Fingers crossed 
Jim's Z3 Journey
- Thread starter Jjim
- Start date
A breeze 
Tony.
Tony.
Good luck today.
Well she failed on a couple of things:
Front brake imbalance
Front brake hose (both sides) excessively deteriorated
Outer sills (both sides) excessively corroded near to jacking points
Well I knew about the sills and that was a bargaining point when I bought the car. So just ordered both new from Sopers along with new bolts and bits.
Already in the process of upgrading the front brakes as I’ve just had some E46 330 front calipers painted up. So this just means I have to fit them now instead of in the warm summer. Just had to order some discs.
Also, the calipers I got had some stainless steel hoses already in them. So, bargain that will sort out the hose problem.
Front brake imbalance
Front brake hose (both sides) excessively deteriorated
Outer sills (both sides) excessively corroded near to jacking points
Well I knew about the sills and that was a bargaining point when I bought the car. So just ordered both new from Sopers along with new bolts and bits.
Already in the process of upgrading the front brakes as I’ve just had some E46 330 front calipers painted up. So this just means I have to fit them now instead of in the warm summer. Just had to order some discs.
Also, the calipers I got had some stainless steel hoses already in them. So, bargain that will sort out the hose problem.
Whete did you take it Jim?
Did it fail on the outer sills Jim?
Tony.
Tony.
My usual, HiQ on Hermitage Lane
Yes, the sills are truly rotten as far back as the jacking points
Never used them mate. My MOT guy is retiring to Spain later in the year so will need a new place.
The outer sills are bolt on panels are they not? That makes them bodywork in my eyes, not structural. I will ask when I go on my M.O.T.training next month as one of the topics is corrosion I understand.
Tony.
Tony.
I use 2 places. For MOT and basics - HiQ Mansfield.
For serious involved bits I use JMC in Sutton in Ashfield. He specialised in BMWs and Audi’s. Done engine rebuilds and everything for me.
Good to know pal thanks.
Yes the sills are bolt on. But was told that if the corrosion is within 30cm of a structural join (I think) then its a problem.
Agree. I knew they needed doing anyway when I bought the car so just gives me a push to get the sills sorted properly now.
More concerned about what the actual sills and jacking points are going to be like once I’ve removed the sill covers.
Whatever is behind the outer cover is the structural part. The sill covers are no more structural than the front and rear wings.Agree. I knew they needed doing anyway when I bought the car so just gives me a push to get the sills sorted properly now.
More concerned about what the actual sills and jacking points are going to be like once I’ve removed the sill covers.
Tony.
Agree, but I need her to look pretty
Absolutely Jim, I'm not disputing that it should be repaired and look it's best, just that I don't think it should have failed on those sills. As I said I will get a definitive answer next month.Agree, but I need her to look pretty
The effect of corrosion on the safety of a vehicle depends on the extent of
the corrosion and the function of the section or component on which the
corrosion has occurred.
A small amount of corrosion in an important part of a vehicle struct
ure can
make a vehicle unsafe where it compromises the load bearing capacity of
the structure. On the other hand, excessive corrosion on non structural
sections may have little or no effect on the vehicle’s safety.
Corrosion of a particular part, such
a
s a door
sill, may be very important on
one type of vehicle construction, but of less importance on another. This
can be seen
in figures 1 to 4
at the end of this Appendix,
where the shaded
portions indicate the important load bearing parts of various typi
cal vehicle
constructions.
Tony.
Agree @t-tony. As I have been following a lot of recent posts and discussions about sill outer skins / panels.
I feel that they are not structural and therefore a fail is questionable.
So parts have arrived for the MOT work.
I’ve replaced the front brake calipers, discs, pads and hoses.
I have fitted the E46 330 calipers I had painted in blue with some rather large 325mm discs from MTEC (Grooved and Dimpled)
The original setup:
The calipers are in excellent condition, so I’ll be selling these soon.
The new setup:
Gave the hub rims a lick of black caliper paint to stop any rust bits showing after time.
Can’t even see the dust shield now
I also gave the shocks a quick coat of paint to see them through a couple more months before they get replaced.
Whilst I was fitting them, I noticed that the previous owner had already replaced the drop link. Added bonus, and 1 less thing of my ‘to do’ list.
Yesterday I picked up my new outer sill covers from Sopers in Lincoln. Used the discount of Zroadster.org and got them both for a total of £240. Happy days as I thought they would be more than that
So just dropped them off to the bloke who does my painting.
Now for the rusted areas that failed the MOT:
Looks like the majority of the rust is on the inner sill. So once I’ve got the old sill covers off I can then cry at the extent of the damage
Now to show you why the current outer sills NEED replacing:
Pretty safe to say they are shot.
Looks like the Blue Zed has spent some of her life sitting on a beach or in a lake!
I’ve replaced the front brake calipers, discs, pads and hoses.
I have fitted the E46 330 calipers I had painted in blue with some rather large 325mm discs from MTEC (Grooved and Dimpled)
The original setup:
The calipers are in excellent condition, so I’ll be selling these soon.
The new setup
: Gave the hub rims a lick of black caliper paint to stop any rust bits showing after time.
Can’t even see the dust shield now
I also gave the shocks a quick coat of paint to see them through a couple more months before they get replaced.
Whilst I was fitting them, I noticed that the previous owner had already replaced the drop link. Added bonus, and 1 less thing of my ‘to do’ list.
Yesterday I picked up my new outer sill covers from Sopers in Lincoln. Used the discount of Zroadster.org and got them both for a total of £240. Happy days as I thought they would be more than that
So just dropped them off to the bloke who does my painting.
Now for the rusted areas that failed the MOT:
Looks like the majority of the rust is on the inner sill. So once I’ve got the old sill covers off I can then cry at the extent of the damage
Now to show you why the current outer sills NEED replacing:
Pretty safe to say they are shot.
Looks like the Blue Zed has spent some of her life sitting on a beach or in a lake!