Z3 manual

[Pinky white]

Hi could some one direct me to which workshop manual to buy please
2.8 year 2000
Or maybe some has got one for sale

Thanks pink

[alec.m]

The most comprehensive manual is the Bentleys one. Expensive though. Haynes do one for the 3 series which includes the z3 but not that good in my opinion.
Bentley - http://www.amazon.co.uk/BMW-Z3-Service- ... +MANUAL+Z3

[Mike Fishwick]

The best value is the BMW CD set, which contains the TIS (manuals for all cars since the E21) the ETK (parts lists) and ETM (wiring diagrams) for abut £10 on Ebay.

Bentley is overpriced and under-detailed, with poor quality photographs. I do not know if the version I reviewed (see Z3 Knowledgebase) remains current, but in 2001 it only covered the pre-1998 single VANOs cars, and wasted lots of time telling you to 'Take it to the shop.'

Haynes is rather 'general' but adequate for most things.

It really depends on you level of expertise.

[BladeRunner919]

I agree on the Bentley - I got one cheap, but if I'd paid full price for it I'd have been rather unimpressed. It's not really very helpful at all. A competent diy-er will get by just fine without it, and a novice diy-er will find themselves in bother due to the lack of information in the manual. As Mike says, the TIS cd is a much better resource. And, of course, you can always get advice here as well!

[mwpe]

There is a Bentley manual on Facebook today, less than half price.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid ... =1&theater

[Southernboy]

Hope fully this will help - There are several members here who have the complete Bentley's manual on disc...perhaps one of them will kindly make a copy for you...

[deni2s]

I would be interested in that copy too... or manual at good price.

[gas guzzler]

I've not got a manual but have found the advice and help given on this forum great. Also use YOU TUBE a lot, it seems that any job you need to do someone has done a video of it. Always find it helps watching it being done.

[Southernboy]

The advantage of having it on disc is that one can simply print the relative pages to complete a task and it doesn't matter if they get black / oily finger marks all over them. Also the original manual is a considerable tome, making it awkward to refer to whilst stuck under the car or with one's head buried under the dash etc....
As said, Youtube is useful, although often some don't provide enough detail... I noticed this when watching a vid on replacing the CCV. I ended up watching 3 or 4 videos to find aspects not shown or described in the earlier ones. Small concerns such as correct torque settings for nuts and bolts frequently don't seem to be mentioned.
Having tackled tasks from the simple to complete engine re-builds, I've had several occasions to pay "school fees" due to insufficient info / detail. Anyone having had that experience will know how painful it can be both financially and in holding up completion.
Having a reasonable manual allows one to read up on the car, and certainly indicates the more general issues which may require maintenance. It also highlights the limits of one's personal toolbox, so one can "plan" which aspects of stripping or assembly will require alternative assistance to properly conclude a project.
The more references one can have, the better IMO....