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Originally Posted by Dee8go
Is the benefit of a dual timing chain just redundancy? Is that why it's better than the single chain?
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Not exactly, but yes. It's stronger to begin with, and is less prone to both wear AND failure.
Keep in mind that the chain's life depends on the model (dual, single, etc.) and the length and path of the chain, as well as the maintenance that the engine had. The chain is oil bathed and frequent oil/filter service greatly increase the life of the chain. On the inline engines, the chain is short and has no direction changes. These tend to last longer than the chains on the V-8 cars that are very long and change direction.
M111 and M104 engines have very long loved chains thanks to the inline design and big dual-chain designs. M102/M103 engines last quite a while, but being single row, require more frequent changes. M116 engines have troublesome chain guides and should be inspected often. M117 engines are less troublesome than their M116 cousins, but being a V-8, owners should check for wear on a regular basis.
On my M102 engines, I replaced the timing chain at about 200,000km and found reasonable wear, but went ahead anyway for peace-of-mind. My current M111 engine is at 199,900kms and I doubt I'll replace the chain before 250K.