engine and drivetrain Anyone buy a remanufactured engine from Maximillian?

[EcoAuto]

Anyone recently purchase a remanufactured engine from Maximillian? If so, I'd love to hear about your experience, engine performance review, any problems encountered and overall opinion on the engine.

The engines are listed as P/N 11009056520, 11001263390 and 11001261408 on the Max site. They sell for between $4234 and $4867 plus core charge. I've seen them priced $1K more on realOEM.com.

Does anyone know who is rebuilding these? I assume they're coming from Mobile Tradition. I've written Max to ask for confirmation, but am more interested in knowing about your "end user" opinion.

http://www.bmwmobiletradition-online.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=2214&mospid=47140&btnr=11_2359&hg=11&fg=05

http://www.bmwmobiletradition-online.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=2233&mospid=47141&btnr=11_2359&hg=11&fg=05

[ray_]

I'd assume they're coming from Mobile Tradition ;-)

Give Max a call and ask.

Cheers,

Ray

[1453aalapapa]

only the 408 is available, the other 2 are nla. these engines are rebuilt by bmwag. in the early days, new engines were inserted into the reman program until bmw got enough cores. dont forget that there will also be a core charge of 1000.00. typically, only the block, crank and connecting rods are reused, sometimes event the rods are replaced. i THINK the engine is covered under the bmw 24 mo unlimited mileage warranty, as covered in sib 01 05 03, dated 6/2003, but check to see if there is a special provision for engines. i dont think there is. but i know they wont be happy if you go racing. if you need more details, feel free to call and ask for me

[EcoAuto]

Ken -

Strictly normal street driving and weekend pleasure cruises on Montana's open winding mountain roads. Once the snow threatens to fall, the car goes into climate controlled hibernation.

My engine's e12 head is ready to be retired, but the block, judging by the 195 compression all around, seems to be fine. I've ruled out buying a used head because I don't want to worry about the engine again since I live in a state with virtually no BMW presence. There's not even a BMW dealer in Montana. Pitifully, I don't have the skills, tools, facilities or friends willing to help me rebuild an engine myself, and I don't trust local machine shops to rebuild it.

I emailed your associate Saul earlier today and asked for clarification on the issues you bring up - Availability, actual cost, shipping charges to 59715, core charge, BMW warranty, who actually rebuilds the engines and their compatibility with my newly rebuilt Kugelfisher FI and injectors.

I'm trying to build on others experience, so I can make the best decision.

Leading options:

1. Buy a new head from Max.

2. Buy a new / rmfd engine from Max.

3. Buy a remanufactured / ported / complete head from Metric Mechanic.

4. Buy a remanufactured ported, blueprinted 2200 ST engine from Metric Mechanic. This would give me as much performance as I'll ever need.

[Mike Self]

of miles on the engine, then it sounds like what you need is a good cylinder head--either new or reman. I doubt seriously if any of the well-known outfits (MM, Ireland etc) who offer rebuilt cylinder heads would provide you with anything but a good product--they don't want the comeback and bad karma that would go with a dodgy product (although mistakes happen to all of us).

Surely there's a shop somewhere in Montana that could fit a new/rebuilt head to your car; there's nothing magic about a BMW cylinder head R&R vs any other--the only tricky thing I can think of is to make sure the upper timing chain cover is surfaced at the same time as the head so their mating surfaces match. And once the shop knows about that, it's a simple operation.

Do your compression test several more times, wet and dry (dry= simply doing the test on each cyliner; wet=squirt a little oil down each cylinder before doing the test) to determine the rings' condition. A big difference between wet and dry = worn rings; if that's the case, you may need more than a new head.

Keep us posted on whatcha find...

mike