WTB: 2000 BMW 328i Grill Housing

jakepressley · **Posted:** Thu Sep 24, 2009 10:14 am

one of my fellow Forest Service employees just purchased a beemer for his boy and was inquiring about possible sources for a new grill housing (Kidney Grill??) for a 2000 328i

any ideas?

ColinOConnell · **Posted:** Thu Sep 24, 2009 8:30 pm

I had one knocked out of my E36 a week or so ago. They are all over EBay in just about any chrome/black/carbon combination they might want.

Another option is to search the bimmerforums.com site for people parting out their cars.

steve remchak · **Posted:** Thu Sep 24, 2009 10:06 pm

not to mention any number of vendors offering parts on the internet.

but with a BMW CCA card your friend can buy parts from most BMW dealerships at a 10% discount. and get a rebate on the purchase of a new or CPO BMW after one year of membership.

try these websites... www.bavauto.com www.turnermotorsport.com www.bimmerworld.com

jakepressley · **Posted:** Fri Sep 25, 2009 9:05 am

Thanks fellas...

He wants to get it 100% right before he hands it over to his 17 year old son, His first car...

I'm trying to talk him into taking him to a few AX's, as that's A TON of car for someone who learned how to drive on a craftsman lawnmower.

Thanks again

jake

Todd Breakey · **Posted:** Fri Sep 25, 2009 9:40 am

Suggest the Street Survival school also. It is a great school and the kids learn alot. One on one instruction with class room sessions performed by the italented Mr. Ron Spencer. Plus it is only ~$60 for the class. Not a bad price for the amount of seat time that the students get.

Also, I like it because it is not a competitive environment like an autocross.

www.streetsurvival.org

ColinOConnell · **Posted:** Fri Sep 25, 2009 9:43 am

jakepressley wrote:

I'm trying to talk him into taking him to a few AX's, as that's A TON of car for someone who learned how to drive on a craftsman lawnmower.

I'll second that. Most of Sean and Kevin's friends wrecked their M3's and Mustangs in high school. I like to think that autox gave them some place smarter/safer to play with the car. Probably more importantly they found out what the car felt like when it was transitioning from under control to out of control and how to correct it.

It's also hard to find something that will get teenage boys to spend a whole day with their dad.

jakepressley · **Posted:** Fri Sep 25, 2009 2:03 pm

I'll forward the street survival information too him...

He's a mechanic by trade and seems to think that if he runs a few ax's he may crack the rear spring perches????? I guess its a weak point for these cars... I keep telling him that they make parts every day and that a few auto x's would be great for someone who hasn't had a ton of driving experience....

I grew up on a farm and was driving farm trucks when I was 9 or 10... So when I stepped in to my first car 1988 5.0 T-bird, I had SOME expereince, but still managed to get into a tad bit of trouble (snow and rear wheel drive)

I'm starting my kids early... My step son (5) just grew out of his first go cart.... got too conforatble with it and rolled it last weekend.. now we are looking for somthing with ROPS, possibly a out of date racing cart.

It seems like more kids are killed in cars these days than ever before... Its crazy how being a parent can make you parinoid about (what we call at work) risk factors. Even though I work with wildfire the most dangerous thing we do is driving...

Keith Quistorff · **Posted:** Fri Sep 25, 2009 2:22 pm

jakepressley wrote:

He's a mechanic by trade and seems to think that if he runs a few ax's he may crack the rear spring perches????? I guess its a weak point for these cars...

I haven't heard of rear spring perch issues with E46 3 series. I wonder if he's referring to the upper rear shock mount (RSM) issue with E36's - on E36's driven for awhile with old/bad RSMs, the sheet metal surrounding the RSM is prone to tearing.

As for E46's, there is a known problem with the sheet metal at the bottom of the trunk tearing loose at the rear subframe mount - in fact, there's a class action lawsuit underway for that one. It's fairly uncommon but supposedly can happen to any E46 3 series, regardless of how hard/easy it's driven.

steve remchak · **Posted:** Fri Sep 25, 2009 2:24 pm

jakepressley wrote:

I'll forward the street survival information too him...

He's a mechanic by trade and seems to think that if he runs a few ax's he may crack the rear spring perches????? I guess its a weak point for these cars... I keep telling him that they make parts every day and that a few auto x's would be great for someone who hasn't had a ton of driving experience....

I grew up on a farm and was driving farm trucks when I was 9 or 10... So when I stepped in to my first car 1988 5.0 T-bird, I had SOME expereince, but still managed to get into a tad bit of trouble (snow and rear wheel drive)

I'm starting my kids early... My step son (5) just grew out of his first go cart.... got too conforatble with it and rolled it last weekend.. now we are looking for somthing with ROPS, possibly a out of date racing cart.

It seems like more kids are killed in cars these days than ever before... Its crazy how being a parent can make you parinoid about (what we call at work) risk factors. Even though I work with wildfire the most dangerous thing we do is driving...

i'm assuming he is talking about the shock mounts in the towers. if he is that concerned he needs to reinforce them now.

IMO better to break at an autocross than in the middle of an off ramp at 70 mph.

Vincent Keene · **Posted:** Fri Sep 25, 2009 3:08 pm

Keith Quistorff wrote:

I wonder if he's referring to the upper rear shock mount (RSM) issue with E36's - on E36's driven for awhile with old/bad RSMs, the sheet metal surrounding the RSM is prone to tearing.

Wow, you gotta love that BMW quality. You would think that the people who design and build the "Ultimate Driving Machine" could at least build a strut tower that holds together.

Keith Quistorff wrote:

As for E46's, there is a known problem with the sheet metal at the bottom of the trunk tearing loose at the rear subframe mount - in fact, there's a class action lawsuit underway for that one. It's fairly uncommon but supposedly can happen to any E46 3 series, regardless of how hard/easy it's driven.

Wow, just plain wow. Our $250 Lemons car looks like a top-notch sport coupe compared to these great BMWs.

Keith Quistorff · **Posted:** Fri Sep 25, 2009 3:38 pm

Vincent Keene wrote:

Wow, you gotta love that BMW quality. You would think that the people who design and build the "Ultimate Driving Machine" could at least build a strut tower that holds together.

It's actually a shock mount, not strut tower - the key difference being that it doesn't bear the weight of the car, just the force generated by the damper. As mentioned, this failure occurs only in cases where the part it supports (RSM) is broken and ignored by the owner for some time. I've owned three E36's, drove each of them pretty hard, and never had any problems - this issue really boils down to proper maintenance.

BriceJohnson · **Joined:** Thu Apr 13, 2006 7:33 am **Posts:** 2230

its MINI's that have problems with the strut towers. . .

steve remchak · **Posted:** Fri Sep 25, 2009 4:21 pm

Vincent Keene wrote:

Keith Quistorff wrote:

I wonder if he's referring to the upper rear shock mount (RSM) issue with E36's - on E36's driven for awhile with old/bad RSMs, the sheet metal surrounding the RSM is prone to tearing.

Wow, you gotta love that BMW quality. You would think that the people who design and build the "Ultimate Driving Machine" could at least build a strut tower that holds together.

Keith Quistorff wrote:

As for E46's, there is a known problem with the sheet metal at the bottom of the trunk tearing loose at the rear subframe mount - in fact, there's a class action lawsuit underway for that one. It's fairly uncommon but supposedly can happen to any E46 3 series, regardless of how hard/easy it's driven.

Wow, just plain wow. Our $250 Lemons car looks like a top-notch sport coupe compared to these great BMWs.

don't be hatin on the BMW now VK. obviously a BMW isn't really an Ultimate anything oterwise it would have been in the Fast & Furious movies. :lol:

RobLupella · **Posted:** Fri Sep 25, 2009 5:41 pm

jakepressley wrote:

I'll forward the street survival information too him...

It seems like more kids are killed in cars these days than ever before... Its crazy how being a parent can make you parinoid about (what we call at work) risk factors. Even though I work with wildfire the most dangerous thing we do is driving...

I live in Johnson county and they run off the side of the two lane road and then roll the vehicle. Frequently no seatbelt, but they are safe because the parent bought them a 3 Ton SUV to drive and a cell phone (that they were most likely on when they rolled) :roll:

ColinOConnell · **Posted:** Fri Sep 25, 2009 6:00 pm

Vincent Keene wrote:

Wow, you gotta love that BMW quality. You would think that the people who design and build the "Ultimate Driving Machine" could at least build a strut tower that holds together.

They can, they just saved that for the M3.

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WTB: 2000 BMW 328i Grill Housing

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