FrankenZ4M

wyshyvanuk · 08-03-2018, 01:23 PM

Looked closely at my strut towers today only to find that:
1. Passenger side has, what I believe is, a camber pin, while the driver side does not.
2. Driver side has a nut that attaches the strut brace while the passenger side has the newer bolt.
Car was manufactured on 10/27/2007. VIN LY53722.
Any insight to what's happening here? Thanks!!!

gpraceman · 08-03-2018, 01:39 PM

Strange. Both sides on my Z4M look the same.

The HACK · 08-03-2018, 01:46 PM

I can only guess. Are you the first owner? If not, the previous owner may have complained about a squeak/rattle from the front end, brought it in for repair, and the dealership only swap the one bracket for the strut brace that's in need of repair with the new "nut" style.

Sometime during the life of the car someone asked for a front end alignment, but instead of asking for a specific range of camber, they only asked for both sides to be equal. So they left the alignment pin on one side, and moved camber on the other to match which resulted in removing the alignment pin on the driver's side.

The OTHER possibility, again, if you're not the first owner, is that the car may have possibly been involved in a front end collision, requiring repairs to the strut tower bracket. But the fact that the side with the new bracket is the side that has the alignment pin in place suggest that's not the case here.

If you can pull the car's service history with a friendly dealership, it might confirm or reject my theory.

wyshyvanuk · 08-03-2018, 03:20 PM

Thanks, Hack. Previous owners were involved. The Carfax report shows an accident on 1/11/2017 but reports that the vehicle was "functional". Some additional interesting (to me, anyway) observations:
1. The driver side strut tower bracket not only has no camber pin, there's no hole to receive the pin.
2. It was my understanding that the "newer" brackets (welded to the strut tower) took bolts rather than nuts on the upper side. In other words, when you opened the hood you were looking at a bolt head rather than a nut.
3. The bolt fasteners at the fire wall are different. The driver side bracket is attached with a washer and flanged bolt. No washer and different bolt on the passenger side.
4. I'm no expert but I can't see any evidence of strut tower replacement on the driver side. Looks very factory.

Best guess: there was damage to the strut tower that required replacement. The replacement had the old style bracket attached and there was no need for a hole for the camber pin. I'd be happy to hear alternates. Thanks!!

08-03-2018, 01:23 PM	#1
wyshyvanuk Second Lieutenant 449 Rep 229 Posts Drives: 2008 Z4 MR Join Date: Apr 2018 Location: Tucson AZ iTrader: (0)	FrankenZ4M Looked closely at my strut towers today only to find that: 1. Passenger side has, what I believe is, a camber pin, while the driver side does not. 2. Driver side has a nut that attaches the strut brace while the passenger side has the newer bolt. Car was manufactured on 10/27/2007. VIN LY53722. Any insight to what's happening here? Thanks!!! Attached Images
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08-03-2018, 01:39 PM	#2
gpraceman Second Lieutenant 56 Rep 202 Posts Drives: '06 Z4 ///M Roadster Join Date: Mar 2017 Location: Highlands Ranch, CO iTrader: (0)	Strange. Both sides on my Z4M look the same. Attached Images __________________ 2006 Z4 ///M, Interlagos Blue/Beige
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08-03-2018, 01:46 PM	#3
The HACK Midlife Crises Racing Silent but Deadly Class 1820 Rep 5,337 Posts Drives: 2006 MZ4C, 2021 Tesla Model 3 Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Welcome to Jamaica have a nice day iTrader: (1)	I can only guess. Are you the first owner? If not, the previous owner may have complained about a squeak/rattle from the front end, brought it in for repair, and the dealership only swap the one bracket for the strut brace that's in need of repair with the new "nut" style. Sometime during the life of the car someone asked for a front end alignment, but instead of asking for a specific range of camber, they only asked for both sides to be equal. So they left the alignment pin on one side, and moved camber on the other to match which resulted in removing the alignment pin on the driver's side. The OTHER possibility, again, if you're not the first owner, is that the car may have possibly been involved in a front end collision, requiring repairs to the strut tower bracket. But the fact that the side with the new bracket is the side that has the alignment pin in place suggest that's not the case here. If you can pull the car's service history with a friendly dealership, it might confirm or reject my theory. __________________ Sitting on a beat-up office chair in front of a 5 year old computer in a basement floor, sipping on stale coffee watching a bunch of meaningless numbers scrolling aimlessly on a dimly lit 19” monitor.
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08-03-2018, 03:20 PM	#4
wyshyvanuk Second Lieutenant 449 Rep 229 Posts Drives: 2008 Z4 MR Join Date: Apr 2018 Location: Tucson AZ iTrader: (0)	Thanks, Hack. Previous owners were involved. The Carfax report shows an accident on 1/11/2017 but reports that the vehicle was "functional". Some additional interesting (to me, anyway) observations: 1. The driver side strut tower bracket not only has no camber pin, there's no hole to receive the pin. 2. It was my understanding that the "newer" brackets (welded to the strut tower) took bolts rather than nuts on the upper side. In other words, when you opened the hood you were looking at a bolt head rather than a nut. 3. The bolt fasteners at the fire wall are different. The driver side bracket is attached with a washer and flanged bolt. No washer and different bolt on the passenger side. 4. I'm no expert but I can't see any evidence of strut tower replacement on the driver side. Looks very factory. Best guess: there was damage to the strut tower that required replacement. The replacement had the old style bracket attached and there was no need for a hole for the camber pin. I'd be happy to hear alternates. Thanks!!
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