The B47 replaced the N47 in the 118d, 320d, 520d, X3 20d and a long list of other cars. It is the engine most workshops now ask us for when a modern four-cylinder diesel has failed. It is also easy to order the wrong variant, because BMW used several power tunes and two chain specifications on the same family.
The B47 is not one engine
B47D20A and B47D20B are both 2.0 diesels. The power, the turbo and sometimes the emissions hardware differ. A 116d and a 325d do not share a tune just because both blocks say B47. The code on the block, and the VIN of the car it is going into, are the two facts that matter.
Chain and oil
Early B47 engines had timing-chain guide trouble of their own. BMW later fitted a revised guide. When you buy a used B47, ask which guide is on it, and listen to a cold start if the engine is still installed. A used engine on a pallet cannot be started here. In that case the photos of the stamp, the sump and the turbo, plus the code, are what you are buying on.
Look at the oil that was drained. Diesel in the oil points at injectors or a DPF that was regenerating badly. A little dark oil is normal. A thick sludge, or glitter, is not.
EGR and the cooler
The EGR valve and the cooler are common reasons a B47 comes out of a car. An engine that includes a clean cooler is more useful than a long block you have to dress with a failed cooler from the old engine. Ask what is actually on the unit: turbo, intake, injectors, cooler, and whether the sump is for rear-wheel drive or xDrive.
Before you pay
Send the VIN and a photo of the old engine's stamp if you still have it. We confirm the code before the pallet is booked. Shipping from Hamburg is 249 €, and the engine leaves drained, sealed and strapped.
Full B47 guide · B47D20A listed for a 320d
What to renew at fitting
Fit a new fuel filter, new oil and a new air filter. The EGR cooler you transferred from the old engine is the usual reason a fresh B47 still smokes or loses coolant. If that cooler was the reason the old engine came out, do not bolt it back on.
After the first heat cycle, look under the oil filter housing and along the cooler pipes. Top up with the oil grade printed for that exact B47 code, not with whatever was left from the N47 this car used to have.
The yard is at Andreas Meyer Straße 38, 22113 Hamburg. Call or WhatsApp +49 15510 030835, or email autowerkeengines@gmail.com, Monday to Friday, 9:00 to 16:00 CET. Shipping is 249 € per order. We are an independent seller, not BMW AG.