Calum's Z4 35i - new Chinese rear lights...!
- Thread starter MarshMA10
- Start date
Oioi!
Took the Z on a whirlwind impromptu tour in France at the weekend there. Last minute idea for mrs + me 5th anniversary. Razzed along about 300-400km of 'D roads' and no motorway/tolls/peage. Roof down the whole way - very enjoyable. £60 on the ferry, one tank of fuel, and a few fancy meals. 20-25c sunshine the whole time, and little did we know it was Bastille Day weekend, so the atmosphere was excellent on Saturday night in Amiens.
Chinese lights on the back have 100% held out all the miserable rain the UK summer has thrown at them - at one point in July in London we had 'the entire month's rain' fall in one night. It was so bad it set the car alarm off. But the boot stayed dry.
The intermittent steering fault is still a fault, and still intermittent, but didn't stop play.
Nearly fucking hit the underground carpark concrete beams with the roof opening as we drove out. Unbelievably stupid of me. I reckon it opened successfully with all of about 5 millimetres to spare beneath the concrete above - unthinkable had it powered straight into it..................whilst I was driving along at 10-15mph. What a muppet!!!
bon journee mes amis
Total ownership now - 3600 miles since October 2023, 28.7mpg average. Next jobs on my mind are still as before: sort out the pogo-stick suspension; put good rubber on it and refurb the wheels; fix the intermittent steering fault.
Took the Z on a whirlwind impromptu tour in France at the weekend there. Last minute idea for mrs + me 5th anniversary. Razzed along about 300-400km of 'D roads' and no motorway/tolls/peage. Roof down the whole way - very enjoyable. £60 on the ferry, one tank of fuel, and a few fancy meals. 20-25c sunshine the whole time, and little did we know it was Bastille Day weekend, so the atmosphere was excellent on Saturday night in Amiens.
Chinese lights on the back have 100% held out all the miserable rain the UK summer has thrown at them - at one point in July in London we had 'the entire month's rain' fall in one night. It was so bad it set the car alarm off. But the boot stayed dry.
The intermittent steering fault is still a fault, and still intermittent, but didn't stop play.
Nearly fucking hit the underground carpark concrete beams with the roof opening as we drove out. Unbelievably stupid of me. I reckon it opened successfully with all of about 5 millimetres to spare beneath the concrete above - unthinkable had it powered straight into it..................whilst I was driving along at 10-15mph. What a muppet!!!
bon journee mes amis
Total ownership now - 3600 miles since October 2023, 28.7mpg average. Next jobs on my mind are still as before: sort out the pogo-stick suspension; put good rubber on it and refurb the wheels; fix the intermittent steering fault.
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Hi Jon - have a look on Page 3 of this thread, there are some images unboxing them, and installed. I also made a rubbish Youtube video of them at some point. Might be linked on page 4.
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Where in Edinburgh are you based? I am from there
only had the Z in Edinburgh once, but owned an e85 there for a year.
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Where in Edinburgh are you based? I am from there
only had the Z in Edinburgh once, but owned an e85 there for a year.Turns out I haven't taken many day time images... Found these, sorry the photos are a bit utilitarian! Hope this helps you consider.
I think they suit the bright silver car with black details quite nicely; I have black BMW badges, a black rear diffuser bumper bit, black kidney grilles and a black front bumper lip piece. I would consider adding black side skirt pieces in future, so I suppose it's the theme for this car.
The dark tinted lights could definitely look crass on other colour/combos. They're right on the edge of 'looking' aftermarket, but then again my car had smoked stock lights too so I was already used to it looking a bit modified. The build quality and LED clarity/brightness/solidity really cannot be faulted though. Better than/on par with a lot of modern factory fit lights.
My only criticism so far would be that the reverse lights are still totally fucking rubbish. They're better than the meagre standard one was but jesus H, don't reverse in the dark.
I think they suit the bright silver car with black details quite nicely; I have black BMW badges, a black rear diffuser bumper bit, black kidney grilles and a black front bumper lip piece. I would consider adding black side skirt pieces in future, so I suppose it's the theme for this car.
The dark tinted lights could definitely look crass on other colour/combos. They're right on the edge of 'looking' aftermarket, but then again my car had smoked stock lights too so I was already used to it looking a bit modified. The build quality and LED clarity/brightness/solidity really cannot be faulted though. Better than/on par with a lot of modern factory fit lights.
My only criticism so far would be that the reverse lights are still totally fucking rubbish. They're better than the meagre standard one was but jesus H, don't reverse in the dark.
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Couple images of the original lights tinted, so this was more like the start point for me. Maybe helps you get a sense of how dark the chinese lights are, relative to tinted stock lights?
:thumbsdown: :thumbsdown: let me know what you decide pal!
:thumbsdown: :thumbsdown: let me know what you decide pal!Attachments
MarshMA10 said:Hi Jon - have a look on Page 3 of this thread, there are some images unboxing them, and installed. I also made a rubbish Youtube video of them at some point. Might be linked on page 4.
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Where in Edinburgh are you based? I am from there
Ah yes, I missed those somehow. Thanks for the pics though, they look great! I've ordered the clear/white version as I've got an Alpine White Z, so hopefully they look just as good. Will share pics when they arrive and are fitted.
I'm based in Newhaven/Leith area. Lots of Zs around here. Always nice seeing others on the road.
Ah I grew up there all my life til I moved to London. You might’ve seen a black C5 corvette rolling round - was mine for 6 years then sold to a best pal about 5 years back, but he’s out Ratho way. Also if you hear a very loud Ducati once every few months that’ll be me!! 
Good luck with the lights. Look forward to pics.
Good luck with the lights. Look forward to pics.
Washed the car for only the second time in my ownership :? .....and broke out the polish!
I used to be obsessed with detailing my cars - orbital polishers and all - but my enthusiasm for it really dropped off when I got into bikes, which make cars feel like everything takes too long! Enjoyed (hand) polishing the Z though, and for sure it's a good way to get to know the car a bit better.
Planned to get it waxed too, until realising my supply has dried up! New wax in the post, bring on an Indian summer in a clean silver car 8)
.....and broke out the polish!I used to be obsessed with detailing my cars - orbital polishers and all - but my enthusiasm for it really dropped off when I got into bikes, which make cars feel like everything takes too long! Enjoyed (hand) polishing the Z though, and for sure it's a good way to get to know the car a bit better.
Planned to get it waxed too, until realising my supply has dried up! New wax in the post, bring on an Indian summer in a clean silver car 8)
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Scottish Borders
MarshMA10 said:Washed the car for only the second time in my ownership :?
I used to be obsessed with detailing my cars - orbital polishers and all - but my enthusiasm for it really dropped off when I got into bikes, which make cars feel like everything takes too long! Enjoyed (hand) polishing the Z though, and for sure it's a good way to get to know the car a bit better.
Planned to get it waxed too, until realising my supply has dried up! New wax in the post, bring on an Indian summer in a clean silver car 8)
Looking very nice…what do you think of those lights in the dark version on Atacama Yellow ?
I reckon if you’ve got enough dark/black accents on your car, they’ll look good. They really do feel OEM quality to me. They look like BMW might’ve made them for a facelift or something!
I also think because you have a major element of them always on as a running light, they don’t feel chavvy like dark tinted lights felt in the 2000s/2010s.
I also think because you have a major element of them always on as a running light, they don’t feel chavvy like dark tinted lights felt in the 2000s/2010s.
My lights finally arrived. I ordered the Clear/Red ones as I felt that would be the best fit for my Z. There's still a slight tint to them but I think they look good. The tinted ones and the black ones would've been too dark for my tastes. I've left the scrolling indicator on for now. Easy to switch them off and the on/off switch is accessible through the little stopper in the boot lining.
A word of warning for others taking the plunge - be careful where you stick the resistors. They're on extended wires and have to be passed through the body panel into the boot, and come with sticky pads to attach them to the inside of the body panels. I accidentally stuck one in the gap where the rear deck hinge goes (when the boot lid was up) so didn't realise that when I closed the lid, the hinge would pinch the resistor. It caused the brake light to not work so I thought the unit was defective. Luckily the seller on AliExpress has been REALLY helpful guiding me through the issues and then I discovered the problem. The connection isn't badly damaged, it was just pinched so wasn't receiving power. Now I've moved the resistor all is fine. Am a bit nervous that's gonna come back to haunt me at some point though. Worst case scenario is I will have to resolder the wire to the resistor and remove the pinched part.
A word of warning for others taking the plunge - be careful where you stick the resistors. They're on extended wires and have to be passed through the body panel into the boot, and come with sticky pads to attach them to the inside of the body panels. I accidentally stuck one in the gap where the rear deck hinge goes (when the boot lid was up) so didn't realise that when I closed the lid, the hinge would pinch the resistor. It caused the brake light to not work so I thought the unit was defective. Luckily the seller on AliExpress has been REALLY helpful guiding me through the issues and then I discovered the problem. The connection isn't badly damaged, it was just pinched so wasn't receiving power. Now I've moved the resistor all is fine. Am a bit nervous that's gonna come back to haunt me at some point though. Worst case scenario is I will have to resolder the wire to the resistor and remove the pinched part.
STILL driving the Z with the steering motor fault. Partly out of curiosity, partly laziness. I think that's at least four months of managing the symptoms / 1-2000 miles.
I have now bought another steering rack and motor which I hope to swap in. If that fixes it, great. If that throws up a coding problem, fine - send my standard one away for repairs with the ECU tuning folk, and swap back.
Steering fault / intermittent electronic power steering loss has been an annoying gremlin, but doesn't actually prevent use of the car at all. If it comes on 'correctly' when you put the key in, it's fine til you turn the car off. If you start the car and have no power steering, take the key out and put it back in - and all's good again!
I have now bought another steering rack and motor which I hope to swap in. If that fixes it, great. If that throws up a coding problem, fine - send my standard one away for repairs with the ECU tuning folk, and swap back.
Steering fault / intermittent electronic power steering loss has been an annoying gremlin, but doesn't actually prevent use of the car at all. If it comes on 'correctly' when you put the key in, it's fine til you turn the car off. If you start the car and have no power steering, take the key out and put it back in - and all's good again!
MOT Passed!
MOT time came around - the first in my ownership, always a bit of a stressful thought - but the car has passed with only one advisory for wear on one tyre shoulder.
In the same appointment I had the steering rack looked at for the 3rd time. I supplied a second hand rack from eBay and managed to convince the garage to have a go fitting it. I did not expect it to work, given the part numbers were non-identical, and fully expected to either have to send away my own (removed) motor for refurbishment, or to have to go to BMW and get the credit cards out.
I am pleased to say the mismatching part number replacement rack worked brilliantly (from a 2014 2.5, I think) and the car is now A1 again. A celebratory drive and wash today. Long live the Z4!!!
Retained the original rack and motor in case one day I do need to post it off for refurbishment and can avoid this absolute nightmare of a scenario recurring.
edit. 18th October
Just ticked over 1 year's ownership of the Z4 35i!
£1146 in fuel on 4170 miles, 28.8mpg, 348 miles/tank, 700L of fuel
£1100 of expenses; nearly all on the EPS problem in the end, although I did also replace ignition coils, sparks, and fit a cruise control system.
A total cost in the end of 52p/mile, or £2250/year, for year 1.
MOT time came around - the first in my ownership, always a bit of a stressful thought - but the car has passed with only one advisory for wear on one tyre shoulder.
In the same appointment I had the steering rack looked at for the 3rd time. I supplied a second hand rack from eBay and managed to convince the garage to have a go fitting it. I did not expect it to work, given the part numbers were non-identical, and fully expected to either have to send away my own (removed) motor for refurbishment, or to have to go to BMW and get the credit cards out.
I am pleased to say the mismatching part number replacement rack worked brilliantly (from a 2014 2.5, I think) and the car is now A1 again. A celebratory drive and wash today. Long live the Z4!!!
Retained the original rack and motor in case one day I do need to post it off for refurbishment and can avoid this absolute nightmare of a scenario recurring.
edit. 18th October
Just ticked over 1 year's ownership of the Z4 35i!
£1146 in fuel on 4170 miles, 28.8mpg, 348 miles/tank, 700L of fuel
£1100 of expenses; nearly all on the EPS problem in the end, although I did also replace ignition coils, sparks, and fit a cruise control system.
A total cost in the end of 52p/mile, or £2250/year, for year 1.