Unusual Green E46 Cloth Interior
Discussion
The Z4 liners are the same.
My 04 car on 125k miles is doing the same to its front wings, and rears very slightly.
For years I've focussed on the arches keeping them as clean as possible.
But the way they fit means crap gets up behind them and chafes, worse still in winter salt where the crap gets salty and attracts moisture.
You can just rinse and brush and a seemingly perpetual flow of crap comes out.
Even with summer only driving they'd fail eventually.
Only in hindsight is the fix a bit more obvious.
Remove liner and get in there properly and clean, black tar type coat the inner wing right out to the lip, then add a soft foamy rubbery seal to the back of the liner where it'd rub the wing.
My 04 car on 125k miles is doing the same to its front wings, and rears very slightly.
For years I've focussed on the arches keeping them as clean as possible.
But the way they fit means crap gets up behind them and chafes, worse still in winter salt where the crap gets salty and attracts moisture.
You can just rinse and brush and a seemingly perpetual flow of crap comes out.
Even with summer only driving they'd fail eventually.
Only in hindsight is the fix a bit more obvious.
Remove liner and get in there properly and clean, black tar type coat the inner wing right out to the lip, then add a soft foamy rubbery seal to the back of the liner where it'd rub the wing.
Thanks for the kind feedback all. 
The rust is caused by the chafing of the arch liner, and they do all do it. The only E46s that don't are the compact. No clue why. The liner tucks into the wing, and then rusts it from the inside out meaning that by the time bubbles appear, it's too late to do anything about it. Being used wings, they're not perfect, but pretty good. The N/S one is a little rusty, but can't be seen from the outside, and was £35 to look better than the panel that was showing rust. The O/S one is a lot better, however for some reason the front of the wing had been riveted and they needed removing. Removal of those cracked the paint on that surface. I gave it a blow over with the paint, but we'll see how long they last. Should look fine for longer, and come summer i might whip them off and give them more attention. I basically just slapped them on the other day.
The rust is caused by the chafing of the arch liner, and they do all do it. The only E46s that don't are the compact. No clue why. The liner tucks into the wing, and then rusts it from the inside out meaning that by the time bubbles appear, it's too late to do anything about it. Being used wings, they're not perfect, but pretty good. The N/S one is a little rusty, but can't be seen from the outside, and was £35 to look better than the panel that was showing rust. The O/S one is a lot better, however for some reason the front of the wing had been riveted and they needed removing. Removal of those cracked the paint on that surface. I gave it a blow over with the paint, but we'll see how long they last. Should look fine for longer, and come summer i might whip them off and give them more attention. I basically just slapped them on the other day.
More of an update:
This past week the old thing has seen a lot of love. Pair of new rear tyres last Tuesday. Kumho PS71s. Have them on the front and the car is much better for new tyres. Quieter, and much better handling than the 2006 date marked Hankook K104s on the rear. They were on the bars by the time they went.
Then, at the weekend it was service time. Did oil, sparks and a cabin filter. In a lovely turn, a new coil pack too. The one on cylinder no.3 fell apart as I removed it. Fortunately the rest of it came out, and nothing was damaged.
The cabin filter isn't that old, but I noticed it was wet. Seems the drains on the filter housing got blocked with dirt, which then held onto moisture which was distributed into the HVAC system. I noticed when starting the windows would mist up no matter what.
That's about it for now. I need to replace the radiator at some point, as that has a leak. It's a slow one. I've only topped up the coolant twice in 10,000 miles, but it does need a change. Otherwise it is still being fantastic and I'm thinking about throwing some money at the underside to keep it alive longer. I imagine rust will send this to its grave.
This past week the old thing has seen a lot of love. Pair of new rear tyres last Tuesday. Kumho PS71s. Have them on the front and the car is much better for new tyres. Quieter, and much better handling than the 2006 date marked Hankook K104s on the rear. They were on the bars by the time they went.
Then, at the weekend it was service time. Did oil, sparks and a cabin filter. In a lovely turn, a new coil pack too. The one on cylinder no.3 fell apart as I removed it. Fortunately the rest of it came out, and nothing was damaged.
The cabin filter isn't that old, but I noticed it was wet. Seems the drains on the filter housing got blocked with dirt, which then held onto moisture which was distributed into the HVAC system. I noticed when starting the windows would mist up no matter what.
That's about it for now. I need to replace the radiator at some point, as that has a leak. It's a slow one. I've only topped up the coolant twice in 10,000 miles, but it does need a change. Otherwise it is still being fantastic and I'm thinking about throwing some money at the underside to keep it alive longer. I imagine rust will send this to its grave.
spruce_e46 said:
Hey guys,
I bought this 99' E46 with Farn Gruen Metallic & Mint Green cloth interior... I would say it is worth sharing
Very nice, o like the style of wheel but not sure on the wood. Maybe get it upholstered in a matching green leather if such a thing can be done.I bought this 99' E46 with Farn Gruen Metallic & Mint Green cloth interior... I would say it is worth sharing
Cool car mind
JakeT said:
Thanks for the kind feedback all.
The rust is caused by the chafing of the arch liner, and they do all do it. The only E46s that don't are the compact.
Oh they do, but nowhere near as common. The cause is BMW saving 10p per car and not fitting rubber seals between the arch liner and the wing as fitted to the E36, E34 and so on. Also, the return flange on the arch is so abrupt that at the factory, the inner edge doesn't get the full paint coverage. The rust is caused by the chafing of the arch liner, and they do all do it. The only E46s that don't are the compact.
JakeT said:
I need to replace the radiator at some point, as that has a leak. It's a slow one. I've only topped up the coolant twice in 10,000 miles, but it does need a change.
I've got a nearly new one here. It's a Nissens one rather than some dodgy Chinese Hella/EIS crap. Got a few marks but it's water tight.£20 if you want to swing by and pick it up.
Turns out it didn't need a wheel bearing, or any bushes. Needed a diff instead. 
Quoted all in to rebuild the diff and with labour it's £1060. Of course no chance that's happening. I'll get a used one available on Ebay and have it fitted.
iSore, you mention a Rad. I'll send you a PM at some point about it. I'm currently busy trying to juggle work and finishing my degree, but I think you might have a buyer.
Quoted all in to rebuild the diff and with labour it's £1060. Of course no chance that's happening. I'll get a used one available on Ebay and have it fitted.
iSore, you mention a Rad. I'll send you a PM at some point about it. I'm currently busy trying to juggle work and finishing my degree, but I think you might have a buyer.
iSore said:
JakeT said:
I need to replace the radiator at some point, as that has a leak. It's a slow one. I've only topped up the coolant twice in 10,000 miles, but it does need a change.
I've got a nearly new one here. It's a Nissens one rather than some dodgy Chinese Hella/EIS crap. Got a few marks but it's water tight.£20 if you want to swing by and pick it up.
JakeT said:
Turns out it didn't need a wheel bearing, or any bushes. Needed a diff instead.
Quoted all in to rebuild the diff and with labour it's £1060. Of course no chance that's happening. I'll get a used one available on Ebay and have it fitted.
iSore, you mention a Rad. I'll send you a PM at some point about it. I'm currently busy trying to juggle work and finishing my degree, but I think you might have a buyer.
Should of chanced a s/hand diff they are not a known weakness available and silly cheap because of this IMO tQuoted all in to rebuild the diff and with labour it's £1060. Of course no chance that's happening. I'll get a used one available on Ebay and have it fitted.
iSore, you mention a Rad. I'll send you a PM at some point about it. I'm currently busy trying to juggle work and finishing my degree, but I think you might have a buyer.
the chances of getting a duff one from a breaker is low Sardonicus said:
hould of chanced a s/hand diff they are not a known weakness available and silly cheap because of this IMO t the chances of getting a duff one from a breaker is low
That's what I am going to do. Found a 328i 2.93 diff on the bay, so will get that ordered and have them stab it in. About £500 all in, including a used diff. the chances of getting a duff one from a breaker is low Most things I can do myself, but swapping a diff on jack stands isn't fun at all.
JakeT said:
That's what I am going to do. Found a 328i 2.93 diff on the bay, so will get that ordered and have them stab it in. About £500 all in, including a used diff.
Most things I can do myself, but swapping a diff on jack stands isn't fun at all.
fMost things I can do myself, but swapping a diff on jack stands isn't fun at all.
kING HOW MUCH!!?Jesus. A diff is 150 quid max. Labour is 1.5 hours maximum on a ramp.
Edit: You can fit a 3.07 for slightly more sparkle, or a 3.46 if you really want it to pull like a train in fifth although it will be pretty revvy. The 188 case 3.07 was used on the 323i and 318d, same casing so a straight swap. Don't buy a 3.07 330i diff though - they really don't fit.
Edited by iSore on Wednesday 28th March 16:06
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