Good day to all.I'm sure most of you know about the inherent problem of the Z4 soft top especially for build prior 2006. Two common problem are water ingestion in the motor housing and hydraulic leak. I had my motor checked recently and true enough it was ingress with water. Its amazing the motor still work! So if you have the time it might not be a bad idea to check your soft top motor. Cheers.
Soft Top Motor
- Thread starter ashukri
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Self check. I wish I had done it before I bought the car.... Not many workshop can do the soft top. I just found out about this guy who is an expert in repairing convertibles/top. He took the motor out within 30 min without dismantling the top. Check out the pic of the motor....
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saat
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The key to the longevity of the motor is not to open it at all but to ensure that the motor is not left submerged for too long in stagnant water. The motor is in a compartment that will collect water after a drive in the rain. There is a drain hole that will channel out the water but invariably, the drain hole will get blocked by dirt and water starts to collect and the motor will be left submerged. After sometime and repeated submersion, the water will cause problems with the motor.
My motor had rusted, water had gotten past the seal and shorted it. I had my motor changed and took the opportunity to clear the drain hole.
The best is to avoid driving in the rain (easier said than done). Park the car under your porch away from the rain. Ensure that the car is properly dried after getting it wet. Occasionally flush the drain hole. See the procedure here http://www.zpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t=63033.
Cheers
My motor had rusted, water had gotten past the seal and shorted it. I had my motor changed and took the opportunity to clear the drain hole.
The best is to avoid driving in the rain (easier said than done). Park the car under your porch away from the rain. Ensure that the car is properly dried after getting it wet. Occasionally flush the drain hole. See the procedure here http://www.zpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t=63033.
Cheers
Thanks saat for the tips. Albeit I learnt it a bit too late. You are right its kind of hard not to drive in the rain living where we are. Like I said its amazing the motor still runs even though it was ingress with water. The guy clean it up and dry it and it still work. However I am getting a new motor and housing and this time I will seal it with silicone. Someone did just that and he doesn't have any more problem with water ingestion. The drain hole is badly design and will get clog eventually. There is also a small leak in my hydraulic line and finding where the leak is will be a big problem. Replacing the hydraulic lines and the servos is an expensive option. At the moment its just a tiny leak and the guy just top up the fluid in the little reservoir on top of the motor. I will just have to make do for the moment. One tell tale sign the motor is ingress with water or the hydraulic fluid is depleting is that the motor will sound louder than usual. Thats what make me check my motor and it was a good thing I did. at least I can still operate the top while waiting for the replacement motor. Hope this is useful info to others. Cheers
Bavarian Auto quote 2K just for the motor alone. Online you can get it for about USD370. Housing about USD90. Shipping about USD80. And I think you will have to pay about 30% tax to Customs. Not sure about that. I'm still trying to get it on one of my overseas trip. My motor still works so no rush.
saat
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azeL_Inc;820940 said:
When I was sourcing for my hydraulic unit assembly, Auto Bavaria quoted me around 4K and Stuttgart was more. When they refer to the motor or pump, it is this hydraulic unit assembly and it doesn't include the lines or any other parts and the hydraulic reservoir is integrated with the assembly and is non-serviceable. Opened my old one up thinking I can service it. I dont remember any housing.
If it is the motor or pump, there is no need to replace all the hood mechanicals. The mechanicals usually last. The tendency is for your fabric to go first. The 2 hinge units which are the hydraulic jacks are quite reliable.
My workshop managed to locate me a last kopek unit for half that price.
The motor sits in a housing that allows water to seep thru which eventually cause the motor to rust. I suppose Auto Bavaria sells it as one unit, the motor and the housing.
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saat
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You are right only the motor is needed but in my case I might as well replace the housing item 8 (called Sound Insulation by BMW) since it was water logged. A new motor and a new housing and seal it with silicone just like this guy did and hopefully solve the problem permanently....
http://www.z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=32&t=10190
http://www.z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=32&t=10190
