325 engine kaboom!! ESS TS2

Hi guys, The 325 engine went after only 15,000 supercharged miles with a total mileage of 160,000.. I am buying a reconditioned m54 but unsure weather I should buy the b30 or b25. I am presuming with the b30 I will need to resend the ECU to ESS to retune for a b30 but are there any other complications?

Thanks in advance!

Sell the TS2 and your blown motor and do a S54 swap. way better platform.

Originally Posted by A55A55IN

Sell the TS2 and your blown motor and do a S54 swap. way better platform.

I could say sell the s54 and buy an s62? Better platform again!!

That would at least triple the price of what im looking for..

Waaaaayy to much money in the car to sell due to engine giving up, Just looking for info on swapping b25 for b30 with the ESS intake on it.

Originally Posted by AndyN

I could say sell the s54 and buy an s62? Better platform again!!

That would at least triple the price of what im looking for..

Waaaaayy to much money in the car to sell due to engine giving up, Just looking for info on swapping b25 for b30 with the ESS intake on it.

Not necessary for boosting - S54 has way more options than the S62. I'm just speaking from experience. You are going to keep spending money on that M54 and it's going to keep breaking since it was never designed to hold that much power unless you build it properly. So your best bet is to build your blown motor.

hmmm ya I hear what your saying, Building the motor I would be best off to buy ESS's stage 3 but looking from build threads there is much more expense than just the basic TS3 kit... It is worth considering so I see your point..
But at the moment as I want the car back on the road due to my e30 being promoted to daily driver! Im able pick up a reconditioned b30 block for (euro)1000 which is pretty class.. If that blows Ill eat my hat and take your advice!

Yeah that sounds like your best option then. Get the B30 block and send your ECU for a re-tune and you should be good to go.

Good luck!

Good luck and godspeed on the m54. You will pickup more horses with the m54 so it sort of is a upgrade for a non astronomical price.

Originally Posted by AndyN

Hi guys, The 325 engine went after only 15,000 supercharged miles with a total mileage of 160,000.. I am buying a reconditioned m54 but unsure weather I should buy the b30 or b25. I am presuming with the b30 I will need to resend the ECU to ESS to retune for a b30 but are there any other complications?

Thanks in advance!

How did the engine blow? What part of it?

I've had my TS2+ for just over 20k miles, threw it on at around 45k and I'm at 68k right now. My engine is the b30.

Originally Posted by Dirtboy

How did the engine blow? What part of it?

I've had my TS2+ for just over 20k miles, threw it on at around 45k and I'm at 68k right now. My engine is the b30.

got a check engine light. Pulled over and oil was all over the engine bay with none in the sump! Still not sure where all the oil came out of as I did lots of PM! But the outcome is no compression in two cylinders and very little in the third. You guys can probably draw a better conclusion as to what happened.

Sent from my GT-S5830i using Bimmer App

Originally Posted by AndyN

got a check engine light. Pulled over and oil was all over the engine bay with none in the sump! Still not sure where all the oil came out of as I did lots of PM! But the outcome is no compression in two cylinders and very little in the third. You guys can probably draw a better conclusion as to what happened.

Sent from my GT-S5830i using Bimmer App

You need to tear apart the engine and look at both the pistons and the spark plugs. Until you figure out the cause of the problem, I would not run whatever replacement engine you will have sources. For example, if it was a fuel system related failure, you would still need to address that....

I would stick with sourcing another M54 to keep costs down.

The ESS TS is a pretty darn reliable setup. I've been running my TS2+ for almost 5 years and over 75k miles now without any issues beyond the normal maintenance one would have on a stock motor. You need to find the root cause of your problem. I agree with Adam regarding sourcing another M54 to keep costs down. ESS may charge you another $500 for the b30 tune, you might want to contact them to find out before deciding to upgrade. That said, the b30 is a bit more robust than the b25 but you're also not running a ton of boost.

CEL + empty sump? Is the serpentine belt still in place? There have been a few reports of failed hydraulic belt tensioners (broken base plate actually) with at least one instance resulting in damage to the oil filter housing. How long were you driving after the CEL came on?

Originally Posted by TxZHP04

CEL + empty sump? Is the serpentine belt still in place? There have been a few reports of failed hydraulic belt tensioners (broken base plate actually) with at least one instance resulting in damage to the oil filter housing. How long were you driving after the CEL came on?

Does anyone have a picture of this area of the engine to help the OP diagnose the failure?

Originally Posted by PEI330Ci

Does anyone have a picture of this area of the engine to help the OP diagnose the failure?

*Pic removed.

This is the tensioner he referred to.
It attaches to the OFH which is actually a semi hollow part, that the alternator, and PS pump attach to.
It certainly isn't a very robust part being that it is hollow.

Originally Posted by ///MPR77

Attachment 481327

This is the tensioner he referred to.
It attaches to the OFH which is actually a semi hollow part, that the alternator, and PS pump attach to.
It certainly isn't a very robust part being that it is hollow.

Is that picture a joke?

The belt routing.....

Hey guys, Had a check there and the belt tensioner is still in place with no damage to the oil filter housing. The most of the oil was on the exhaust side of the engine. Im baffled as to where all the oil in the sump went and where it came out from the exhaust side, Maybe the VCG??
Ordering the B30 on Monday, it has a 6 month unlimited mileage warranty too which is great. I have contacted ESS about the tune so just waiting for a reply from them and Ill send the ECU off..

Hey guys, Had a check there and the belt tensioner is still in place with no damage to the oil filter housing. The most of the oil was on the exhaust side of the engine. Im baffled as to where all the oil in the sump went and where it came out from the exhaust side, Maybe the VCG??
Ordering the B30 on Monday, it has a 6 month unlimited mileage warranty too which is great.
I have contacted ESS about the tune so just waiting for a reply from them and Ill send the ECU off to Norway... (I wonder would posting to the US branch be quicker?) Seemed to take forever the last time to come over and back through norway as it has to go from Ireland to france then denmark to norway..

Originally Posted by PEI330Ci

Is that picture a joke?

The belt routing.....

Maybe It was moved for a picture but that doesn't seem right.....

Originally Posted by AndyN

Hey guys, Had a check there and the belt tensioner is still in place with no damage to the oil filter housing. The most of the oil was on the exhaust side of the engine. Im baffled as to where all the oil in the sump went and where it came out from the exhaust side, Maybe the VCG??
Ordering the B30 on Monday, it has a 6 month unlimited mileage warranty too which is great.
I have contacted ESS about the tune so just waiting for a reply from them and Ill send the ECU off to Norway... (I wonder would posting to the US branch be quicker?) Seemed to take forever the last time to come over and back through norway as it has to go from Ireland to france then denmark to norway..

How cold was it when it happened? to me it sounds like frozen crankcase ventilation and therefore blown valvecover gasket

Originally Posted by PEI330Ci

Is that picture a joke?

The belt routing.....

No way, not a joke.

It was an old picture, but yeah over the idler, instead of under.. wow.

I went out and checked my routing again to be sure.

As soon as I get back to a computer I will delete that picture, as I would hate for it to be referred to for routing. It served it's purpose to show the tensioner.


Good eye!

Originally Posted by zx5rider

Maybe It was moved for a picture but that doesn't seem right.....

For some reason it's easier, and quicker for me when I route the belt, I start by getting the belt into the position as pictured, then I can put the AC belt on; I then go back to the serpentine, relieve a tiny bit of tension and slip the belt under the idler...just strange that I ever took that picture..

Originally Posted by AndyN

hmmm ya I hear what your saying, Building the motor I would be best off to buy ESS's stage 3 but looking from build threads there is much more expense than just the basic TS3 kit... It is worth considering so I see your point..
But at the moment as I want the car back on the road due to my e30 being promoted to daily driver! Im able pick up a reconditioned b30 block for (euro)1000 which is pretty class.. If that blows Ill eat my hat and take your advice!

Where did you find the B30 block for €1000 ?