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Water ingress? Try this one for a potential source.

Discuss problems you have had or are having with your Z4
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Chris_D
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Water ingress? Try this one for a potential source.

Post by Chris_D » Mon Feb 06, 2023 5:33 pm

I've been chasing this fekin leak ever since I bought the zed yonks ago.
I thought I'd cracked it a couple of years ago when I took the scuttle off and fashioned a sort of bunding underneath it to draw the water to the side drain channels. That seemed to suppress it a lot but not cure the problem completely.

Cut to 2020 when I stopped using the zed for months at a time while I was given various EV's and snotboxes to use by clients. I've done around 1500 miles in it in the last 2 years which is criminal tbh. Suffice to say the zed has been well and truly neglected. So much so that I just hadn't noticed the level of degradation of the windscreen rubber surround. It's shot.
When I put the hardtop on last November it was dusk but I did notice a few cracks, however I was on the wrong side of the car to notice the gaping chasm of a gap between the rubber and the frame. You could drive a bus through it!
I'm pretty sure it's been out/replaced at some point as both corners have sections that have gone missing, filled in cack-handedly by me using some butyl rubber and pressed into the gaps. A shoddy repair I confess.

Anyway, I'm pretty sure this is the culprit so I'll be replacing it when it gets warmer as well as treating it to a new scuttle panel.
Any tips on replacement?
Have read various and conflicting accounts here on how difficult/easy it is to replace.
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E85 3.0i roadie (03) 'Benny'. E93 320d M-Sport Cabrio (11) 'Bob'.
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'Always different, always the same.' John Peel on The Fall.

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1536Z4
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Water ingress? Try this one for a potential source.

Post by 1536Z4 » Mon Feb 06, 2023 6:17 pm

Chris_D wrote: Mon Feb 06, 2023 5:33 pm Have read various and conflicting accounts here on how difficult/easy it is to replace.
It is the coupes windscreen rubber that is a pain . From what I have read and seen on You tube the roadster is pretty straight forward .
Montego Blue E86 . MILV`s . Simpson Custom Manifold Race Exhaust . xHP transmission stage 3 . VT engine mounts . BC RA coilovers . H&R arbs . Adjustable rear camber arms . Ultra Racing front strut brace . Drexler LSD .

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grannyknot
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Water ingress? Try this one for a potential source.

Post by grannyknot » Mon Feb 06, 2023 10:26 pm

The roadster guys don't seem to have a hard time with the top seal and the cowl is also pretty easy, coupes are another story.
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Chris_D
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Water ingress? Try this one for a potential source.

Post by Chris_D » Mon Feb 06, 2023 11:04 pm

Shopping around for an RHD scuttle shipped to me in NL is €168.72 from Hubauer.de which is the best I can find. Not bad seeing as how they go for a lot more in the UK.
€32 for the rubber surround from my local main stealer.
If it stops the leaks it should be worth the investment...
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E85 3.0i roadie (03) 'Benny'. E93 320d M-Sport Cabrio (11) 'Bob'.
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'Always different, always the same.' John Peel on The Fall.

Joez4
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Water ingress? Try this one for a potential source.

Post by Joez4 » Sat Mar 18, 2023 1:47 am

I've replaced the windscreen rubber trim and what I would say is take your time to make sure no sealant or old trim is remaining in the channel the smallest bit in there will stop the new one from seating properly.

When your sure you have it all clear, line up the new trim and fix each corner in first then one side and then work your way around to the other side, hot soapy water will stop the butyl sealant from sticking initially during install, and placing the trim in warm sunshine will make it more malleable, if at any point the new trim won't sit down or bounces slightly when pressed against the windscreen then old sealant or trim is still in the channel.

I think the trim is only there for cosmetics, I dont think it offers any waterproofing, the screen is so well bonded in that I think it would be sealed from water ingress without the rubber there at all.

I also found a plastic tool like this really helped to remove old trim, and press and lever the new one in place.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/323831783113 ... media=COPY

Hope that helps
04 2.2i Sapphire Black Roadster

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