Munich, we have a problem; A cadre of owners raises brow-and stink-over M3 engines gone bad.(BMW M3 engine problems)

Byline: JOHN D. STOLL

``The BMW M3 is about as good as it gets.''

So read our conclusion in January after whirling an M3 around a California track and rummaging through our mailbag of owners' comments (AW, Jan. 14). Then came word of engine failures.

While little has been reported about possible main bearing or connecting rod problems with M3 engines built in 2001, the problem is real, admitted by BMW, and extensively documented online at members.roadfly.com. Some 112 owners have logged complaints via the website, detailing extensive dealings with dealers. Many have had engines replaced with no explanation of what went wrong.

BMW sold 13,408 M3s in the United States over the past two years through October. Only a small percentage of owners have reported an engine failure, said BMW spokesman Gordon Keil. Those who are familiar with the situation estimate that as many as 500 owners worldwide have had problems. The automaker acknowledges ``probably under 100'' cases in the United States.

The problems appear isolated to models built between November and December '01. However, the earliest reported case on the website was posted in October 2001. That owner (who signed a non-disclosure agreement and is limited in what he can say) reported the exhaust valve broke, touched the No. 5 piston, and leaked sodium throughout the cylinder. His M3 convertible was replaced.

``It's no big deal that the car has a problem,'' says another owner, John Turkell, whose often track-driven November '01-built M3 continues to run with little difficulty. ``This is a safety issue. I don't want the engine to go with six cars bearing down on me.''