My midlife crisis purchase; E86 BMW Z4 Coupe
Discussion
Court_S said:
It was an impressive amount of crack in there but to be honest the one on my car wasn’t much better. Both filters were covered in black sludge too.
I have no idea why the EU cars got the side reflectors. The US needs them by law I think. They’d look so much better without them. Mine will blend in soon enough.
No luck on the idle flutter on the electrical issue so far. I think I’m going to pull the manifold once more just to check. It’s booked in with an Indy on the 9th and an auto electrician on 11th.
I also need to decide what to do about my fog lights. Up close they’re absolutely gone; the reflectors are nothing but rust and there is a cream cheese like substance behind the lenses. I think I’ll for blanking plates because I don’t really use them, new ones are bloody expensive and used ones will probably be shagged.
Mine had green algae on the pump filters before I cleaned them! I have no idea why the EU cars got the side reflectors. The US needs them by law I think. They’d look so much better without them. Mine will blend in soon enough.
No luck on the idle flutter on the electrical issue so far. I think I’m going to pull the manifold once more just to check. It’s booked in with an Indy on the 9th and an auto electrician on 11th.
I also need to decide what to do about my fog lights. Up close they’re absolutely gone; the reflectors are nothing but rust and there is a cream cheese like substance behind the lenses. I think I’ll for blanking plates because I don’t really use them, new ones are bloody expensive and used ones will probably be shagged.
It does seem strange they fitted the side reflectors to EU cars when they were only required in the States.
Good luck getting the idle flutter sorted.
The foglights are a PITA. Used ones are probably a false economy as they'll go the same way, and despite the price new ones will eventually! Blanking plates are probably the best option. I really can't remember the last time I used front foglights anyway, which is lucky because Z4Ms don't have them!
I had read about pre-2009 cars not needing headlamp washers for the MOT before I disable mine and it has passed 3 MOTs like that. I probably need to disable them on my 330i before one starts leaking.
Mr Tidy said:
Mine had green algae on the pump filters before I cleaned them!
It does seem strange they fitted the side reflectors to EU cars when they were only required in the States.
Good luck getting the idle flutter sorted.
The foglights are a PITA. Used ones are probably a false economy as they'll go the same way, and despite the price new ones will eventually! Blanking plates are probably the best option. I really can't remember the last time I used front foglights anyway, which is lucky because Z4Ms don't have them!
I had read about pre-2009 cars not needing headlamp washers for the MOT before I disable mine and it has passed 3 MOTs like that. I probably need to disable them on my 330i before one starts leaking.
This was a black gunge that absolutely stunk. Bloody horrible. It’s all gone now courtesy of Milton. It does seem strange they fitted the side reflectors to EU cars when they were only required in the States.
Good luck getting the idle flutter sorted.
The foglights are a PITA. Used ones are probably a false economy as they'll go the same way, and despite the price new ones will eventually! Blanking plates are probably the best option. I really can't remember the last time I used front foglights anyway, which is lucky because Z4Ms don't have them!
I had read about pre-2009 cars not needing headlamp washers for the MOT before I disable mine and it has passed 3 MOTs like that. I probably need to disable them on my 330i before one starts leaking.
I was poking around the engine bay with a torch last night and I noticed that under one of the hose connectors that runs under the manifold, there is oil vapour/ spray. I can’t quite work out if it is from the pipe connector or the right angle connector that the pipe connects to which is removable and sealed by an o-ring.
It’s around part 7 in the diagram below where I can see oil. I don’t recall it being oily before….
Looks like I’ll be pulling the manifold again….I’m getting quite good at it now.
Failing that, it’s booked in for a garage to look at it on 9th.
Sticks. said:
Re your uneven idle, don't the air hoses have a reputation for leaks and cracks? Mine whistles at certain speeds, but runs OK. Sorry if you've already done that but I always think do the easiest/cheapest checks first.
Is that on an N52 powered car or the early M54 powered cars?Gallons Per Mile said:
Re your exploded diagram above; if oil's getting out then air can get in. You might have found the problem! Did you disturb that bit when you did the CCV?
Only to unplug the old hose and plug in a new one. The hise that looks like oil vapour can escape is this one. Gallons Per Mile said:
Yep, if that's not sealing properly you've got an air leak. That could well the the issue.
It’s the only connection that’s not been checked to be honest. It was a sod to remove and get back in place. I’ll pull the manifold one night this week (again) and have a poke around. Sticks. said:
I'd have thought both, and more to do with the age they are. I only mention it because it's come up a lot over the years and it's easy to check before you do anything complicated.
It seems to be quite common on the M series engines hence my question. I’ve had a look at my intake pipe but can’t see anything. Other than the cold idle it’s running pretty well and fuel economy has gone up. It’s marginal, buts it’s higher.
So, I think I’ve finally got to the bottom of the electrical issue with the car courtesy of an independent garage. I was on the right track, but the one thing that I didn’t unplug was the heated angle connector at the front of the manifold (the part that I mentioned previously was a bit oily).
With that unplugged the fuse is no longer blowing and I don’t have an engine management light on.
Looks like the manifold is coming off…..again to get at the part in question. According to ECS Tuning, it’s quite a common part to film causing electrical shorts. The part is about £60 from BMW, so not too ruinous.
With that unplugged the fuse is no longer blowing and I don’t have an engine management light on.
Looks like the manifold is coming off…..again to get at the part in question. According to ECS Tuning, it’s quite a common part to film causing electrical shorts. The part is about £60 from BMW, so not too ruinous.
Court_S said:
Just heard back from the parts department and it might not be an easy part to get hold of.
Apparently there is no delivery date and Germany would need to source from their own supplier!
I can get a Vaico or Topran part from AUTODOC but I’m not sure on either brand.
I've used both before Sam with zero issues; you should be fine with bothApparently there is no delivery date and Germany would need to source from their own supplier!
I can get a Vaico or Topran part from AUTODOC but I’m not sure on either brand.
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