Well, as bad as it's been lately I can confirm that Spring is on its way, the Mallards on the lake are beginning to bicker amongst themselves for breeding. I can see this cos there isnt a bloody great house in the way.
Tony.
Tony.
My Palmetto Green Daily, Bella.
- Thread starter Palmetto
- Start date
Davyhoogy
Zorg Guru (III)
Love that colour! Definately catch that rust while it's in its early stages. I cant afford the full respray yet so I've sanded it all back and zinc coated and primed the areas to keep it away.
Palmetto
Zorg Addict
Today I did my first job on Bella. Ok. On the keys.
The buttons on the keys were in a right state. I spotted replacements on ebay for a few quid, so I bought a couple and spent half an hour replacing them this lunchtime. They're looking a lot better. The next job will be to replace the battery in the second key. ;-)
The buttons on the keys were in a right state. I spotted replacements on ebay for a few quid, so I bought a couple and spent half an hour replacing them this lunchtime. They're looking a lot better. The next job will be to replace the battery in the second key. ;-)
Blimey where you been hiding!
Palmetto
Zorg Addict
The first week of me owning a Z3 is over. On Wednesday, I took her down to my friends garage for a full service and have the water pump and belt replaced. This was preventative maintenance. In the history the thermostat and some hoses were replaced 2000 miles ago. The pump is the original and on 104,000 miles, and I wasn't keen on having it fail on me.
It looked in reasonable condition, but was replaced with a Meyle one.
I also bought a set of Style 108s to put on temporarily.
I want to get the original wheels back to silver. My wife does like the black, and whilst I don't mind it (it makes the car look more aggressive), I think I'd prefer them back as silver.
I will probably wait a few weeks before putting them on. There's the Yorkshire BMW Breakfast Meet at The Motorist Hub next weekend, and I want to leave the wheels on for that.
Yesterday, my OBC started working. When I say 'working', I mean kinda working. It looks like someone has scribbled on it in orange biro.
I've heard they aren't that accurate for MPG. Since filling up last week I've done 240 miles, before I had to fill up again. It's averaged around 25mpg. The daily it was replacing (Mercedes C200) was doing around 30mpg. Yeah, it'll add up over time, but I don't think it'll be that much more expensive for me to run. And there's the enjoyment to factor in. The Merc was dull.
The one thing that has annoyed me about the car so far is the squeeking gas pedal. I've just lubricated it so hopefully that's cured it. I'll know soon as we are shortly going out for a blast in the country.
It looked in reasonable condition, but was replaced with a Meyle one.
I also bought a set of Style 108s to put on temporarily.
I want to get the original wheels back to silver. My wife does like the black, and whilst I don't mind it (it makes the car look more aggressive), I think I'd prefer them back as silver.
I will probably wait a few weeks before putting them on. There's the Yorkshire BMW Breakfast Meet at The Motorist Hub next weekend, and I want to leave the wheels on for that.
Yesterday, my OBC started working. When I say 'working', I mean kinda working. It looks like someone has scribbled on it in orange biro.
I've heard they aren't that accurate for MPG. Since filling up last week I've done 240 miles, before I had to fill up again. It's averaged around 25mpg. The daily it was replacing (Mercedes C200) was doing around 30mpg. Yeah, it'll add up over time, but I don't think it'll be that much more expensive for me to run. And there's the enjoyment to factor in. The Merc was dull.
The one thing that has annoyed me about the car so far is the squeeking gas pedal. I've just lubricated it so hopefully that's cured it. I'll know soon as we are shortly going out for a blast in the country.
Lots of goo progress already. Like the idea of the style 108s in silver. Style 18s in black is certainly aggressive looking.
25mpg is about what i get too. nearer 30 on a long motorway trip.
25mpg is about what i get too. nearer 30 on a long motorway trip.
25 mpg is really poor if you are driving steady, I averaged 37 on the Scotland cruise, that was with a lot of motorway driving but plenty of spirited stuff when we where therre, that was over 1300 miles,
Palmetto
Zorg Addict
It's a combination of motorway and B Road driving. I'll keep an eye on it. Hopefully it will go up now it's been serviced.
I average 30-32 mpg from my 2.8 manual and 28-30 from my 2.8 auto, calculated on full tank fill ups and not from the on board computer which is not accurate in my cars. This covers driving all types of roads except motorways as there aren't any down our way 
I have to drive nearly 100 miles to get to the M5
I have to drive nearly 100 miles to get to the M5
Yep. There a only one short bit of Motorway in all of Lincs. too.
Tony.
Tony.
Davyhoogy
Zorg Guru (III)
Been DIY king for about a year lol. Busy man! New baby too.
Palmetto
Zorg Addict
Today, had a day off whilst a heating engine replaced our boiler. I thought I'd take the drivers seat out and replace the bushes.
Yep, they were ruined. Didn't take long. On the plus side I found £10 under the seat, so that paid for them!
Yep, they were ruined. Didn't take long. On the plus side I found £10 under the seat, so that paid for them!
Palmetto
Zorg Addict
Well, it's been a while. I've not done as much work on Bella as I was expecting. I'm also restoring an E21 and now my wifes E36, so any work on Bella has just been general maintenance. However this is an update.
Back in May, I noticed the front drivers side looked a bit lower than it should be. This was a broken coil.
So, I ordered a pair of struts, springs and top mounts. I didn't want to go down the lowering route at this stage, so just stuck with standard.
I took the opportunity to clean the muck off the body and clean the plastics. I went round all four arches and did the same. The steering arms, roll bar and suspension arms are looking a bit rough. I have decided to go round and give them a freshen up in the near future. I've been collecting parts so will most likely be doing that over Christmas.
When I was at a show, I noticed a dent in the bonnet (between the grille and headlight) that was only noticeable when the sun was at a certain angle. The body had many tiny parking dings around, most of which were only noticeable if you really looked.
and there were plenty down the side (below the fuel filler, door handle and mirror).
So I rang a dent man a friend recommended and he came along and sorted them out.
and there were lots of them. All the pen marks are a tiny imperfection. The only panel that wasn't touched was the boot lid!
But he did a fantastic job and I highly recommend him. This is his website: Wayne @ Dentless UK. He's based in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire. If you book him tell him Mike with the Z3 sent you. He'll be coming back to do my wifes Rover very soon.
A couple of weeks ago, I pulled up at the workshop where we work on our cars, and I noticed my front wheel wasn't exactly clean.
It had somehow got covered in paint. There was none on the body, just on the wheel. It was dry, and wouldn't come off, even with thinners. Just after I bought the car, I also bought a set of style 108s, as my plan was to return the black wheels back to silver. I never did, because the black wheels grew on me.
When I got home, I stuck the 108s on. I think it looks great. So I'm going to put some winter tyres on the black wheels and keep these for summer. I think.
My boot lid lock has never worked, so last week I decided to investigate. I hoped it was just the actuator. But no, it was the infamous broken wire.
The blue wire was broken, along with a brown one, and the white one was stripped of its plastic. The brown wire was the boot lid brake light. I don't know how long that has been out. I repaired the broken wires with connector blocks*
*I didn't really. I soldered in new lengths of wires. I am considering buying the repair kit that replaces the whole section with new wiring, as I ripped the sleeve slightly when pulling the wires through.
Finally, this week, I was so happy, I gave my tip a right good polish.
Back in May, I noticed the front drivers side looked a bit lower than it should be. This was a broken coil.
So, I ordered a pair of struts, springs and top mounts. I didn't want to go down the lowering route at this stage, so just stuck with standard.
I took the opportunity to clean the muck off the body and clean the plastics. I went round all four arches and did the same. The steering arms, roll bar and suspension arms are looking a bit rough. I have decided to go round and give them a freshen up in the near future. I've been collecting parts so will most likely be doing that over Christmas.
When I was at a show, I noticed a dent in the bonnet (between the grille and headlight) that was only noticeable when the sun was at a certain angle. The body had many tiny parking dings around, most of which were only noticeable if you really looked.
and there were plenty down the side (below the fuel filler, door handle and mirror).
So I rang a dent man a friend recommended and he came along and sorted them out.
and there were lots of them. All the pen marks are a tiny imperfection. The only panel that wasn't touched was the boot lid!
But he did a fantastic job and I highly recommend him. This is his website: Wayne @ Dentless UK. He's based in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire. If you book him tell him Mike with the Z3 sent you. He'll be coming back to do my wifes Rover very soon.
A couple of weeks ago, I pulled up at the workshop where we work on our cars, and I noticed my front wheel wasn't exactly clean.
It had somehow got covered in paint. There was none on the body, just on the wheel. It was dry, and wouldn't come off, even with thinners. Just after I bought the car, I also bought a set of style 108s, as my plan was to return the black wheels back to silver. I never did, because the black wheels grew on me.
When I got home, I stuck the 108s on. I think it looks great. So I'm going to put some winter tyres on the black wheels and keep these for summer. I think.
My boot lid lock has never worked, so last week I decided to investigate. I hoped it was just the actuator. But no, it was the infamous broken wire.
The blue wire was broken, along with a brown one, and the white one was stripped of its plastic. The brown wire was the boot lid brake light. I don't know how long that has been out. I repaired the broken wires with connector blocks*
*I didn't really. I soldered in new lengths of wires. I am considering buying the repair kit that replaces the whole section with new wiring, as I ripped the sleeve slightly when pulling the wires through.
Finally, this week, I was so happy, I gave my tip a right good polish.
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Palmetto
Zorg Addict
I made a purchase of a tonneau cover, which arrived yesterday. I spent a few minutes struggling, before going off to YouTube to find the correct way to fit it.
It looks rather smart, and will be better when I fit the roll hoops I recently purchased.
My garage looks tiny in this photo. It's a lot bigger than it looks.
It looks rather smart, and will be better when I fit the roll hoops I recently purchased.
My garage looks tiny in this photo. It's a lot bigger than it looks.
Palmetto
Zorg Addict
It's only after you finish some work, that you realise you haven't taken enough photos. I forgot to take some 'befores'.
A few months back, I replaced the drivers strut and spring after it broke. I had got a pair and needed to replace the passenger side. I'd also bought bottom arms and track control arms, because the existing ones were in a shocking state. This is from when I did the drivers side.
So, partway through you can see how bad the arms were.They're probably original.
As the Z is my daily, I couldn't have her off the road for long. Ideally, I'd get these blasted and painted/powder coated, but time constraints stopped me. If I get another vehicle, I'd whip them off, get them painted, and fit new bearings and ABS sensor. I'd also probably upgrade the brakes.
I had some Evaporust in the garage, so I dropped these in for a couple of days. They came out quite well. I painted them to protect them afterwards.
Have to say, the OS inner nut on the bottom arm was a nightmare to remove. I couldn't get in with a socket so had to use an open ended spanner, extended with another spanner to get the leverage. That was the hardest part of the job.
Finally, after a few of evenings on my back, everything is back together again and torqued up to spec. The rack power steering pipes are looking a bit worse for wear, so I'll start collecting the bits I need for that. I'll probably take the X brace and crossmember off for powdercoating at the same time. She's booked in for tracking to be done next week
A few months back, I replaced the drivers strut and spring after it broke. I had got a pair and needed to replace the passenger side. I'd also bought bottom arms and track control arms, because the existing ones were in a shocking state. This is from when I did the drivers side.
So, partway through you can see how bad the arms were.They're probably original.
As the Z is my daily, I couldn't have her off the road for long. Ideally, I'd get these blasted and painted/powder coated, but time constraints stopped me. If I get another vehicle, I'd whip them off, get them painted, and fit new bearings and ABS sensor. I'd also probably upgrade the brakes.
I had some Evaporust in the garage, so I dropped these in for a couple of days. They came out quite well. I painted them to protect them afterwards.
Have to say, the OS inner nut on the bottom arm was a nightmare to remove. I couldn't get in with a socket so had to use an open ended spanner, extended with another spanner to get the leverage. That was the hardest part of the job.
Finally, after a few of evenings on my back, everything is back together again and torqued up to spec. The rack power steering pipes are looking a bit worse for wear, so I'll start collecting the bits I need for that. I'll probably take the X brace and crossmember off for powdercoating at the same time. She's booked in for tracking to be done next week
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MarkLG1973
Zorg Addict
- Joined
- Aug 28, 2021
- Points
- 49
- Model of Z
- 1999 Z3 2.8
Lovely looking car
Been tackling similar tasks on mine - done all the shocks and front bushes. Track rods completely seized so next on the list as and when time allows.
Been tackling similar tasks on mine - done all the shocks and front bushes. Track rods completely seized so next on the list as and when time allows.
I average 28mpg , had 31 on a long run. 2.8 manual
Palmetto
Zorg Addict
What tyres do you use? I've temporarily switched wheels/tyres and my mpg has gone down.
Dunlop sport on 18" beyern mesh