Lazlo's high mile 330Ci

[slater]

Latest project halted on the '03. This thing will not die. It sat most of winter as I continued vacillating between engine rebuilt, S54, flash bang it to death, etc...

After the weather broke (finally) been tooling around in it, and with a new job, my trips to NYC will be less frequent (YAY!). With that, I have decided to do elective cosmetic surgery on my ZHP (more on that later), so I needed to get my 03 summer ready. But... I have been getting frequent thunk/bang from the rear suspension. Only exhibited when loading/unloading from a dead stop. Backing up and initial launch.

I had it up on a lift a few times and didn't find anything obviously amiss. I broke down and decided to have a local BMW shop look at it. These guys know their way around BMWs, as the two owners have been racing from the E30 days (BP has been there).

The car has been there a week. Initially, they couldn't recreate it and I cursed the sources of my bushings (incorrectly, I may add). To date, the car has 291,6xx miles on it, and the list of relevant parts below, all with about 40k miles/2 years on them:

Rogue RTABs and RSMs
OEM M3 control arm bushings (upper/lower)
Powerflex sway bar bushings
AKG Diff Mounts
OEM flex disc and CSB

Overall, the car got a very clean bill of health. To wit, one of the owners mentioned that the car drives better than similar with 90k on the clock. That made me smile.

Subframe is GTG, all the bushings and mounts are good (to the point of removing the trailing arm to inspect the RTABs), nothing *really* loose, though the RSM nuts and wheel bearing nuts were tightened up a few degrees. Still getting the thunk. Car is overnight as tomorrow they will install replacement rubber bushing for the Rogue RSMs. The set is 10 bucks, glad I ordered them two years ago along with the new RSMs.

So... The saga of the High Mile ZSP presses on.

dang.

what shop? AutoTechnic?

can you get a video of the clunk?

clearly they're missing something, but odd that they couldn't recreate it. can you go and drive it with them in the car - recreate it for them?

[Karl Lazlo]

dang.

Yes, dang.

what shop? AutoTechnic?

For a Canadian, you certainly do get around. :-) Yes, Auto Technic.

can you get a video of the clunk?

No need now. They know what they are chasing, after some test drives and unique loading/unloading of the rear suspension - putting one of the techs in the trunk for a yard drive. He heard and felt what my complaint is after that.

clearly they're missing something, but odd that they couldn't recreate it.

They took it for multiple drives and it took a while for them to isolate it. They said it sounded like a worn/egged out RTAB, that wasn't the case. It only happens on initial launch forward and reverse. Oh, and the steep approach to my driveway when the RR unloads. It doesn't exhibit itself on normal (whatever my *normal* may be...)

can you go and drive it with them in the car - recreate it for them?

Did that this afternoon. Within about 15' of leaving for SBUX.

It'll get sorted out - leave it to me to find a weird problem

[slater]

For a Canadian, you certainly do get around. :-) Yes, Auto Technic.

ha. well... i haven't always been canadian. quick Slater History Lesson:

- i was born in danbury
- lived in ridgefield, then brookfield
- my cousin grew up in new milford and grew up with the AutoTechnic owners... i've been to lime rock with them before, a looooong time ago (circa 2000), they were racing E30s then
- somewhere in my garage i have an AutoTechnic sticker (unapplied) that my cousin designed for them around 2000-ish (he's a graphic designer). for some reason i like to keep stickers, and i never use them.

EDIT: found the sticker.

No need now. They know what they are chasing, after some test drives and unique loading/unloading of the rear suspension - putting one of the techs in the trunk for a yard drive. He heard and felt what my complaint is after that.



They took it for multiple drives and it took a while for them to isolate it. They said it sounded like a worn/egged out RTAB, that wasn't the case. It only happens on initial launch forward and reverse. Oh, and the steep approach to my driveway when the RR unloads. It doesn't exhibit itself on normal (whatever my *normal* may be...)



Did that this afternoon. Within about 15' of leaving for SBUX.

It'll get sorted out - leave it to me to find a weird problem

yeah, i kinda feel like i get stuck with those ones too. oh well - glad you were able to reproduce it with them in the car. and got a coffee in the process.

if it makes you feel any better (or worse), i had a similar sound that only exhibited itself when pulling into a steep/weird angled approach, in my ZHP sedan. and i cracked the floor in that (LR subframe mount), as well as had panel separation in the LR wheel well. definitely check that, it's the first place to go.

[Karl Lazlo]

Damn. Didn’t realize you were so local. I knew that you were from the US, just not so damn close to Casle Lazlo.

I grew up in Bethel and currently live in Danbury. The Beast was born at Danbury Hosp. Howdy neighbor.

[slater]

Damn. Didn’t realize you were so local. I knew that you were from the US, just not so damn close to Casle Lazlo.

I grew up in Bethel and currently live in Danbury. The Beast was born at Danbury Hosp. Howdy neighbor.

wow - small world!

after my parents split, my mom moved us to VT but my dad moved to fairfield county... he lived in westport, and then easton, for about 10 years, so i spent some time there as well. today it certainly isn't anything like it was back then.