Your fleet running reports

[NotoriousREV]

Me and a mate were discussing wipers the other day. They’re one of those things that you put up with being shit for months at a time and then, when you finally get round to replacing them, you wonder why you didn’t do it sooner. And then you do the same thing next time.

[JLv3.0]

Oh god - every word of that. Can be years before the shit old ones get replaced.

[DeskJockey]

Oh god - every word of that. Can be years before the shit old ones get replaced.

"But they sort of kinda work, so can't be bothered just yet".

[Nathan]

I clearly remember travelling in a Xantia with Rain-X on the windscreen 20 years ago.

It was amazing how at motorway speeds only the lowest wiper setting was used when the wind resistance was enough to blow most of the water of the treated windscreen which repelled the rain.

Amazing stuff and I have never used it despite buying a bottle.

[Zonda_]

It's also brilliant for cleaning shower cubicles!

[NotoriousREV]

I’ve got an unopened bottle of Rain X that must be 18 years old.

[nuttinnew]

I've been using a Prestone (iirc) screenwash that has a Rain-X effect, also a jetwash that has a spot free finish setting that does similar. If nowt else I just have a quick go round the car with rinse water - normally enough atm, it's just dusty not dirty - then the spot free and it prevents too much from sticking. I clean the blades at the same time. The Prestone and spot free do ye beading rain at motorway speed thing with lazy application

[Mito Man]

I must be the only one that applies Rain X each time after washing the car, only takes a minute and well worth it. And I also replace the wiper blades as soon as they deteriorate. I just can’t tolerate unnecessary annoying shit like that.

[mik]

Something had caused one of my bonnet grilles to be distorted. PITA to remove it, so tried just bending a hangar and using it to gently pull the indentation out.

3mins work. Happy with that.

[McSwede]

I must be the only one that applies Rain X each time after washing the car, only takes a minute and well worth it. And I also replace the wiper blades as soon as they deteriorate. I just can’t tolerate unnecessary annoying shit like that.

Never been a fan of Rain X on the windscreen as I find it makes the wipers judder when you need to use them. Use it on side windows and panoramic roof though where it works a treat.

[integrale_evo]

I use rainx whenever I notice the performance dropping off, probably once every 3-4 months.

Never had it cause an issue with wiper judder on anything I've used it on over the years.

[nuttinnew]

panoramic roof

[scotta]

I must be the only one that applies Rain X each time after washing the car, only takes a minute and well worth it. And I also replace the wiper blades as soon as they deteriorate. I just can’t tolerate unnecessary annoying shit like that.

When the detailed dude did the ceramic coating on the golf he did some sort of ceramic window coating that worked like rain x but lasted for about a year.

[Beany]

I find RainX to be a chore compared to the silicone wipers, but I won't pretend it doesn't work. The cleaning back properly, and applying, seems to need to be done once every couple of months though and takes a while. The silicone wipers, I never did it more than once a year.

Not *quite* as effective as RainX in terms of pure water repellance, but a lot less faffing IMHO, and they last, well. The Puma had them on for five years or so without a single squeak or streak...

[Mito Man]

I don’t think I ever updated the headlight situation on the 6 series. I gave it in for its MOT with a BMW specialist so they could try to align them. They couldn’t and then checked with BMW if it’s actually a RHD light - the part number said it was so everyone was a bit miffed. The mechanic said something on the phone about BMWs usually having a lever outside the back of the light to change the beam for driving on the continent but he couldn’t find any on these lights.

Whilst back at home I had a good look at the old lights and found a plastic toggle switch deep inside the unit, flicking it moved a piece of metal inside changing the beam pattern to make it dazzle less when driving on the continent. Only thing is you have to remove the xenon igniter to get to it - no wonder they couldn’t find it!

So BMW won’t actually allow public joe to change a xenon bulb because high voltage and guaranteed death yet each time you want to go across the channel their solution is to do just that to make you not dazzle other cars

Anyway just need to change the rocker cover gaskets and gearbox oil to get it back to being perfect but it’s quite a labour intensive job and they can’t do it for a while.

[Jezh]

Been thinking for a while that the steering was a bit out of sorts on the the M135 and when I had all 4 tyres replaced a couple of weeks ago this only highlighted the issue further. Had to wait two weeks for local supplying dealer to be able to take it in and provide a courtesy car (a very dull manual 218d convertible)

In the period between booking in and arriving at the garage car also decided that the boot lock was going to play silly buggers intemittenly, only releasing to the second safety catch resulting in lots of effing and jeffing playing remote fob / boot badge lever roulette until it did release.

Anyway, the result of 2 day visit to garage, new boot lock, steering rack, steering column, wheel alignment and a failure to wash / valet car as promised Also they could not tell me what was actually wrong with the steering which really annoys me. It just feels like they were trying to cover it up. I was told that the technician drove my car then drove another M135i they had in stock and decided mine wasn't right so they replaced the enitre steering assembly.

Luckily all done under warranty however as this expires March next year and it isn't the first big'ish issue I have had over the two and a bit years of ownership, I think there is a possibility we may be parting company on or before that date. This is not necessarily a reflection of the car as I still love the way it drives and the smile it can put on your face but essentially I don't have a lot of faith in BMW products or their dealers anymore.

[Zonda_]

My M135i needed a new steering rack and column too.

[Sundayjumper]

Fitted replacement window regulator to the Compact, which turned out to be a refreshingly straightforward job. I didn't replace the vapour barrier, instead I removed the remains of the original one, and as much of the glue as I could be bothered with. Weight saving. Race car.

Did some more work on the harness mounts in the Porsche. For some reason nobody makes a complete bolt-in solution for fitting buckets & harnesses - unless you go for the whole OEM setup for lots and lots of ££££££££s. I didn't want to spend that much, and the OEM mounts don't go low enough for me anyway. I'd ended up with Brey-Krause floor mount / sub strap mount (very nice quality, a bit pricey, but the only option that worked for me), some generic steel side mounts that I'd cut up a bit to make them fit, and Bimarco bucket seats that are great value but also particularly long in the back. I also managed to get hold of some Porsche-specific Schroth harnesses. The Porshchespecificness of them is in the lap belt mounting tabs, they have a larger than usual eye designed to go with the OEM side mounts. I wasn't quite sure how to mount them so I cobbled together some spacers and ran with it for a bit. Then, someone on 911uk made up a batch of adapters to the same spec as the OEM ones and I got a set to try out. Somewhat of a faff as I needed to cut 18mm *square* holes in the side mounts but it all just about squeezes in. My seats are particularly low so I was relieved it find it worked.

[Sundayjumper]

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[Jezh]

My M135i needed a new steering rack and column too.

Did you get any explanation as to what went wrong with it?