Used BMW 4 Series Cylinder Head

The BMW 4 Series (F32/F33/F36) ran from 2013 to 2020, with a facelift in 2017, so your question spans a production change point. Fitment of a cylinder head depends almost entirely on the engine code rather than the model year, so heads from the pre-facelift and post-facelift cars can potentially interchange if the engine codes match exactly. However, whether ancillary or mounting details changed at the 2017 facelift boundary is something you should confirm with the breaker against your registration before buying.

The engine code matters above everything else for a cylinder head — two cars from the same year can carry completely different engines, and it is the engine code that determines whether a head will physically fit and seal correctly. You can find your engine code on your V5C or by running a VIN check, and supplying it to the breaker is the single most useful thing you can do. Searching by year alone risks being quoted a head that is incompatible with your specific engine.

The 420d and 430d are both diesel engines but they are different units producing different outputs, and they do not share the same cylinder head. You need to match the engine code exactly — for example, a B47 code engine must be paired with a head from another B47, not from a different engine family. Always give the breaker your full engine code rather than relying on the badge or power output.

Trim level has no effect on cylinder head fitment for the BMW 4 Series — Sport, M Sport, Luxury, and M440i are trim and cosmetic designations that do not change the engine internals. What matters is the engine code, which will be the same across trim levels where the same engine is fitted. You may find cosmetic differences between stripped donor cars from different trims, but mechanically the cylinder head is chosen by engine code alone.

No — petrol and diesel cylinder heads are completely different in design, compression ratio, combustion chamber shape, and injector arrangement, and they are not interchangeable under any circumstances. Always confirm you are sourcing a head matched to your exact fuel type and engine code. Supplying your engine code to the breaker will immediately rule out any cross-fuel confusion.

The F32-generation 4 Series ran from 2013 through to 2020, so a 2019 car is still within the same generation, but a facelift was introduced in 2017 and some detail changes may have occurred across that boundary. Providing your engine code to the breaker is the safest approach, as a matching code from any year of F32 production is a far stronger indicator of compatibility than year alone. Whether any ancillary or mounting changes between a pre-2017 and post-2017 head affect your specific application is something the breaker should confirm against your registration.