3D Printing Missing trim, M44 Fogged airbox intake, Cup Holder

[Peawee]

Not been on here for a while so thought id write a thread

Got myself a new toy over this lockdown to refresh some of my old engineering skills. I like many others have bits of trim missing from my interior that seems impossible given the cars age to buy anymore.
First project was for the missing blank plates on the trim

Trial fitting:

Im also toying with the idea of doing a full facia with the blank plates removed and a position for a usb charger.

Next up is a discrete cold air infeed next to the fog lamp for the fogged airbox M44 mod
Excuse the colour that was used to see fitment clearly against the original item.

The aim is to get this dimensionally correct with the ducting position also aligned to the bumper
Then i will add a mesh layer over the front to hide the infeed for a more OEM look and ofc print in black

 

[petecossie]

This could be a thriving market you have hit on if the quality is good. I got a pair of roof rail end pieces a few years back (one got lost when I had car resprayed) via this method, a guy in States was "printing" them. BMW said I had to buy a new set of roof rails to get the end pieces - cost £120. I got the printed end caps for £16, hard pushed to difference between them and OEM item.
Go for it.

 

[Althulas]

Another project to consider ///M centre console. Are the filaments upto resisting heat so they won’t warp in the summer?

 

[Peawee]

Yeah the quality is suprisingly good considering its on 'out the box' setting's currently.
The blue is just PLA as im currently in trial and error mode to get the fitting correct, I have PETG and also ABS filaments to make it withstand the heat in summer months once im there on design. The black trim is PETG so should be more than fine for UK summer's. I hadnt thought about the M console. I'm pre-facelift so my console under the heater controls is pretty bland to say the least.

 

[Althulas]

Well if you ever decide to do any let me know as I would like one to carbon fibre. I don’t fancy doing it to the one in my car and potentially scrap it. Now printed carbon fibre that would be a thing. I really need to invest in a printer I keep seeing to many nice RC aircraft I would like to print.

 

[cpallenjr]

Put me down for one of the cold air infeed fittings. I have been reading about the fogged airbox mod and one of my friends here said it was a worthwhile modification - but I don't want to loose a fog light. Have you thought about doing a mirror image so you could add the part to both sides?

 

[Peawee]

Well bit of an update, the air intake has taken a step back due to the access behind the trim next to the fog light. To benefit from a feed, parts of the bumper would need to be removed. So im going to spend some time trying to work out what bits that will be, before i hack away. I want to modify my car in ways that are reversable so its on the back burner untill i get some time under the car.

However as many of you Z3 owners will come to appreciate if your running povety spec like me you will be missing cup holders. I know people have made these in the past but i wanted to design one that fit where the ash tray is ( i dont smoke or plan to) and also look semi like its suppose to be there.
So my inspiration came from the OEM cup holder bmw sell for eye watering sums, which protrudes slightly above the centre console as this allows me to fit a good size cup unlike the other ones ive seen printed which sit on the channel.
I went through various iteration's to get the design and fitment correct

Rev 1: Quality was correct but didnt have enough height to accomodate the cup sizing

Rev 3: After a few more attempts i had a play around with the design and got the fitment right, but i thought it looked quite bulky when fitted to the center console

Rev 4: I tweaked the sizing and also added chamfers & fillets, my aim was to make it look a little more pleasing on the eye. Quite happy with the end result and it holds a nice cup of costa quite firmly... Happy days!

Once fitted to the car:

 

[cpallenjr]

Nice, are you going to sell them?

 

[Peawee]

I have actually had a few people ask me this question, The problem is the time to create them is quite long. All in its 20/22 hours printing none stop and also use quite alot of filament at the quality id like.
So to make them and sell id have to make them to order most likely and do batch runs of them depending on interest

 

[cpallenjr]

Have you considered selling them through a commercial site like Shapeways? https://www.shapeways.com/

 

[IainP]

I have actually had a few people ask me this question, The problem is the time to create them is quite long. All in its 20/22 hours printing none stop and also use quite alot of filament at the quality id like.
So to make them and sell id have to make them to order most likely and do batch runs of them depending on interest

We've found that with dental models, take forever, dropping the wall thickness right down has decreased the time element. In your case I expect it would also help with insulating the cup contents.

 

[Mario]

Hello - I happen to have the model of a Z3m Centre console that I purchased with the intention to try and print myself but I have zero experience, we could partner up to see if we can make it happen. PM me for more details.