Cross members break at E46

Wadula

Wadula

1
#1
Messages
5,379
Likes
0
Location
Paderborn, Germany
#1
In a recent issue of a german car magazine it was reported that with older E46 (till 2001 i believe) the rear cross member tends to break. someone heard of that already?

i try to find pictures and the article somewhere.
 
Akakubi

Akakubi

Member
#2
Messages
352
Likes
0
Location
Eugene, OR
#2
Not the crossmember, but the rear subframe mounts (maybe they mean the same thing). Yep, 323's and 328's especially had this problem. I is coming back from the E36's poor design. The floor pan is too thin at the mounting spots and can crack under certain conditions. Usually sudden torque loads, like side-stepping the clutch, donuts, burnouts, etc.., would cause that failure. E36 M3's got additional reinforcement plates from the factory, but they still managed to fail in some cases. 330's and 325's, as well as the new M3, have reinforced mounting points too. I have not heard of failures on those models as of yet.

If it does fail, the dealer will try to blame you for abusive driving. Hard to claim warranty, though it's a long standting issue. Cost to fix is $2500-3000... [:(]
 
Wadula

Wadula

1
#3
Messages
5,379
Likes
0
Location
Paderborn, Germany
#3
yep, expensive and an average of 2 weeks shop time as the magazine reported. Also there are already numerous cases here in germany. after that article i think that more will pop up as people affected see their not alone and understand that it might not have been their fault...
 
Wadula

Wadula

1
#5
Messages
5,379
Likes
0
Location
Paderborn, Germany
#5
nope that´s not it. the problem is with the rear axle. this rear subframe mount seems to be a suitable description from akakubi. (my translation software named it cross member). it is not about a bushing or smiliar, the problem is where the rear axle is mounted to the car itself, to the body. that connection is weak and tends to break. bmw says, as akakubi already wrote, that it is a result of abusive driving and use.

i´m still looking for pictures.
 
Wadula

Wadula

1
#8
Messages
5,379
Likes
0
Location
Paderborn, Germany
#8
perfect pic. bmw now uses a modified plate as replacement at models with that defect and of course in the new production. a recall is not started and it seems as if it will not happen in the near future.
i didn´t know that E36 models had that problem, too!!! scary....
 
You must log in or register to reply here.


Top