I've just been down to my friendly tyre fitter to have a set of new tyres fitted to my Z3M and whilst there asked if he wouldn't mind me giving the car a quick once over on his ramp before next Mondays MoT. Yep, I'm another one of those happy souls that's fallen foul of BMW's appalling boot floor / rear crossmember design.
Before I go to a dealer, does anyone know what BMW's stance is on this problem at present? I know need to put on a set of standard rear springs as I doubt I'll be treated sympathetically by BMW if they see red aftermarket units on it (anyone got a set they'd like to sell me??)
In my opinion, the car's actually dangerous to drive as the rear drive is almost hanging off on the nearside. I'm a little reluctant to just have it repaired exactly the same as before as I think the problem will only come back. Is there an upgrade available? Does BMW do a boot floor / crossmember repair kit? Although it's a 1998 car it's only done 67K so I'm planning to keep it for some years and would like it to be reliable.
Z3M boot floor
Worth reading
THIS
and
UPDATE
Warning: a lot of reading but worth it.
Bottom line is BMW seem to have "ran out" of goodwill but look on case by case basis so still worth registering a claim through your local dealer (may be worth printing my first thread for them to read). They can only say no.
Yes there is a fix but depends on how severe the repair is needed. Your sounds particularly bad as most just have a few broken spot welds and a slight crack/split in the diff mount.
Post some pics if you can
ps welcome to the forum
THIS
and
UPDATE
Warning: a lot of reading but worth it.
Bottom line is BMW seem to have "ran out" of goodwill but look on case by case basis so still worth registering a claim through your local dealer (may be worth printing my first thread for them to read). They can only say no.
Yes there is a fix but depends on how severe the repair is needed. Your sounds particularly bad as most just have a few broken spot welds and a slight crack/split in the diff mount.
Post some pics if you can
ps welcome to the forum
Z3M boot floor
Thanks for the info. You weren't kidding when you said there was a lot! I've spent a bit of time this morning taking all the stuff out of the boot and removing the carpet to check out what's happening from on top.
To say that I nearly fell over would be a vast understatement. As you can see, the entire boot floor's distorted and as for the welding.... I'll photograph the horror story that is the underside when I get the car on my mate's ramp next week, but it really isn't a pretty sight. Funny really, the torque steer that I'd been experiencing I'd put down to worn suspension bushings!
Not sure if the photo's have uploaded, keep getting an error message saying the maximum filesize for all Attachments is reached....
In the meantime, has anyone got a set of standard rear springs I can buy???
To say that I nearly fell over would be a vast understatement. As you can see, the entire boot floor's distorted and as for the welding.... I'll photograph the horror story that is the underside when I get the car on my mate's ramp next week, but it really isn't a pretty sight. Funny really, the torque steer that I'd been experiencing I'd put down to worn suspension bushings!
Not sure if the photo's have uploaded, keep getting an error message saying the maximum filesize for all Attachments is reached....
In the meantime, has anyone got a set of standard rear springs I can buy???
Re: Z3M boot floor
Use photobucket. Try thisthread.CaptainQ wrote:Not sure if the photo's have uploaded, keep getting an error message saying the maximum filesize for all Attachments is reached....
Use the Search button before posting newbie questions about hard tops and fitting kits, footwell speaker amps, water in the boot, hood maintainance and those horrific angel eyes. We get like 10 threads a week on the same subject, it's obvious that you haven't searched.
Probably best if you start a new thread in the stock exchange section requesting ///M springs as people will not see the request in the middle of this thread. (also worth trying z3mcoupe forum as same parts)
If you try estocks link to post the pics via photobucket would be very interesting to see how bad it looks in the boot.
There is a guy called Randy Forbes in America who does a great fix and can ship the parts for fitting in the UK (great guy and he will advise your fitter).I can pm you his email if you like.
or there is Deano's DIY strengthening solution (but your damage may be more severe and require more than just this?) HERE
Also worth looking at Robins original thread were the entire boot floor was replaced by BMW HERE
ie there will be a solution, question is will BMW pay for it ?
ps as you can see this topic has been well covered so lots and lots of reading but well worth doing so before you approach BMW
nb alsolots of history on the US forums HERE
If you try estocks link to post the pics via photobucket would be very interesting to see how bad it looks in the boot.
There is a guy called Randy Forbes in America who does a great fix and can ship the parts for fitting in the UK (great guy and he will advise your fitter).I can pm you his email if you like.
or there is Deano's DIY strengthening solution (but your damage may be more severe and require more than just this?) HERE
Also worth looking at Robins original thread were the entire boot floor was replaced by BMW HERE
ie there will be a solution, question is will BMW pay for it ?
ps as you can see this topic has been well covered so lots and lots of reading but well worth doing so before you approach BMW
nb alsolots of history on the US forums HERE
Z3M boot floor
Thanks for the info. Here we go, Hammer house of Horror time!!!
Told you it was bad!
Told you it was bad!
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shantybeater
- Joined: Wed 12 Mar, 2008 14:33
- Posts: 1967
- Location: UK
Its so far along you might be more likely to get a repair from BMW surely?
Progress Thread:http://www.zroadster.net/forum/viewtopi ... 32&t=36117
Previous - S54 M Roadster, S50 M Roadster, Ibiza Cupra IHI 340bhp, Ibiza Cupra K04 270bhp, 6n2 Polo GTi
Doesn't look good! 
However I'm confused how you didn't notice anything wrong well before this stage?? I had a bad creak and it was only a couple of popped welds!!
I had no luck with BMW at all, didn't even want to acknowledge the problem, wasn't too bothered as I wanted to fix it myself anyway - I just wanted possible subsidising towards the "repair" part which is £200. Which in your case wouldn't much use anyway. It also highlights how the repair bracket doesn't help this kind of failure (cross member coming away from the left chassis rail).
The rear end isn't that complex so it could be fixed relatively easily once the exhausts, diff and anti roll bar are removed. The Randy Forbes kit or some simple strengthening plates will be required.
However I'm confused how you didn't notice anything wrong well before this stage?? I had a bad creak and it was only a couple of popped welds!!
I had no luck with BMW at all, didn't even want to acknowledge the problem, wasn't too bothered as I wanted to fix it myself anyway - I just wanted possible subsidising towards the "repair" part which is £200. Which in your case wouldn't much use anyway. It also highlights how the repair bracket doesn't help this kind of failure (cross member coming away from the left chassis rail).
The rear end isn't that complex so it could be fixed relatively easily once the exhausts, diff and anti roll bar are removed. The Randy Forbes kit or some simple strengthening plates will be required.
Z3M boot floor
It would be good if they did, as I expect this isn't going to be cheap to repair. I'll approach BMW as soon as I've lost the crappy lowering kit that the previous owner fitted - I was pretty sick if scraping my exhausts on the multitude of speed humps in the area anyway!
I'll post some pictures taken from underneath on Monday, but believe me, they're just as horrific...
I'll post some pictures taken from underneath on Monday, but believe me, they're just as horrific...
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Randy_Forbes
- Joined: Wed 29 Jul, 2009 01:18
- Posts: 33
- Contact:
Hi Guys, and thanks Jonttt for pointing me over here.
Aww, that doesn't look that bad, and I've probably fixed worse cars
It also appears as though someone attempted to either fix or hide it...
I do offer a reinforcement package, consisting of 10 ga steel. The best way to describe it, is to say there'll be an I-beam concealed in the hollow crossmember when you're done. That will take care of any flexing or separation of the trunkfloor with regard to the rest of the body. The I-beam will be "hung" off the longitudinal rails that lead from the buklhead to the rear bumper.
Something like this: viewed from under the LR corner looking forward
LOL! it just occurred to me that the 3D guy put the pendant reinforcements on the wrong sides (see "real" picture below). I'll have this corrected for future drawings, but you get the idea
Similar view of the reinforcement installation completed
BTW, the car shown above was in VERY BAD condition, if you want to take a look at the extent of the damage that can be repaired: http://www.rfdm.com/gallery/album161
For the actuall differential mount, you can choose an earlier E-36 M3 pattern dual ear cover, or keep your existing single ear. I prefer the dual ear, but I own one (1) car reinforced each way (S-52 w/single ear & S-54 with the dual setup). My S-52 has been supercharged on and off, and the reinforced single ear (two OE mounts sandwiched together) is doing the job.
Here's a picture of an installation on a Z3 3.0 Coupe (Andy Maddux's car, owner of LeatherZ accessories for our cars). I just finished his car last night. His car is pristine, and he wants it to stay that way, so the reinforcement was done prior to it needing in-depth surgery.
The complete job on Andy's car: http://www.rfdm.com/gallery/album181
If you have any questions, I will be happy to answer them for you. If you send me an E-mail ( erandyforbes@aol.com ) I will reply with a pdf that outlines the work involved.
If you want a shipping/price quote, please provide me with your complete address, and I will get a UPS quote.
The very complete & comprehensive installation instructions are included electronically, and I will always be happy to answer any questions you or your installer may have before, during ,or after the installation.
Because International shipping is expensive, I offer a trade discount (20% off the $540.00 USD price) to all overseas orders. That goes a long way ($108.00USD's worth) towards offsetting the shipping cost.
Thanks again, and I hope you will give the some consideration.
Randy
Aww, that doesn't look that bad, and I've probably fixed worse cars
It also appears as though someone attempted to either fix or hide it...
I do offer a reinforcement package, consisting of 10 ga steel. The best way to describe it, is to say there'll be an I-beam concealed in the hollow crossmember when you're done. That will take care of any flexing or separation of the trunkfloor with regard to the rest of the body. The I-beam will be "hung" off the longitudinal rails that lead from the buklhead to the rear bumper.
Something like this: viewed from under the LR corner looking forward
LOL! it just occurred to me that the 3D guy put the pendant reinforcements on the wrong sides (see "real" picture below). I'll have this corrected for future drawings, but you get the idea
Similar view of the reinforcement installation completed
BTW, the car shown above was in VERY BAD condition, if you want to take a look at the extent of the damage that can be repaired: http://www.rfdm.com/gallery/album161
For the actuall differential mount, you can choose an earlier E-36 M3 pattern dual ear cover, or keep your existing single ear. I prefer the dual ear, but I own one (1) car reinforced each way (S-52 w/single ear & S-54 with the dual setup). My S-52 has been supercharged on and off, and the reinforced single ear (two OE mounts sandwiched together) is doing the job.
Here's a picture of an installation on a Z3 3.0 Coupe (Andy Maddux's car, owner of LeatherZ accessories for our cars). I just finished his car last night. His car is pristine, and he wants it to stay that way, so the reinforcement was done prior to it needing in-depth surgery.
The complete job on Andy's car: http://www.rfdm.com/gallery/album181
If you have any questions, I will be happy to answer them for you. If you send me an E-mail ( erandyforbes@aol.com ) I will reply with a pdf that outlines the work involved.
If you want a shipping/price quote, please provide me with your complete address, and I will get a UPS quote.
The very complete & comprehensive installation instructions are included electronically, and I will always be happy to answer any questions you or your installer may have before, during ,or after the installation.
Because International shipping is expensive, I offer a trade discount (20% off the $540.00 USD price) to all overseas orders. That goes a long way ($108.00USD's worth) towards offsetting the shipping cost.
Thanks again, and I hope you will give the some consideration.
Randy
Z3M boot floor
Excellint info, thanks Randy. Look forward to receiving the info. In the meanwhile, I've upped the following images after the mastic has been cleaned off. There aren't a lot of spot welds that haven't either failed or showing signs of fatigue. Not too happy about the cracks near the battery box. Not too good, but hopefully the boot floor's salvagable.
Let's see what BMW have to say.
Let's see what BMW have to say.
Jezzez!!! Now that needs some serious welding!!!
Here in Denmark the import company takes no interest in Z3's AT ALL!!! BMW took over the import of BMW-cars only a few years ago - it used to be a privately owned company...
Ferdinand - keeping my fingers crossed for you!
Here in Denmark the import company takes no interest in Z3's AT ALL!!! BMW took over the import of BMW-cars only a few years ago - it used to be a privately owned company...
Ferdinand - keeping my fingers crossed for you!
Ferdinand
BMW 3.0iA Sport Edition 08/2002 - iPod kit, CTEK MXS 7000 batterycharger & Protek Protector Roof Cover ;o)
Range Rover 4.6 V8 HSE 03/2000, Webasto preheater and CTEK MXS 7000 batterycharger
Citroën Xsara 2.0 110 Hdi Prestige hatchback with VTS alloys, Musketier rear spoiler and Webasto preheater
Volvo 144 1.8 B18 09/1967
http://www.zroadster.org
http://www.zroadster.net
http://www.z3-roadster-forum.de
http://www.z3-forum.de
http://www.zroadster.com
BMW 3.0iA Sport Edition 08/2002 - iPod kit, CTEK MXS 7000 batterycharger & Protek Protector Roof Cover ;o)
Range Rover 4.6 V8 HSE 03/2000, Webasto preheater and CTEK MXS 7000 batterycharger
Citroën Xsara 2.0 110 Hdi Prestige hatchback with VTS alloys, Musketier rear spoiler and Webasto preheater
Volvo 144 1.8 B18 09/1967
http://www.zroadster.org
http://www.zroadster.net
http://www.z3-roadster-forum.de
http://www.z3-forum.de
http://www.zroadster.com
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Randy_Forbes
- Joined: Wed 29 Jul, 2009 01:18
- Posts: 33
-
- Contact:
While that looks pretty nasty, I can tell you from experience (and even though there were no pictures of the underside, I know what it looks like) that it would only add anywhere from eight (8) to twelve (12) hours of repair work prior to the installation of my reinforcement package.
I would keep your trunkfloor intact (meaning no wholesale replacement) and just straighten everything back up and weld the cracks, eliminate the gaps, etc.
Then go about the reinforcement as usual. Once everything was coated and painted, it would look like this:
The album on this entire project, including other work, can be seen at: http://www.rfdm.com/gallery/album161
I apologize for not getting the shipping quote to you yet; I'll get right on that...
I would keep your trunkfloor intact (meaning no wholesale replacement) and just straighten everything back up and weld the cracks, eliminate the gaps, etc.
Then go about the reinforcement as usual. Once everything was coated and painted, it would look like this:
The album on this entire project, including other work, can be seen at: http://www.rfdm.com/gallery/album161
I apologize for not getting the shipping quote to you yet; I'll get right on that...
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Hang_em_high
- Joined: Tue 21 Jul, 2009 19:14
- Posts: 928
-
- Location: Eastbourne
Z3M boot floor
Well, now that I've got the exhausts and heat shields off I've had a much closer look (see attached underside images). It would indeed look like someone's done a very poor repair in the past. I'm a bit concerned by some of the apparent distortion and the large crack in the middle of the crossmember. This crack coincides with the one in the boot floor (not surprisingly) but as the metal's sound it looks like welding it is going to be possible.
You can probably gather that I don't hold out too much hope about getting a BMW repair carried out because of the previous poor quality job. As the saying goes 'caveat emptor'. Looks like some of my hard earned folding is going to have to go west!
I'll periodically update this post 'for the record' so to speak.
You can probably gather that I don't hold out too much hope about getting a BMW repair carried out because of the previous poor quality job. As the saying goes 'caveat emptor'. Looks like some of my hard earned folding is going to have to go west!
I'll periodically update this post 'for the record' so to speak.
Hi all,
just bought an m coupe a couple of weeks ago and now i feel like an absolute idiot...
I was aware there was a possible problem with the diffmount/boot floor, but when I bought the car i apparently looked in the wrong places.
After reading a lot more now, I have discovered something similar to CaptainQ. In my car, there is also a large crack on the left side of the boot floor. The crack is slightly shorter and doesn't appear to be sagging as much.
I cannot check whether or not the spot welds are rusty because there is a thin layer covering most of the boot floor which looks a bit like some sort of asbestos cover (maybe sound deadening). I have seen pictures of lots of other cars where the boot does not have this at all, should i strip this out to check?
All advice is welcome... the car was first registered in Austria in 02/1999 and has been imported in the Netherlands end of 2008. It now has 130k kilometres (80k miles), and most of the service history stayed in Austria during the export process. I do have the phone number of the previous owner who traded it in for a 7-series.
While driving, I do not hear any particular loud creaks (except for the leather seat sometimes rubbing against the bulkhead) and the car does not feel different dynamically than other cars I havd test-driven before buying this one.
In any case, the car is booked into the local bmw dealer on wednesday to do some regular maintenance, so I will have a chat with them then. (anybody in NL who had a similar problem solved with bmw nl before?)
If BMW are not willing to cough up a complete repair, does anyone have an idea what the cost would be to get this repaired and strengthened at an independent garage (ballpark figure)?
If i'm gonna have to shell out for the full repair, i might actually consider to do the incredibly imorall thing and sell it as is (for a low,low price) (jk, i'd never sell it)
So yeah, all advice and comments welcome
just bought an m coupe a couple of weeks ago and now i feel like an absolute idiot...
I was aware there was a possible problem with the diffmount/boot floor, but when I bought the car i apparently looked in the wrong places.
After reading a lot more now, I have discovered something similar to CaptainQ. In my car, there is also a large crack on the left side of the boot floor. The crack is slightly shorter and doesn't appear to be sagging as much.
I cannot check whether or not the spot welds are rusty because there is a thin layer covering most of the boot floor which looks a bit like some sort of asbestos cover (maybe sound deadening). I have seen pictures of lots of other cars where the boot does not have this at all, should i strip this out to check?
All advice is welcome... the car was first registered in Austria in 02/1999 and has been imported in the Netherlands end of 2008. It now has 130k kilometres (80k miles), and most of the service history stayed in Austria during the export process. I do have the phone number of the previous owner who traded it in for a 7-series.
While driving, I do not hear any particular loud creaks (except for the leather seat sometimes rubbing against the bulkhead) and the car does not feel different dynamically than other cars I havd test-driven before buying this one.
In any case, the car is booked into the local bmw dealer on wednesday to do some regular maintenance, so I will have a chat with them then. (anybody in NL who had a similar problem solved with bmw nl before?)
If BMW are not willing to cough up a complete repair, does anyone have an idea what the cost would be to get this repaired and strengthened at an independent garage (ballpark figure)?
If i'm gonna have to shell out for the full repair, i might actually consider to do the incredibly imorall thing and sell it as is (for a low,low price) (jk, i'd never sell it)
So yeah, all advice and comments welcome
Sorry to hear thisCmpmpo wrote:Hi all,
just bought an m coupe a couple of weeks ago and now i feel like an absolute idiot...
I was aware there was a possible problem with the diffmount/boot floor, but when I bought the car i apparently looked in the wrong places.
After reading a lot more now, I have discovered something similar to CaptainQ. In my car, there is also a large crack on the left side of the boot floor. The crack is slightly shorter and doesn't appear to be sagging as much.
I cannot check whether or not the spot welds are rusty because there is a thin layer covering most of the boot floor which looks a bit like some sort of asbestos cover (maybe sound deadening). I have seen pictures of lots of other cars where the boot does not have this at all, should i strip this out to check?
All advice is welcome... the car was first registered in Austria in 02/1999 and has been imported in the Netherlands end of 2008. It now has 130k kilometres (80k miles), and most of the service history stayed in Austria during the export process. I do have the phone number of the previous owner who traded it in for a 7-series.
While driving, I do not hear any particular loud creaks (except for the leather seat sometimes rubbing against the bulkhead) and the car does not feel different dynamically than other cars I havd test-driven before buying this one.
In any case, the car is booked into the local bmw dealer on wednesday to do some regular maintenance, so I will have a chat with them then. (anybody in NL who had a similar problem solved with bmw nl before?)
If BMW are not willing to cough up a complete repair, does anyone have an idea what the cost would be to get this repaired and strengthened at an independent garage (ballpark figure)?
If i'm gonna have to shell out for the full repair, i might actually consider to do the incredibly imorall thing and sell it as is (for a low,low price) (jk, i'd never sell it)
So yeah, all advice and comments welcome
but surely it would be cheaper to repair than bear the loss if selling on the cheap just to get shot. If repaired correctly you then have the knowledge its good for the future 
Tim.
2001 Z3 1.9 Roadster Sport - 2012 Z4 sDrive 2.0 M Sport
Dealer quote is in...
Nothing but bad news. BMW are not going to give me even a cent for the repairs because it's 10yo, more than 130k kms and also imported from austria.
Quote from the repair shop hovers around 5k €, this includes a new boot floor at 2500 euros (why so expensive, this part?).
Also went to an independent garage to ask them for their view... They're saying 'at least' 5k for the full-on repair and they don't want to come near a repair method of lifting the whole thing up, welding it and reinforcing it, something about liability claims apparently.
Tomorrow I'm going to a different dealer in Belgium, where hourly rates should be a bit cheaper, see what they say.
And as a last resort there's a colleague of mine who's a spare time car mechanic who says he'll 'do it for less than half of what bmw says'.
Nothing but bad news. BMW are not going to give me even a cent for the repairs because it's 10yo, more than 130k kms and also imported from austria.
Quote from the repair shop hovers around 5k €, this includes a new boot floor at 2500 euros (why so expensive, this part?).
Also went to an independent garage to ask them for their view... They're saying 'at least' 5k for the full-on repair and they don't want to come near a repair method of lifting the whole thing up, welding it and reinforcing it, something about liability claims apparently.
Tomorrow I'm going to a different dealer in Belgium, where hourly rates should be a bit cheaper, see what they say.
And as a last resort there's a colleague of mine who's a spare time car mechanic who says he'll 'do it for less than half of what bmw says'.
boot welds
boot welds now done stronger than original job welds all around re-sealed and re-painted brill job
Thanks lez
Thanks lez
Z3M Boot Welds
Sorry to bring this up again but I have just checked my car and find some of the spot welds in the boot have gone.
After all the info on this is there anyone in UK who could be considered a recommended 'fixer'? I'm not sure I even want to try and start bothering BMW dealer with this.
Regards to all
Jeremy
After all the info on this is there anyone in UK who could be considered a recommended 'fixer'? I'm not sure I even want to try and start bothering BMW dealer with this.
Regards to all
Jeremy
I don't think there is an independant "expert" in the UK (ie like Randy Forbes in the USA).
I would print off relevent bits from this forum and talk it thorugh with a decent bodyshop.
Depending on severity of your car solution could range from simply rewelding / additional welds to replacement diff bracket etc....
I would print off relevent bits from this forum and talk it thorugh with a decent bodyshop.
Depending on severity of your car solution could range from simply rewelding / additional welds to replacement diff bracket etc....
welds
jonttt
What they did was to drill all the welds out and re-plug. Then run a brass weld all around the seams in the boot, Underneath run a weld all around the crossmember and around the roll bar, Re-seal and paint the underneath and same in the boot. Job well done !!! £200
Hope that this will help
Regards corky
What they did was to drill all the welds out and re-plug. Then run a brass weld all around the seams in the boot, Underneath run a weld all around the crossmember and around the roll bar, Re-seal and paint the underneath and same in the boot. Job well done !!! £200
Hope that this will help
Regards corky
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S50Missile
- Joined: Sun 09 May, 2010 11:37
- Posts: 55
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Is it worth putting an information pack together (say from this forum) and presenting it to my local BMW dealer?
Surely this sort of problem proves that the original welds and diff bracket were not upto the job.
If BMW are doing a strengthened 'repair' part they must know the original was inadequate. I would imagine they might be quite worried about potential future accidents caused by movement of the rear diff bracket/boot floor.
I'm not back in UK again until July but I'm going to give it a try.
Regards to all
Surely this sort of problem proves that the original welds and diff bracket were not upto the job.
If BMW are doing a strengthened 'repair' part they must know the original was inadequate. I would imagine they might be quite worried about potential future accidents caused by movement of the rear diff bracket/boot floor.
I'm not back in UK again until July but I'm going to give it a try.
Regards to all
Quote from the belgian dealer is in as well, also just over 5k (excl. replacement car).
They say it might take them up to 2 weeks for the repair.
I do have more confidence in this dealer though, as they immediately knew what kind of car had turned up at the garage... At the dutch dealers, one of the mechanics actually dared to ask me if 'that funny car has a v8 in it?'.
Anyway, all of this has just triggered an email from me to BMW ag to see if they are (even reluctantly) willing to participate in the repair costs.
Updates will follow as I know more.
They say it might take them up to 2 weeks for the repair.
I do have more confidence in this dealer though, as they immediately knew what kind of car had turned up at the garage... At the dutch dealers, one of the mechanics actually dared to ask me if 'that funny car has a v8 in it?'.
Anyway, all of this has just triggered an email from me to BMW ag to see if they are (even reluctantly) willing to participate in the repair costs.
Updates will follow as I know more.
It's been reported on the smallest engine powered and latest model examples too. I suspect that it's related to the weight of the driver's right foot and lack of clutch control since there are plenty of larger engined, earlier models that do not exhibit the problem. Driving with mechanical sympathy seems to be the key to avoiding the issue.Warrior wrote:Are all Z3's prone to the boot weld problem?
Is it just the bigger engined models?
Do the facelift/newer models still suffer?
Current...1998 ///M Coupe
Previously...1997 Z3 2.8
Previously...1997 Z3 2.8
The ///M cars are more prone but its not unheard of for others including 1.9's but very rare.
I don't know of any RHD S54 (ie late 2001/2002) ///M's that have had it due to strenthened diff bracket and extra welds and the later other models seems to have different welds to rectify the issue as well.
I don't know of any RHD S54 (ie late 2001/2002) ///M's that have had it due to strenthened diff bracket and extra welds and the later other models seems to have different welds to rectify the issue as well.
If anybody's interested, my beloved little monster is back from 2 weeks of TLC and the rear is now even better than brand spanking new... 
My bank account was however less happy as this little escapade presented me with an invoice totalling no less than 5889,51EUR.
So I'm lucky enough to have the car back, but practically no money left to put petrol into it.
My bank account was however less happy as this little escapade presented me with an invoice totalling no less than 5889,51EUR.
So I'm lucky enough to have the car back, but practically no money left to put petrol into it.
I checked mine again this week, all ok. I did notice the rear ARB brackets will need a minor repair due to uprated H&R ARB'sJonttt wrote:
I don't know of any RHD S54 (ie late 2001/2002) ///M's that have had it due to strenthened diff bracket and extra welds and the later other models seems to have different welds to rectify the issue as well.
Gazza
"Understeer is when you hit the wall with the front of the car, oversteer is when you hit the wall with the rear of the car. Horsepower is how fast you hit the wall and torque is how far you take the wall with you"
Z3 S54 M roadster
, BMW Z1, BMW M3 CSL, Z4M Coupe
"Understeer is when you hit the wall with the front of the car, oversteer is when you hit the wall with the rear of the car. Horsepower is how fast you hit the wall and torque is how far you take the wall with you"
Z3 S54 M roadster
, BMW Z1, BMW M3 CSL, Z4M Coupe
No one knows as there are no formal records.
There is preventative maintenance which basically involves strengthening the diff bracket and boot welds but to be honest you are better off just keeping an eye out for the spot welds to fail and strengthening the area then.
The bad cases seem to be those that have been allowed to "develop" over time.
Its an easy check that can be carried out on a regular basis ie rusting around the boot spot welds.
There is preventative maintenance which basically involves strengthening the diff bracket and boot welds but to be honest you are better off just keeping an eye out for the spot welds to fail and strengthening the area then.
The bad cases seem to be those that have been allowed to "develop" over time.
Its an easy check that can be carried out on a regular basis ie rusting around the boot spot welds.
boot
Freelandm.
I see that you are going to have the boot to be checked on saturday, The best bolts to slacken off are the ones that go up into the body on the rubber mounts and to make sure that the clamps on the exhaust are not sized, Dont forget to tell les that i gave you his address
All the best
Regards corky
I see that you are going to have the boot to be checked on saturday, The best bolts to slacken off are the ones that go up into the body on the rubber mounts and to make sure that the clamps on the exhaust are not sized, Dont forget to tell les that i gave you his address
All the best
Regards corky
You may inquire about the costs of preventative measures in the way of diff reinforcements. Waiting for spot weld failure is one option but strengthening a known manufacturers defect is advisable in my opinion.Jonttt wrote:No one knows as there are no formal records.
There is preventative maintenance which basically involves strengthening the diff bracket and boot welds but to be honest you are better off just keeping an eye out for the spot welds to fail and strengthening the area then.
The bad cases seem to be those that have been allowed to "develop" over time.
Its an easy check that can be carried out on a regular basis ie rusting around the boot spot welds.
See my recent thread on mcoupe.com when I discoverd I had bought an M with diff reinforcement.
http://www.z3mcoupe.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10169
1999 Cosmos Black MCoupe - 1 of only 27 original Australian imports
£300 is not a bad price! The back boxes in my experience come off very easily, the rear mounts unbolt from the boot floor and the front joint is olive connections so as long as the small nuts and bolts undo (never had an issues) they then just unhook off the rubber mounts half way on the back boxes.freelandm wrote:Mine is going up to the same place as Corky had his repair done this Saturday for an inspection.
I have noticed 3 welds failed so far i have been told to keep costs down to free off the back box's as this can take up to 2 hours to do and looking at C£300.00 all in
It will be a proper job too.
Corky i mentioned your name and they remembered you thanks, see you at Harewood.
Johntt they said it would be a "Permanant fix". If it fails i am sure they will sort it out but i will ask the question re warranty. I will ask re photo's as well.
C_W thanks i thought it would be a 2 day event 1 day wire brushing and WD-40 and next day removal.
Regards Matt
Johntt they said it would be a "Permanant fix". If it fails i am sure they will sort it out but i will ask the question re warranty. I will ask re photo's as well.
C_W thanks i thought it would be a 2 day event 1 day wire brushing and WD-40 and next day removal.
Regards Matt
Re: boot
I called in Saturday and it is going to be £200 all in. He is a nice fella Corky and knows his stuff.corky wrote:Freelandm.
I see that you are going to have the boot to be checked on saturday, The best bolts to slacken off are the ones that go up into the body on the rubber mounts and to make sure that the clamps on the exhaust are not sized, Dont forget to tell les that i gave you his address
All the best
Regards corky
The repair will last as long as the car, Lez has done a few of these and i am confident with the repair he is going to acheive to to make the poor effort BMW did on the boot floor miles better as it should have been done in the first place.
Thanks Corky.
See you at CITP
Matt.
So where is this place that offers such great value repairs?freelandm wrote:Mine is going up to the same place as Corky had his repair done this Saturday for an inspection.
I have noticed 3 welds failed so far i have been told to keep costs down to free off the back box's as this can take up to 2 hours to do and looking at C£300.00 all in
It will be a proper job too.
