exhuast rattle !

mrluke · Post by **mrluke** » Sat 08 Mar, 2008 17:16

does any one else experiance or have done in there z3? .

I have an anoying exhuast rattle when i pull away from first gear , sounds like a bean can with a stone inside.

any suggestions on how to sort ? , the backbox looks like it is on secure.

lurker · Post by **lurker** » Sat 08 Mar, 2008 17:34

my MOT guy said my CAT is breaking up as it rattled when he shook it - though this could actually be the front silencer section as this has probs as well I believe - sorry not a load of help, but I have a small amount of rattle too. My best suggestion is to (when the car's cold!) get under and give each section of the exhaust a good shake and see if you can ascertain which bit's rattling.

mrluke · Post by **mrluke** » Sat 08 Mar, 2008 21:29

thanx for the reply

the exhuast is quite rusty lol ! so may be on its way out !

it is when its cold and in 1st gear normally it makes the noise .. could also be the cat as well... who knows !

AntMan · Post by **AntMan** » Sat 08 Mar, 2008 21:46

Mine rattles too but normally when under heavy load?? I believe it to be a loose baffel in one of the boxes.But car sailed through it's M.O.T last week Emmissions perfect so rules out the cat in my case as i was under the impression that it was braking up but obviously not

stu · Post by **stu** » Sun 09 Mar, 2008 08:53

I think it's the same issue as on E36's. There's a foil heat shield over the cat's in the transmission tunnel, that rusts through and sounds really tinny under the middle of the car (proximity of the gear stick), which can be fixed for years, by putting progressively larger 'penny' washer on the bolts. Check if it's this before you consider changing your cats!

topfuelking · Post by **topfuelking** » Sun 09 Mar, 2008 11:14

it can be the lower clamp on the ex pipe number 16
i have just done my one

mrluke · Post by **mrluke** » Sun 09 Mar, 2008 18:55

thanx for the pics

il gt under the car on tuesday and have a look , i believe its something simple.

hopefully not the cat

mrluke · Post by **mrluke** » Wed 07 May, 2008 16:22

we had a look under it , all seemed quite tight

might be the rubber gromit that holds up the backbox , so might change tht

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Wed 07 May, 2008 16:42

Quite a few old Z3s have this problem, coming from the front silencer - the box behind the cats - it's shaped like a bent, flattened, sausage. The only answer is to get an exhaust specialst to make a new box, which may also reduce noise levels a bit if you want.

mrluke · Post by **mrluke** » Wed 07 May, 2008 19:35

yeah mines a facelift model so dont know if that would apply to me.

it is really strange . but i think it might be the rubber bits

Bally · Post by **Bally** » Fri 09 May, 2008 07:56

Mine is a face lift model & does exactly the same in first gear or reverse, thought it was an engine problem but i think your right its somewhere along the front section of the exhaust.

Ive had it on the ramps & could not see anything, but will have another look and give everything a good shake this time!

mrluke · Post by **mrluke** » Thu 15 May, 2008 09:05

its the heatshield nearer to the enginebay

its a bit loose and rattles , once its nice and hot its fine !

found out when i had the MOT done

so id check that if i was u ..

Bally · Post by **Bally** » Thu 15 May, 2008 11:35

That seems to be the general opinion, did they fix it for you?

I was going to try the washer treament published by stu above.

mrluke · Post by **mrluke** » Thu 15 May, 2008 17:35

yeah it was that

I had it fixed when i had the rear spring and handbrake sorted.

Its basically the metal heat shield covering closest to the engine bay

use a welder and jobs a gooden no more rattling exhaust !

aceman · Post by **aceman** » Wed 18 Jun, 2008 20:51

Just got my Z3 at the weekend and found out I have a similar problem so I will have a look this weekend weather permitting. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction as I was fearing the exhaust was failing but reading this thread has convinced me it is the heatshield as it only rattles when cold and doesn't appear to alter tone when reving the engine which I would expect if it was a loose baffle.

I will let you guys know what I find.

bighfishing · Post by **bighfishing** » Wed 18 Jun, 2008 22:16

i have the same problem with my 2.0L, my local bmw dealer confirmed it was the heatshield last week and tried to charge me £110 to have a new one fitted, i asked if it was covered under warranty as the exhaust is but they said no as it is classed as TRIM, but they did tell me it was only £16 to buy and quite easy to fit so i will do it myself.

mrluke · Post by **mrluke** » Thu 19 Jun, 2008 15:24

tbh u dont even need a new one ! use a welder to welsd it back on , 5 min job for a garage .

or i imagine u might be able to use some exhuast putty on it ? as its sort of the same thing

Bally · Post by **Bally** » Thu 19 Jun, 2008 15:52

i'm waiting to get mine in the garage to the same weld fix, on your recommendation mr luke, just not had chance yet

stu · Post by **stu** » Thu 19 Jun, 2008 19:46

Just be really careful letting someone weld the underside of the car as there's more than 1 car been a fireball with just a few tack welds when you've got all that lovely combustible soundproofing and carpet!

aceman · Post by **aceman** » Fri 20 Jun, 2008 17:12

Well got under and checked my exhaust last night and its a loose baffle

which is a real bummer ! I suppose I will have to live with it as the exhaust looks in pretty good condition otherwise.

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exhuast rattle !

exhuast rattle !

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