The N63 V8 is BMW's 4.4-liter V-8 with 402 horsepower that saw use in every 5 Series, 6 Series, 7 Series, X5, and X6 model that have names ending with "50i" and were manufactured between 2008 and 2013. So many issues occur with this engine actually that BMW did a 'voluntary recall' redubbed the 'BMW Customer Care Program.'
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It was October 2016, and I was going to buy my first BMW. I was skipping straight to the top by picking up a 2011 BMW 750Li X-Drive. Oh, what a crazy ride it would be.

You see I didn’t know anything about the BMW N63 V8 engine. I would quickly find out. So, today, I’m going to be talking about. Specifically, I’m going to be going over what to do if you have a V8 BMW, and whether or not you should consider buying one.

The N63 V8 is BMW's 4.4-liter V-8 with 402 horsepower that saw use in every 5 Series, 6 Series, 7 Series, X5, and X6 model that have names ending with "50i" and were manufactured between 2008 and 2013. So many issues occur with this engine actually that BMW did a 'voluntary recall' redubbed the 'BMW Customer Care Program.'

Now, this 'Customer Care Program' is a major service. It takes several days for each car and could include replacement of the fuel injectors, mass airflow sensors, battery, crankcase vent lines, fuel pressure sensor, the engine’s vacuum pump and last, but certainly not least, replacement of the timing chain.

If all that didn’t sound like enough, all cars using this exact variant of the N63 engine will no longer be a part of the BMW long-life service intervals, instead of requiring a service check every 12 months or 10,000 driven miles.

Even if your car is out of warranty (ie, 5 years old and has 200k miles), it is covered by this campaign and costs the owner nothing. This means that if you currently own a BMW with the N63 engine, you need to call your BMW service center and make sure this has been completed.

While dealers were supposed to reach out to owners and make sure this was taken care of, many didn't. And, because it wasn't a recall, BMW did not notify owners about it via mail or any other methods.

Now, this is supposed to help mitigate the issues with the valve stems that these engines are notorious for having. The kicker is though, they don't replace these during this service, and any damage that is done has already been done.

You could have the dealer do the valve stems during this service, but it will cost you. If they are nice, they may reduce your labor cost as they already will have most of the engine disassembled anyway, but you may not get that lucky.

Now, you may be thinking. ‘Nic has been talking about BMWs from 2008-2013. I’ll just get one made before then. Well, the N62 V8 also has the valve stem seal issues, and it isn’t featured in the customer care program. Thus, you’ll be having to shell out the money for all of the other repairs in addition to the valve stems.

Newer BMW V8s are supposed to have these problems fixed, and as long as you have a warranty you will be fine. Only time will tell though when it comes to the 2014-present-day BMW V8s.

So, should you buy an N62 or N63 V8 BMW? Probably not. While these are some of the most luxurious and best driving cars I’ve ever experienced, the maintenance bills will cripple you especially if you aren’t prepared for them. I owned our 2011 BMW 750Li for 3 months. It cost me $4,000 in maintenance at that time.

Now sure, one can assume it would have been less after those repairs. But still, an average monthly maintenance cost of near $1,000 is not uncommon with these cars. Prepare for that, and you should be okay. Or, you could just buy well-spec a ‘40i’ version of any of these cars, and get the same luxury with a much more reliable inline 6 engine.