Articles by GazHyde
A BMW Z3 SHORT SHIFT GEARLEVER – and other BMWs
How to create a Z3 short shift
Most manufacturers fit gear levers which are designed to reduce the effort required to that deemed acceptable for the more weak-wristed amongst us. This usually produces a long lever, with a gear change of excessive...
BMW Z3 Detango’d Headlights and Halo’s added
Article submitted by SeaSurfer
Finally got my headlights de-tango’ed, big thank you to Myredzed for helping and showing us the way. Not so scary to put headlights in the oven, once you have seen it done.
We removed the first headlight, removed all...
Fitting Sonar Halo BMW Z3 Angel Eyes Headlight Units
Article written and submitted by forum member ‘Zedonist’
Difficulty rating 4/10 – requires a basic knowledge of wiring and using electrical connectors and a methodical approach to preparation and testing
Time taken 2 hours.
Tools Required...
Article reproduced with the kind permission of Mike Fishwick
Many new owners seek advice about which oil to use for their BMW, and the best advice is to be found in the Owner’s Handbook, which has a couple of pages regarding engine oil – but it is unfortunately commonplace for previous owners...
Article reproduced by kind permission of Mike Fishwick
I am always amazed by the number of BMW cars on which the body work is regularly treated to expensive polishes, yet the engine bay and underside is totally neglected. Cleaning this area is not difficult, and even on a neglected car it can...
Article reproduced with kind permission of Mike Fishwick
Even those who keep their cars in top condition often ignore their battery until it dies. This failure is usually regarded with surprise, and accepted as being ‘One of those things,’ but at £60 to £80 a time it is an expensive folly...
Article reproduced with kind permission of Mike Fishwick
Although many of us regard may it as an irrelevance, the introduction of the catalytic converter may well be seen in historical terms as the most significant event in the history of the motorcar.
In the motor engineering world of the...
Article reproduced with kind permission of Mike Fishwick
Many owners are terrified of losing that string of BMW Dealer stamps in their service book, believing that such expenditure may gain a better trade-in value or an easier private sale. Although this has a logic in terms of fairly new...
Article reproduced with kind permission from Mike Fishwick
The older BMW gearboxes were filled with either normal 75-80 EP gear oil or automatic transmission fluid, this being denoted by the use of either a brown or orange label near the filler plug, and owners of such cars therefore accept the...
Article reproduced by kind permission of Mike Fishwick
Many people ask if it worth having their engine management system remapped, the answer being that it works well, with no snags other than the cost – unless you plan to keep the car for a long time, or it has an annoying flat spot, then...
Article reproduced with the kind permission of Mike Fishwick
The BMW handbrake employs drum brakes integral with the rear discs, which obviously have to be removed if access is required. This can be less than easy, and is the basis for the increased price of an Inspection 2, which on most BMWs...
Article reproduced with kind permission of Mike Fishwick
A brake disc should last – under normal use – for about 100,000 miles, but it seems to be quite a common ploy for MoT testers to “advise” owners that their brake discs are warped, and that a new set of discs and pads is necessary. In...
Many owners regard the presence of a brake pad wear warning lamp as an excuse to ignore the condition of their pads, but the warning is only given when the friction material is worn to 3 mm, when there is a risk that damage to the discs will soon occur, particularly if the owner leaves...
Brake bleeding is one of the most cost-effective maintenance tasks you can perform, an annual operation removing most of the impurities which accumulate in the lowest parts of the system. These include moisture, rubber particles worn off the piston seals, and metallic debris from cylinder bores...
There should be adequate tension on the locking mechanism for the roof to make a perfect seal against the top of the windscreen. If it's too loose you may find water gets through. You may of course find it's too tight and difficult to open/release the latches.
Both of my Z3's have had needed...
The BMW Z8 was the production variant of the Z07 concept car. Exterior designed by Henrik Fisker, with the interior designed by Scott Lempert. In total 5,703 Z8s were produced with just about half being exported to the US. Each Z8 was shipped with a colour matched hard top, designed to...
The second generation Z4 (E89) was announced in 2008 and unveiled in 2009. Long gone was the folding canvas roof of the convertible and the concept of a coupe, this time its a coupe-convertible with retracting hard top.
Exterior styling by Juliane Blasi, and a completely overhauled interior by...
The BMW Z4 was not so much a replacement for the BMW Z3, but an evolution of the 2 door 2 seater convertible, designed by Anders Warming. Warmings design for the BMW Z4 was deemed controversial, as were many other car designs from BMW at the time.
It follows a distinguished line of BMW...
Zukunft is the German word for ‘future’, which is where the Z designation came from. First used on the Z1, it was later used on the Z3, Z4 & Z8 cars.
The BMW Z1 was a two-seat roadster developed by BMW. It was produced from March 1989 to June 1991. All the BMW Z1 were left-hand drive, except...
While I had the carpet out, thought it would be useful to photograph the location of the electric hood release key. Useful to know the location in event of hydraulic or electric failure. Turn the key and you can manually open or close the roof.
Located on the left hand side of the boot behind...