Oxford Green 3.0i Z3

[Nodzed]

What are we finding is the best paint to use? looks like @Nodzed won't rest until I've painted my calipers yellow ( I fancied red)

If you want them red mate you do them red .....................look crap though

 

[Z Victor 1]

An absolutely stunning car there, always liked that colour which is similar to the MX5 I used to have(pictured)View attachment 7442 . You certainly are doing an excellent job on it. Sports seats next ?

 

[Z Victor 1]

Ooops, no idea where 'attachment 7442' popped up from !

 

[Madtoady]

An absolutely stunning car there, always liked that colour which is similar to the MX5 I used to have(pictured)View attachment 7442 . You certainly are doing an excellent job on it. Sports seats next ?

Sports seats are definitely something I want to do but way down the list

 

[Madtoady]

My new suspension has finally arrived! It's been on back order for a little while now:
- Bilstein B12 Pro Suspension Kit with Bilstein B8 Shocks
- Powerflex Rear Shock Top Mount bracket and bushes
- Febi Bilstein 24316 Suspension Strut Mount

Booked it in to be fit on 22nd March. Very excited!

I've recently ordered a new steering wheel from Jack at Royal Steering Wheels. It's a direct replacement to the original Z3 M-tech wheel but with extra padding, smooth leather on the top and bottom, perforated leather on the side with dark green stitching. I have one of their steering wheels on my daily driver (E81 120d) and it just feels amazing. It should make the z3 even more special now!

I've recently installed:
- New Bosch S5 Type 096 Battery
- New speakers. Hertz DSK130.3 for the front and Hertz DCX 100.3 for the rear

 

[Madtoady]

Suspension installed! I went for a little drive and I definitely like how it feels. It feels so much more planted and less like riding on jelly wheels.

I did have the suspension kit in the boot when I took the before pictures which lowered the car some what but you can still see that there's definitely a nice improvement in how the car now sits and is 30mm lower than standard.

Comparison Pics:

Before:

After:

Before:

After:

I've also installed a new steering wheel thanks to Jack at Royal Steering Wheels. It's how the original steering wheel should have been with extra padding, perforated leather on the sides and smooth leather on the top and bottom with dark green stitching.

Had an enjoyable top down drive on Friday afternoon to enjoy the first bit of sun we've had.

Now the suspension has finally been installed I've ordered some 15mm spacers to go on the rear wheels. 20mm spacers should be possible but I'll wait and see how the 15mm look and feel first.

 

[g8jka]

Great work, with a slight drop and some nicely spaced wheels you can’t go wrong. I found a Royals steering wheel was one of the best mods I did to my zed it really improves the driving experience.

 

[Madtoady]

I've not updated this thread for while but I have still been making progress. For the time being here's a couple of pictures of my car at the Leeds Castle Car Show.

I've finally had the time to try and identify where the vibration is coming from that I've had since fitting the new wheels and suspension. I've managed to identify the problem as coming from the wheels by swapping my wheels over between my daily and the zed. What's the verdict on the BMWP 18" 313 wheels on a zed?

My 1 series with the style 78 wheels:

 

[t-tony]

Do you get the same vibration on the 1 ser. ? Did you place the wheels in the same location from each Car?

Tony.

ps I like the look of those 18's on the Z3.

 

[Madtoady]

The vibration did jump across onto the 1 series. I also managed to hit a new speed PB on the z3 without getting any vibrations whilst using the 313 wheels. This gave me a massive sense of relief knowing the suspension wasn't the cause.

I took the wheels back to lepsons and they gave them a once over, gave the back of the wheels a grind to make sure there wasn't any paint between the wheel and the hub and then a rebalance. One of the rear wheels was 95g out which is surprising as they were rebalanced at my local garage who were tryung to identify the vibration for me. I've not refit the wheels yet but hopefully the problem will now be fixed.

 

[Z Victor 1]

Great looking Z3, enjoy.

 

[g8jka]

Those wheels are one of the best looking current BMW wheels and look great on your zed. They are very easy to clean as well and show off them well kept discs and calipers. Nice work.

 

[5harp3y]

Those 18s looks great on the zed

 

[Z Victor 1]

Always a dilemma for me, do I like the 'intricate' style alloys best which often look good or the simpler designs that are easy to clean ??
Depends, but basically I'm a lazy old git. On the other hand I like the 78 s on my car. Life is just so hard sometimes.

 

[Madtoady]

Those wheels are one of the best looking current BMW wheels and look great on your zed. They are very easy to clean as well and show off them well kept discs and calipers. Nice work.

Completely agree with you. I'm a massive fan of the wheels and they would be quite a rare sight on a z3 but my dilemma is whether or not I continue to try and keep the car as original as possible.

 

[Dino D]

That’s wheel swap works well for both cars.

As for originality just keep the 78’s in the garage - a Z needs at least 2 sets of wheels (4 ideally for each season.....)


As for the the vibration sounds like it’s a dodgy tyre ratter than rim of the rims have been done properly.

 

[Slam]

As Dino says the wheels look great on both cars

 

[benf]

Nice zed those callipers look good did you do them yourself?

 

[Madtoady]

I refit the 78 wheels today and am so relieved to say that the vibration has dissappeared! I'm back in love with the car again! Went for a fast test drive and there's definitely no vibration anymore. Just need to raise the suspension slightly with an additional spring pad and I'm happy to continue with other improvements.

Nice zed those callipers look good did you do them yourself?

Yeh I did it myself it's very simple. All you need is brake cleaner, a wire brush and the caliper paint.

 

[Madtoady]

Well that blows, took the zed for an MOT expecting it to breeze through but it didn't, the rear nearside caliper isn't working very well and needs replacing . The nearside headlamp aim isn't quite right either but that's most likely the bulb isn't sitting quite right.

They have also quoted £260 for the replacement caliper which is astronomical. He suggested I bought the parts myself and get them to fit like they did with my discs, pads and suspension. Any recommendations on replacement calipers and suppliers? And is it worthwhile to replace both if they're doing a fluid change anyway. I'll get them to fit stainless brake hoses aswell whilst they're there as I forgot before.