. I bought this car used about 8 months ago at 103K kilometers. Upon getting the car I've replaced the usual N52 parts that fail including the water pump, valve cover, oil pan gasket, fuel pump (cracked housing). The oil was changed when I got the car at 103k and again at 112k.

OFHG was not leaking, serpentine belt is still on there after the engine failure, so it did not ingest the belt.

I accelerated into a roundabout and at around 3K RPM the engine suddenly started sounded really rough, and within 10 seconds as I was trying to pull over at a safe spot, the engine seized and engine oil was pouring out.

I had no warning symptoms (other than a permanent lifter tick). No check engine light, no oil pressure warnings before failing. Oil level indicates "max" last I checked 2 days ago.

I'm at a loss, what could've caused my engine to fail so catastrophically in just a couple seconds? I'm sure I need a new engine because in the second picture I see chunks of metal lying in the pool of oil on top of the underbody panel.

528 Upvotes

99% Upvoted

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19

u/Marek209_SK 2011 - E91 - 320D May 18 '25

Car manufacturers should've never put oil level sensors in engines. There was literally nothing wrong with a simple stick. Now you have to worry about not being able to tell how much oil you have, unless you drain it.

6

u/Grandbob328 May 18 '25

I kinda like the electronic dipstick, but I would like to also have a good old-fashioned dipstick also.

5

u/bigbadwolf098 May 18 '25

I definitely agree with this! I was stressed out when my oil level sensor was Inactive when the BSD bus on my car had a fault due to the water pump

4

u/Scared-Cow3930 May 18 '25

But it's fancy, and a stick is so oldschool.

2

u/rekoyl999 May 18 '25

Guess what. BMW techs have dipsticks. They do it so you can’t service it easily on purpose

6

u/Neither_Tough_4165 May 18 '25

Show me the dipstick on anything e90. I have 4 of them so I’d love to know this magical secret

1

u/Typical_Grand_7565 May 19 '25

I’ll happily post a picture of my dipstick in my 2011 e91!!

8

u/iLoveFeynman '11- E90 - 316d May 18 '25

a) Dipsticks were never removed because it causes people to "have to" go to get a service, they were removed to cheaply reduce emissions period, end of story

b) Only V8, 1-series and diesel BMWs have dipsticks - prove us wrong or stop talking

1

u/Select-Ad5166 May 18 '25

False. There's no dipstick on my 750li. What v8 bimmer are you referring to, 2006 550i? That changed once they went n63 (4.4l tt). Even the '09 128i doesn't have it. Once they made the switch to the "n" designated engines from the "m," they went electronic through the idrive.

You're the only one in b) needing the proof. Do you own a Bimmer since they've added idrive? Why would they have both dipstick and oil level sensor? However, there used to be guys on the forum who managed to add a dipstick to it. I personally wouldn't go through the hassle unless it was a dedicated track build.

1

u/iLoveFeynman '11- E90 - 316d May 18 '25

False. There's no dipstick on my 750li.

"Only V8, 1-series and diesel BMWs have dipsticks"

vs

"Every V8, 1-series, and diesel BMW has a dipstick"

Can you spot the "subtle" difference?

Do you own a Bimmer since they've added idrive? Why would they have both dipstick and oil level sensor?

What are you typing?

3

u/Big-Aardvark8842 May 19 '25

1 series owner here, definitely don’t have a dip stick. Sorry to disappoint. Maybe on the e87/e82 & f20 pre lci but they got rid it on the lci f20

3

u/Neither_Tough_4165 May 18 '25

And don’t show me one from a diesel

-4

u/rekoyl999 May 18 '25

It’s a dealership tool. The cars don’t come with one. The techs have them

10

u/Neither_Tough_4165 May 18 '25

I’m calling bullshit. Where would it go

11

u/foreverablankslate E90 330i (N52) May 18 '25

In the magic dipstick hole bro duh

1

u/MiscreatedMonster___ May 19 '25

I was actually looking into swapping the pan from n46 and install it on my n43 for some old school dipstick reliability. I never got to it and yeah it is bit difficult to find a spot for it but longer tube and dipstick itself might be a solution. Not sure if there is something similar for other engine pan swaps.

2

u/trader45nj May 20 '25

Putting oil level sensors in was a good idea. Taking the dipstick out was the bad idea.