Such a pain... 04 3.0i

T

tazzfalcon

Member
So I took delivery of my Z4 2004 3.0i at the weekend, my Dad (what a legend) having driven it half way across the country having picked it up in Cardiff a few days earlier. Car looks lovely, beautiful paintwork and interior trim condition 81k. All the options we wanted. It should be, and in lots of ways still is a dream come true.

However, almost immediately things have started going wrong.

The list:
  • - The rear boot centre 3rd brake light is chipped, not seated flush and half not working.
    - The PDC system is not working.
    - Apparently the EML and check engine lights came on for a couple of seconds during its delivery run (although this issue has not reappeared).
    - There is a light squealing noise coming we think from the drive belt at very low revs.
    - And now I have just discovered water in the boot, more like damp, no standing water that I can tell but certainly some small amounts around the centre of the boot, where the pull out part meets the rear lining and some damp onto the electronic parts under the pull out, although not to my eyes onto the battery. Having done some reading, this might be due to issue 1, the rear 3rd brake light.

We've only had it three days, what bloody next! I've got a code reader coming so I guess I'll soon find out! :headbang: :thumbsdown: :(

Anyone used DMWorx in Aylesbury? Thinking of using them for most of this stuff.
 
all the above are easy fixes
The cracked third brake light would be the cause of the leak .. the original brake light had a to high torque mounting springs that caused the plastic lens to crack .. very common

not much to a pdc system one module and the sensors .. could be loose connection
 
Hi and Welcome.
As James Bond says re the brake light.

With regard to the PDC, turn the ignition on, put it in reverse and put your ear next to each sensor. You should hear them clicking. The one that isnt is probably the one that needs changing and should cost you about £25 on ebay. (You can buy them already painted to the correct colour)

Taking the bumper off is fairly easy and Im sure there are a few posts on here showing you how to do it.

Dont panic. Nothing there sounds terminal
 
Thanks both. Its just a bit frustrating so needed to vent! Overall it seems like a good car, just can't quite come to love it until I know its all 'right'.

I find it odd that the 3rd brake light is the cause of the boot water, I know it almost certainly is but I don't really get how its gotten to the part of the boot which it seems to have?! Anyway, fingers crossed that will sort it.
 
on the plus side you get a new clear third brake light that looks so much better! Make sure you ask for the SIB springs which are not the same as is listed with the light.
 
Check your car battery compartment for water.... before you go to bed.
Depending on your options there might be a very expensive amplifier in there that might die from waterdamage.....
 
I can recommend Jason at protech in Aylesbury. He's a BMW specialist that's an ex BMW technician. Very knowledgeable and honest. Plus has free courtesy cars.
 
Thanks all. The battery isn't in any great danger, I did check. There absolutely is water getting in and almost certainly through the light, there is very clearly condensation build up on the underside of the boot top which you can see through the holes in the sub(?)frame. The main damp issue there though in the center, which did slightly make its way into the battery compartment was from a bottle of water my fiancee managed to spill in there. The cap was loose and it leaked about 400ml of water out whilst it was in the boot, but we didn't really twig and put two and two together until after my original rant posting!

I Have booked the car into the garage - DM Worx near Aylesbury (ProTech not available because of holiday and renovations work at the moment) on the 12th, so next Saturday.
- They're going to put a new 3rd brake light in, not sure about springs? I want a red one as I like the stock look.
- Assuming its just a sensor that needs doing for the PDC I'm going to buy one online myself as you can get them dirt cheap on eBay and they're going to fit it.
- They're going to investigate the low rev squeal and hopefully sort it - that's the big unknown really (although it must be to do with the new belts).
- And they're going to conduct a general safety check, so look underneath it, check the brakes, pads, levels etc.

I've also got a code reader now so if that throws up anything worrying I'll just have to add it to the list!
 
How much are they charging for the supply and fit of the light? If they don't get the weaker springs and washers then it will most likely happen again so you'd be better off doing it yourself.
I will dig out the part numbers - the SIB lists them but they have changed a couple of times since.
 
Or if you can wait until the weekend after I'll be near Aylesbury (also this weekend if you can get the parts quick).
 
Scooba_Steve said:
How much are they charging for the supply and fit of the light? If they don't get the weaker springs and washers then it will most likely happen again so you'd be better off doing it yourself.
I will dig out the part numbers - the SIB lists them but they have changed a couple of times since.
Click to expand...

That would be interesting to see, I think they want £30ish in labor to do it which I'm happy to pay to be honest. It's got to go in for the rest of it and I've no experience with something like this so I'd rather let them have at it.
 
Hmmm it's only 2 Philips screws for the trim and 3 small (8mm?) nuts. If they are really charging cost for the part and you can't be bothered then perhaps - but it's a 15 min job so a bit steep.

Here is a how-to: http://www.zpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t=623996

Make sure you get the weaker springs - if they won't get them for you go to a dealer yourself.

63256900698 - Springs 40N 3x needed.
07119931105 - Washer 3x needed.
 
Thanks Scooba, I'll see what they intend!

So I finally had a chance to read the trouble codes.

So good news, nothing wrong with the motor. No codes at all.

Strange PDC news, i.e. no codes; I've read about a manual method for checking each sensor which I'm going to do tomorrow.

Some stuff I didn't know about:
5E21 - Pressure Sensor 2
SE5C - Initialize Run Flat indicator, see owners handbook
So these two, basically when they did the rear tyres (just replaced when bought) maybe before, they didn't reinitialise the run flat tyre pressure warning indicator system. Don't know whether the first thing means a sensor has gone as well??

2BAE - Fuel-quantity control valve, activation
Not sure about this one but it does seem to stop fuel filling very early, it's done that twice to me - i.e. stopping filling long before it is full of fuel.
 
So, it's been in. 3rd brake light done and dusted. All good.
Squeal not ID'd. Not sure what to do now, they said it sounded like it was coming from below the intake manifold?
Safety check turned up a few things, most notably weakness in the front wishbone supports (I think this means bushes) which I'm going to get done ASAP.
Finally, PDC. They didn't take the rear bumper off but reached up and did it that way. There has been a minor impact on that part of the rear (nearside most sensor) at somepoint and the bumper isn't totally flush. They said that the sensor had been repaired before but not well. Long story short it seems to be working intermittently now. Sometimes continuous beep, sometimes seemingly fine :-/
 
Yes, quite thoroughly. Just a bit of bad luck I think. Nothing that cripples or makes it a bad car. Just a little bit of expense to get it 100%.
 
Hi, I live near High Wycombe, if you ever need a second opinion on anything, let me know and we could meet up.
 
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