I have to change out the 3rd brake light. What is a inexpensive place to find the part? Ebay?
More importantly I find the side mirrors seem to be stuck a bit. They only move in some directions and not fast. Any advice on that?
Thanks in advance.
Hi there, for the 3rd brake light I just bought an OEM one eBay last week. If you have roadster, you have two OEM options. One is red lens and one is the white/clear lens. Z4’s except for the Z4M came with red. The Z4M came with the white/clear. The clear seems to be $20ish dollars cheaper. I paid $65 from a BMW dealer on eBay.
Part Numbers:
White/Clear: 63256930246
Red: 63256917378
When you reinstall, do not over tighten the 3 nuts/springs on the back. If you do, it will crack the lens. BMW revises the springs to have a lower force to prevent cracking.
Drivers side moves up slow and down fast. Passenger side moves down fast but not up at all. I read a few people saying something inside gets gunked up. I also read another person saying the switch contacts sometimes have some issues.
Also the horn really needs to be pushed hard to make sound. Is that normal?
Other than that I'm liking the car. I just taught myself the paddle shifters (thanks youtube). They are fun.
Now got to figure out the memory seating and if it has tilt steering. It did not come with a manual.
Came with an expensive car cover which I have no use for here.
Manually move the mirrors side-side, up-down until they rotate smoothly.
Don't worry, this does them no harm, I do this every time I wash my vehicles.
I rotated the mirrors manually. I noticed both only go down (not up or sideways) and that is the only time I hear the motor so I think it may be a bad switch.
Feel like I won the lottery today. I found all the manuals and records in a pristine case in the trunk next to a brand new looking tool case. When I did not see them in the glove box I assumed they did not come with the car. Now I have some reading to do.
Edit: Even found the bluetooth pairing key!
Last edited by Kram71; 12-21-2018 at 02:36 PM.
From personal experience, buy the oem bmw part and not aftermarket. Every time I wash my car I think about buying an OEM light. When I got mine, the light was busted and bought an aftermarket one and it simply doesn't fit right. It's probably something that a 'normal' person would never notice but it bugs me. My new aftermarket one did come with replacement spring though so I have that? You can pull the door/mirror switch and clean with CRC circuit board cleaner. The switch controls are located in a bad spot for spills from cup holders.
I ordered a aftermarket one a few days ago but if it doesn't fit I will send it back. Ordered some wheel caps, a buffer and pads as well. Took the car to a neighboring city tonight. I really enjoyed the ride. It feels so much easier to drive than my 1999 M (The Beast). I feel like I got a really nice car with this Z4. I'm very excited. I will go buy some CRC cleaner this week and hope that fixes the switch issue. Thanks for the advice. Any advice on prying that switch up?
Order your OE-OEM parts at:https://www.fcpeuro.com/BMW-parts/Z4...&m=1436&e=2053
Seems to be a slump across all the boards.
Must be a trend.
I screwed up and dropped the spring in the trunk lid. Having a hard time finding it. I have a magnetic tool. Sure hope I can find it soon.
New brake light looks great but that spring may be lost for good. I will ask my neighbor if he has a powerful magnet to get it out. In the meantime I will have to order a new spring. UGH I should have taken panel off before trying to install the springs.
My metal magnet was not able to curve. May pick up a flexible magnet to try to get in to other crevices before ordering another spring. The strange thing is I do not even hear the spring rattle at all so I can pinpoint its location.
Using a nylon pry bar start prying up from the front once once you get that released, slide it forward.
Pelican has a write-up:
https://www.pelicanparts.com/techart...eplacement.htm
As for being quiet... It gets pretty slow around here during the winter months.
Dean
and I went out and looked in my 'z4 parts bag for screws, plastic clips, etc' thinking I tossed my old 3rd brake light springs in there and they were not...
If you can't get to your old spring, maybe call or drop by your local bmw shop and ask how much for part # 63257211238
I say this because paying $5 to ship a $3 part seems kind of silly?
Dean
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