I am a current E55 owner and know the M113k motor fairly well, but I am looking at purchasing a M156 vehicle that has previously had the following work completed in 2014 at ~50k miles. It now has 105k.

2014 work:
Camshaft adjusters
Camshafs
Camshaft followers
'valve clearance adjustment'

There was no distinct note of headbolts being replaced per the Merc service advisor.

It is my understanding that the camshaft and followers once replaced should be good to go. Is that correct?
Also, if they went to all this work in 2014, would have have likely replaced the headbolts too?

There was no sound on startup with the camshaft adjusters. There was a low coolant light, but there was two noted coolant leaks at the actual reservoir, one at the small return tube and one at the outlet.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks in advance!

-Nervous M113k Owner

 

Faulty headbolts were resolved for 2011 model year so they will be fine without being replaced. Cams and lifter unfortunately are wear items at this point until an aftermarket cam comes to the market. Some people have luck with upgrading the lifters. The adjusters will also eventually crap out but there is an aftermarket alternative now that uses stronger metals and shouldn’t require replacement once you upgrade
m156 is pretty reliable and not the time bomb some make it sound out to be. Keep up on the maintenance and understand some items are wear items on it that aren’t on some other cars and you will be fine

 

Thanks for the reply. The vehicle is a 2007 and had work done in 2014. Would you expect that they would have done the headbolts with all the other work?

Also will the 'new' (2014 new) lifters and camshafts be less likely to wear being from 2014?

 

My unwarranted opinion,

The head bolt issue in my opinion was blown out of proportion. Always has been, always will be. While 2007-2011 models were affected, that didn’t exactly mean that every other M156 was now set to blow up.

It was actually rare, by my standards of course, to see the head bolts give up. But when they did give up, it was blown up all over the net by BMW fan boys and alike. The cost being so high to repair the problem also helped expedite rumors that M156 is now a garbage platform and 07-11 models are the ******* child.

I personally ALWAYS do compression test on all cylinders before purchasing any vehicle. If the seller is not up for it I simply move on. Compression test will tell you what you need to know for the most part.

I would also be ready to spend $2-$4k on maintenance as it seems the car has seen better days. Things to keep in mind: Rotors and Brakes, front and rear. Transmission service. Tires. Shocks/Springs, list goes on.

 

Ahh yes if it’s an 07 it won’t have the bolts done. The dealers don’t change them unless they fail or you want to pay to have them changed. Definitely worthwhile to change them out although like the comment above I think it’s also blown out a bit. It’s fairly rare but not worth the risk in my opinion as basically you need a new motor at that point or full rebuild. I’m changing mine out this winter

 

Purchase a newer (2012+) M156 and you won't have to worry as much (one less thing to think about is always better). Unless you prefer the styling of the pre facelift models.

 

I’m guessing as it’s 07 he’s looking at a e63,ml63,S/cl63 or clk63?

 

50k seems kinda early to have done all that work. I have a 2014 with 68k and I'm about to check my camshafts. I've benn religious about oil changes to keep the wear down on the cams/lifters. The 2014 models have the SLS valve spring so the 2014 models have cam wear sooner. We'll see.

I personally wouldn't go for an 07. There were a lot of updates on the facelift model that make it a more desirable car.

 

This item made me laugh since it is impossible as there is no adjustment.
'valve clearance adjustment'

 

Yes there is. They idled the car for a few min to pressurize the hydraulic buckets.

Duuuhhhhh.