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Engine ID

32K views 47 replies 15 participants last post by  magnetic1 
#1 ·
From an old Technical reference information bulletin. The attachments referenced do not show the newer engines.
Sort of matches the one on my S54 engine. Vin LK60049 manufactured 05/01. Production day doesn't make sense.
On the S54 engine the number is on the right hand side of the block below the headers where it meets the oil pan.
My engine:
6 104 2 493
32 6 S4
Anyone else have the numbers on their S54 engined car?



 
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#27 · (Edited)
Dale 6 103 2493 LJ80138 04/01
Dwayne 6 104 2493 LK60049 05/01
Dan 6 111 2495 LK60113 06/01
Al 6 120 2514 LJ80291 06/01
Randy 6 086 2554 LJ80510 08/01
JonM 6 115 2557 LK60238 08/01
Daniel 6 071 2655 LJ82311 12/01
Ron 6 157 3765

I'm guessing the 4-digit part is production day, and the 3-digit part is the engine number within that day.

Let's assume the production day is days the line is running, and that the M engine line doesn't normally run on weekends, so it's mostly only weekdays being counted.

This lines up pretty well when comparing production dates to engine numbers above, given the amount of potential slack in the supply chain. Someone in Spartanburg probably has a rough idea how long an S54 might sit before being mated to a chassis, and how long it takes for one to come across the pond. One of those pointed questions I always forget to ask on the plant tour: "How far ahead of scheduled assembly date do you receive S54 engines? Are there any in the plant that are still awaiting an order to match them to a chassis? Closer to 0 or 20? If they're delivered JIT, what's window for them? A day? A week? Longer?"

Assuming this is correct, Dwayne's (formerly Ron's) '01 M coupe engine was right behind Dale's in engine assembly. Ron's 3765 would be about 14.5 years. BMW introduced the S50B30 for the E36 M3 in 1992. Same engine assembly line?
 
#28 ·
The second block isn't 4 digits, but rather 1+3. The first number in the second block (5th number overall) designates the engine line, and the second through fourth in the second block (6th-8th overall) designate the production day.

So Ron's, for example, should be
6 157 3 765
Which is:
Assembly line: 6
Serial #: 157
Factory code: 3
Production day: 765

So what's curious to me is that an S54 in a brand new car was built on the 765 production day. That 765th day could mean lots of things, like since that assembly line (6, looks like M engines) started, since that factory opened (3, Munich), since S54s began production (2001ish), since some random day they chose (sneaky Germans), etc. In any case, 765 production days raises a red flag.
Since MZ3 VIN #049 had an S54 built on the 493rd production day, and MZ4 VIN #033 had an S54 built on the 765th production day, that means there's a difference of 272 engine production days for cars built 5 years apart. 272 working days is about a year and 2 months.
So...some scenarios:
1. Thousands of S54s have been sitting around for a few years in a warehouse (not likely).
2. S54s are not built every day. This means 272 days of S54 production spread out over 5 years. Doesn't make since, however, because an early S54 was built on day 493.
3. "Production day" lost something in translation and refers to something besides an 8 hour shift. Perhaps it means something more like "batch." Not likely since they refer to "day" quite insistently in this document.
4. It's a mixed production line, so engines with consecutive engine numbers aren't necessarily the same engine. For example, 61573765 is an S54, and 61583765 is an S85. Still doesn't make sense that there are only 272 engine production days between an '01 car and an '06 car.

Adds up to a great big :dunno:
 
#29 ·
I'm suggesting that what Ron has posted re. engine numbers may be obsolete, and that the last 4 digits are production day. Potentially relative to the first day of S50B30 (E36 M3) production. It matches up well with barnapkin arithmetic if we assume 260 work days a year. I don't have general assembly date for Ron's Z4M.

Dale: 04/2001 minus 2493 weekdays ~= September 1991
Dwayne: 05/2001 minus 2493 weekdays ~= October 1991
Dan: 06/2001 minus 2495 weekdays ~= November 1991
Al: 06/2001 minus 2514 weekdays ~= October 1991
Randy: 08/2001 minus 2554 weekdays ~= October 1991
JonM: 08/2001 minus 2557 weekdays ~= October 1991
Daniel: 12/2001 minus 2655 weekdays ~= October 1991
Ron: ??/2006 minus 3765 weekdays ~= ???
 
#32 ·
So we get:

Dale: 04/2001 minus 2493 weekdays: roughly September 1991
Dwayne: 05/2001 minus 2493 weekdays: roughly October 1991
Dan: 06/2001 minus 2495 weekdays: roughly November 1991
Al: 06/2001 minus 2514 weekdays: roughly October 1991
Randy: 08/2001 minus 2554 weekdays: roughly October 1991
JonM: 08/2001 minus 2557 weekdays: roughly October 1991
Daniel: 12/2001 minus 2655 weekdays: roughly October 1991
Ron: 05/2006 minus 3765 weekdays: roughly November 1991

Just a theory, and nothing but circumstantial non-rigorous arithmetic and a miniscule sample size to support it. Pulled out of my you-know-what. :)
 
#35 ·
My engine block has four lines of information and the last one being "Made in Germany". Would someone interpret these numbers for me and what they mean. :( Sorry, I'm new at this. My VIN LJ80334.

Engine Block:
326 S4 08A
0255 A 103
1100 0 304 353
Made in Germany
Was that in the same engine place shown in our pics?

Looks like you got a replaced remanufactured engine in your car.
Did you just purchase the car?
Did you get the vehicle history from BMW dealer.
 
#46 · (Edited)
i noticed that too. remanufactured S54 engines were probably produced with some urgency to keep up with demand once BMW decided to replace them. keeping cost down would be another explanation for leaving out the date circles off.

if you're still curious whether there are engravings underneath the sticker, there would be telltale signs. see image below. i superimposed my image over the sample. notice that the sample's engravings go beyond the edges of the sticker.

 
#48 ·
Hey guys, bringing this back. Somehow came across this thread in my Googling of S54 block numbers.

Im currently building a 2004 E46 M3 racecar. In doing preventative pre-race work, I was in the middle of replacing the rod bearings when I noticed the rod bolts were M11. Since BMW doesnt even make M11 anymore and were replaced w/ the newer M10s and associated connecting rods, is it safe to assume that the motor in this car is a replacement engine from an earlier era?

My serial # is not stamped and is like 01 M Roadster's plate. It reads as follows:

32 6 S4 01A
0784 A 102
1100 7 831 914
MADE IN GERMAY

According to real oem, this motor part number is a reman from Up to 04/2003: http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=BL93&mospid=47714&btnr=11_2986&hg=11&fg=05&hl=6

Oddly, there is NO history (at least not in BMW's system) that this 2004 M3 has ever had an engine replacement. The car itself has 90k miles on it.

Are my assumptions above correct?
 
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