My poorly Z4

S

speed12

Member
Feeling really guilty at the moment because I have let my beloved Z get into a slight state... Nothing major, she still drives fine and still gets over 35mpg but little problems are mounting up.

1.) First of all I have a dodgy oil level sensor - but will wait until oil change to change the sensor.
2.) Secondly my frond brake pads need changing - I have bought the pads and a sensor but not had change to do the job yet.
3.) Thirdly I have some slight damage to the drivers rear corner following a stupid parking mistake - not had chance to book her into a body shop yet.
4.) And to top it all off I now seem to have a dodgy tyre pressure sensor, since it is always lit and it always beeps on inginition start up. I checked all tyre pressures over the weekend and everything seems ok, but the light wont go out.

Just need to find the time to sort stuff out! but when the weather has been as it has, I enjoy driving her too much! I feel bad because normally I take good care of my cars, But I am finding that owning two is becoming problematic as they now both have niggling problems! the Speedo stopped working on my VW last week!

Rant over...
 
If your tyre pressures are ok, you might just need to reset the light by holding down the tyre pressure button (near the roof controls) for about ten seconds. It should reset the readings and turn the light out for you.
 
iv also heard that ou need to do this just before yo go for a drive, otherwise the sensors dont reset properly.

it could just be me making things up though :| :driving:
 
According to my mechanic when doing brakes the rotors and pads both need replacing. It seems the rotors and pads wear out together This is what gives your zed superior braking power. Older BMWs (like the E30) could go a long while with just pad replacement and not rotors. Anybody on this forum want to confirm this? Good luck.
 
As you drive, the Flat Tire Monitor (FTM) keeps track of pressure levels in all four tyres. This is not strictly true as the FTM system alerts you whenever the inflation pressure of a tire falls significantly below the pressure of another tire. In the event of tire pressure loss, the rolling radius of the tire changes, thereby affecting the rotational speed of the wheels. It is this change that is detected, and a flat tyre warning is issued to the driver. As Mr GRINGO stated the system can be reset by holding the button down until the light goes out. Driving the vehicle will then initialize the system unless of course you do have a puncture.

As for pads and rotor replacement it's not always necessary to change pads and rotors (discs) at the same time (and no doubt many others will confirm this. Both wear at different rates and it depends on the pad compound and the type of disc as to how they wear (and of course how you drive and use the brakes). Jjarc if you guy is telling you to change both at the same time then I would question this and want to see the worn components. In my experience (and again it depends on individual driving style) I can get through 2/3 sets of pads before a rotor/disc change and maintain excellent braking standards.
 
jjarc said:
According to my mechanic when doing brakes the rotors and pads both need replacing. It seems the rotors and pads wear out together This is what gives your zed superior braking power. Older BMWs (like the E30) could go a long while with just pad replacement and not rotors. Anybody on this forum want to confirm this? Good luck.
Click to expand...


depends, inspect your rotors when you think your pads need changing, if they arent badly worn they dont need to be changed, for example i replaced my rotors and pads in july, did a track day recently and i think the pads will only last one more track day i plan on doing in november, but the rotors are still smooth and no groove worn into them so they wont be changed. the original rotors lasted over 70k miles! well i say lasted they were very rusty and had a very noticeable lip on them.
 
AlanJ said:
As you drive, the Flat Tire Monitor (FTM) keeps track of pressure levels in all four tyres. This is not strictly true as the FTM system alerts you whenever the inflation pressure of a tire falls significantly below the pressure of another tire. In the event of tire pressure loss, the rolling radius of the tire changes, thereby affecting the rotational speed of the wheels. It is this change that is detected, and a flat tyre warning is issued to the driver. As Mr GRINGO stated the system can be reset by holding the button down until the light goes out. Driving the vehicle will then initialize the system unless of course you do have a puncture.

As for pads and rotor replacement it's not always necessary to change pads and rotors (discs) at the same time (and no doubt many others will confirm this. Both wear at different rates and it depends on the pad compound and the type of disc as to how they wear (and of course how you drive and use the brakes). Jjarc if you guy is telling you to change both at the same time then I would question this and want to see the worn components. In my experience (and again it depends on individual driving style) I can get through 2/3 sets of pads before a rotor/disc change and maintain excellent braking standards.
Click to expand...

I did see the rotors and there was actually a bit of a ridge where they were worn. Most rotors are good for at least one turn, but not these. Because my rig is a manual shift, I was able to get 38K miles out of the original front brakes (rears are still going). I don't track the car so, it's just a daily driver. Of course, I was speaking only of OEM brakes and there certainly may be a difference, as you say, with aftermarket parts. Would still like to hear other opinions. My mechanic works only on BMW and is factory trained. Have been with him for about fifteen years. They also race BMWs, so I think he's qualified and he has always been honest with me.
 
Thanks for the replies guys, Apologies for the delayed response.

I have still not had chance to do much with the Z, I managed to reset the tyre pressure sensor and it seems to have worked. I have still not done the brakes, sensor has been on for a while now, so I really need to sort them, but I took it for a long fast drive across the oeak district the other day and it still stops fine, so I am not massively worried.
The rotor change is interesting, and I had not considered it before. THe car has done about 32K so I would be surprised if they had worn already? but I will have to inspect them when I actually get round to jacking it up and removing a wheel.

Got a quote of £300 to repair the rear quarter damage which is not too bad so will book it in when I get chance. Not easy when I am working away from home at the moment!

Kind regards
 
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