I've used them before, had no problems. Seemed to have plenty of M based business when I visited so they must be doing something right.
ARSE
- Thread starter mmm-five
- Start date
Liverpool
Well, got my car back from it's clutch, flywheel, slave cylinder, rear mains seal, front disc work - just in time to take it to the indy I'd booked for the cooling system replacement (with the aid of an oil cooler courtesy of beedub).
An hour sat in traffic on the M6 and A14 didn't do much to help the poor old thing, but it got there with only one amber temp warning light - although it spent most of its time sat at 105°C.
However, it did start randomly flashing up 4 other lights (handbrake, DSC, tyre pressure, ABS) and turning the radio off/on. Got to my indy who plugged his diagnostic tool / code reader in and showed lots of ECU related issues. His assumption is that it's down to a duff battery or alternator, and is going to do some further testing before replacing one or the other.
Hopefully, after a £7k spend on the car this year, that will be the end of the 'maintenance' for a while
An hour sat in traffic on the M6 and A14 didn't do much to help the poor old thing, but it got there with only one amber temp warning light - although it spent most of its time sat at 105°C.
However, it did start randomly flashing up 4 other lights (handbrake, DSC, tyre pressure, ABS) and turning the radio off/on. Got to my indy who plugged his diagnostic tool / code reader in and showed lots of ECU related issues. His assumption is that it's down to a duff battery or alternator, and is going to do some further testing before replacing one or the other.
Hopefully, after a £7k spend on the car this year, that will be the end of the 'maintenance' for a while
It's at my normal Indy, who'll be checking the electrics whilst he's sorting the cooling system.craig3.2 said:
He knows there's a very important date I'm working towards in August
He had it out on the road for 30 minutes today to see the problem(s) for himself. He says the voltage drops to as low as 11v at random intervals - i.e. not just when all the electrics are on, but also when at low revs, which he says could be the voltage regulator or a battery cell.
New Bosch S5 battery is less than £100, as is a full rebuild of the alternator.
But if my experience of alternator refurbished is anything to go by then he'd better make sure they bench test it for more than 10 minutes - as I've been stuck in Dover ferry terminal twice when my M5‘s alternator was rebuilt twice. Third time lucky, but then the mass damper failed on a max run and left me to limp home at 2000rpm max.
All this stuff was on my radar at this age/mileage - just didn't think it would all need doing in 3 weeks.
I am taking plenty of comfort that I'll have a nearly new car by the end of all of this, and can thrash it without fear of doing damageronk said:
On the bright side, the Z4MC has cost me less in maintenance over the last 6 years than my e34 M5 did in a year. Was probably spending £1000 a month on servicing/maintenance/breakdowns.ronk said:
At one point, yes!ronk said:£1000 a month !
It was more like £2-4k every 3-4 months near the end, and then I just said sod it and put it on ebay for spares/repair.
Don't forget that servicing was twice as frequent on the e34 M5 as the Z4M - so oil every 2-3 months, I1/I2 every other 4-5 months - and I didn't have a decent indy at the time, so it was all BMW dealer prices.
Suspension every 2 years was £4k (my fault for using it on track).
Right, almost factory fresh now - and I've got a 2nd hand water pump here that looks almost new - but was replaced anyway, as was the water rad, oil rad, thermostat, new/repaired brackets that were rusted, o-rings, some hoses, air guide, etc.
Also had a new battery to try to sort out the dreaded 4-lights-of-doom, and it seemed to have worked...until 100 yards from home at midnight last night when they flashed on again. Looks like I'll have to have an alternator too - but have sourced a refurb genuine one for about a third of BMW's asking price (once exchange surcharge taken into account) - just didn't have time to get it delivered/fitted.
Doing a couple of hundred miles in it this weekend so will see if it will stand up to the Skye trip - as I don't want to be left stranded up there and face an 8-12 hour recovery in a boiling hot cab.
Also had a new battery to try to sort out the dreaded 4-lights-of-doom, and it seemed to have worked...until 100 yards from home at midnight last night when they flashed on again. Looks like I'll have to have an alternator too - but have sourced a refurb genuine one for about a third of BMW's asking price (once exchange surcharge taken into account) - just didn't have time to get it delivered/fitted.
Doing a couple of hundred miles in it this weekend so will see if it will stand up to the Skye trip - as I don't want to be left stranded up there and face an 8-12 hour recovery in a boiling hot cab.
Impressed that you are keeping your ///M running - these costs are nothing compared to buying a replacement and then you have the knowledge that all these components are zero lifed
Hope to catch up on the Skye run
Hope to catch up on the Skye run
In my case, the value of my car (without this year's upgrades) was about £7k. I've spent that on mods/maintenance - so my £7k car, plus £7k spent on mods would have got me a nice, low-mileage Z4MC.paulgs1000 said:Impressed that you are keeping your ///M running - these costs are nothing compared to buying a replacement and then you have the knowledge that all these components are zero lifed
Hope to catch up on the Skye run
Didn't consider it for much time though as for all I know I would have needed to spend money on it as soon as I got it home. This way I know the condition of most of the car - and will know I've nothing much to worry about for a while.
Car is finally back with me, in fully working order 
I swear that the car feels faster now than before it had all the work done, and I don't mean the normal difference you feel when going from a courtesy car back to your own :?
The only downside to some of these unexpected/unbudgeted costs is that I'm having to put back the seat refurb/replacement, front-end respray & new wheels - luckily they're only cosmetic :thumbsdown:
The good news is that my wages went in the bank today
I swear that the car feels faster now than before it had all the work done, and I don't mean the normal difference you feel when going from a courtesy car back to your own :?
The only downside to some of these unexpected/unbudgeted costs is that I'm having to put back the seat refurb/replacement, front-end respray & new wheels - luckily they're only cosmetic :thumbsdown:
The good news is that my wages went in the bank today
Yes, new Valeo (OEM) alternator fitted - which would have been fitted last week had it arrived in time. PITA too as the voltage regulator and battery conditioning unit is built in to the alternator - and it's a completely different unit to any other vehicle.Z4M-2006 said:
With hindsight I should have left the car there until it was all done, but didn't fancy a Daewoo Matiz for a 500 mile round trip.