35is Rusty so soon?!!?

J

JustCruzin

Member
Hi Folks

Reached 1900 miles on the new zed and have started to notice that the originally silver coloured brake calipers are very dull and forming rust. Worse still the brake discs on which the alloys sit on are really rusty. Quite unpleasant!

I swear I have not been driving through salt marshes and the car is garaged. It has occasionally been driven in the wet. I really do not want to believe that this is a part of 'normal wear and tear' surely not after 1900 miles.

Can I approach BMW on this as this not what I would expect from their 'flagship Z4' nor any other zed. Rather gutted TBH :( Can supply pics shortly.

On a pleasant note though I had a G Techniq C1 quartz crystal laquer and C5 wheel protection applied professionally to the car by a local company called WOW Factors. I was overwhelmed by the results. Looks better than brand new! Highly recommend doing it.

Some advice on the rust issue would be most welcome and it would be interesting to see if any others have experienced the same.

Cheers :D
 
The rust on the brakes is normal, I've had mine painted to prevent most of the rust, though some is coming back through on the anti rattle plates. The discs are heavy with iron and rust as soon as I clean the car. I've seen other posts about this, you'll not get any joy with BMW imho but you can try.
 
A mates 1 series had corrosion spots coming up on the wheel hubs, that was about 3 months old I asked him had he been using alloy wheel cleaners (Wonder Wheels and the like) he said he uses nothing but car shampoo, he took it back and they repainted them for him, don't know if it's comeback.

Washing my Zed today I noticed my hubs are very pitted and the calipers are looking crap so that's a job for spring.
 
It's not that unusual on BMs and I've seen this issue frequently on other forums. You can try complaining to BMW - my colleague got hers replaced.
 
Perfectly normal for the hubs and calipers to rust, not just BMW, Audi, Ford etc are the same, unfortunately it looks unsightly. My last 1 Series a 4 month old AUC and all the hubs were bright orange so got the dealer to paint them up along with the calipers. The hubs on my Z3 are as good as new so probably cheaper materials being used now. I tend to wax the hubs every so often which seems to keep the rust at bay.

Tim.
 
Hi thanks for the info.

Rust on the discs I'm fine with- agree this is normal.. Pads sanding iron discs = oxidation when not in use, cool with that. Hubs, ok same iron but planet Mars red sand kissing a perfect alloy, NOT GOOD AT ALL for a 50K car!

Same for the calipers too. I have seen quite a few Audis and Mercs without this issue. I will contact BMW. Unacceptable in so many ways.

Will let you know how I get on (if this is an emotionally driven response I am sorry but really am p^%d off about this!).

Per ardua ad astra :)
 
Good luck, hopefully your dealer will be good enough as a goodwill gesture to paint the hubs etc, they will come up like new. I agree though with the type of open alloy wheel style and rusting makes the car look shabby :(

Tim.
 
JustCruzin said:
Hi Folks

Reached 1900 miles on the new zed and have started to notice that the originally silver coloured brake calipers are very dull and forming rust. Worse still the brake discs on which the alloys sit on are really rusty. Quite unpleasant!

I swear I have not been driving through salt marshes and the car is garaged. It has occasionally been driven in the wet. I really do not want to believe that this is a part of 'normal wear and tear' surely not after 1900 miles.

Can I approach BMW on this as this not what I would expect from their 'flagship Z4' nor any other zed. Rather gutted TBH :( Can supply pics shortly.

On a pleasant note though I had a G Techniq C1 quartz crystal laquer and C5 wheel protection applied professionally to the car by a local company called WOW Factors. I was overwhelmed by the results. Looks better than brand new! Highly recommend doing it.

Some advice on the rust issue would be most welcome and it would be interesting to see if any others have experienced the same.

Cheers :D
Click to expand...

Hey,

We got our cars at very similar times, mine has 2500 miles on it now. The real calipers certainly are starting to dull off and rust at the bottom, the front ones are losing their lustre and rusting a little at the bottoms. I get the rust coloured water collecting on the wheels at the bottom. Rear hubs are very slightly pitted with rust and front hubs are better because they have an Aluminium cover on them and should be polishable. I agree it's not cool on such a pricey car, every other manufacturer at this price point and spec is powder coating their calipers I believe. Mercedes are for certain....
 
Miles said:
I agree it's not cool on such a pricey car, every other manufacturer at this price point and spec is powder coating their calipers I believe. Mercedes are for certain....
Click to expand...

:) Appreciate your comments and glad to know that I do not stand alone in this. I am going to send a firm email first to my dealership Stephen James BMW and see what sort of a response I get. It seems some have been offered a repaint/ powder coat from dealerships. Would be nice if they did this but why do I get the feeling I will struggle :headbang:

Don't ask, don't get, so I will give it a go. Rest of the car looks stunning after the G techniq C1 crystal lacquer coat but let down by wheel rust- doesn't sit right with me :x
 
I know what you mean re this. It was a terrible day today, picked up my Z'd from Newcastle, drove to my folks and instantly noticed the brown rusty water marks inside the rear wheel. Not ideal at all!
 
JustCruzin said:
Miles said:
I agree it's not cool on such a pricey car, every other manufacturer at this price point and spec is powder coating their calipers I believe. Mercedes are for certain....
Click to expand...

Don't ask, don't get, so I will give it a go. Rest of the car looks stunning after the G techniq C1 crystal lacquer coat but let down by wheel rust- doesn't sit right with me :x
Click to expand...

Let us know how you get on and I might see what I can have done with mine by BMW, failing that I'm going to have them done professionally. On the Gtechniq note, that is some cracking stuff. Get their rain repllent stuff for the windscreen put on as well if you can in the future, it's wicked! I had mine professionally detailed before delivery, makes such a difference to the ease of cleaning! I agreee that the contrast of amazing condition car vs crap wheels looks really doggy!
 
Guess what rather good news, somewhat unbelievable :D

I sent in pictures of the rusty calipers, hubs and anti-rattle plates and they were happy to have them coated/painted for no extra cost :D :D :D This was at my local Stephen James. They offered an apology and were very accepting of my disappointment as I have only driven the zed 2100 miles.

Now what colour? Any suggestions? The wife wants red of'course! :oops:

Cheers :)
 
As others have said, paint them to hold the rust back. However, I have just found out about this stuff, and trying to track down a UK stockist to give it a go. Gets a good review on Detailing World (linky)
 
markeg said:
As others have said, paint them to hold the rust back. However, I have just found out about this stuff, and trying to track down a UK stockist to give it a go. Gets a good review on Detailing World (linky)
Click to expand...

That looks interesting, thanks will take a look! :) Anything to preserve 'the look' :D
 
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