[davidwarren]

I've never had a convertible. But a buddy of mine is taking me with him to look at an e93 to buy. Anyone have any input on what to look out for specific to the convertible mechanism?

[MSCD]

When I was researching the top I had read the first year models had some issues. They should never have gone through a car wash either, the seals are not designed for the high pressure (don't recommend car washes full stop...) look for drips on the plastic around the windows for potential leaks. We ended up with a CPO with extended warranty (don't think it covers the roof) for piece of mind. Wish the buyer good luck and an enjoyable ride.

[Bent_remy]

Other members have reported problems but I've had no issue in 2+ years.

[bimmette]

Originally Posted by Bent_remy

Other members have reported problems but I've had no issue in 2+ years.

Same. I've had the usual 335i problems but no roof problems! (Knock on wood!)

[Ozzie335i]

Originally Posted by davidwarren

I've never had a convertible. But a buddy of mine is taking me with him to look at an e93 to buy. Anyone have any input on what to look out for specific to the convertible mechanism?

Paging Black Knight, please pick up white courtesy phone.

[gds52]

Test drive the car with roof closed and all windows rolled down. Look for any rattling sounds. If any, ask them to fix. Try to drive it on a bad road.
Carefully monitor the roof opening/closing and look for any points if it gets stuck.
As someone one mentioned, check for leakage marks if you can.
Other than that it's pretty solid mechanism...over the years I've seen much less issues with the e93 roof than 335i turbos/hpfp or so

[MSCD]

As gds52 mentioned it - my back window rattles every now and then roof and windows up. Mine is not a daily driver so I rarely drive roof up! It is on the drivers side and not constant, but the bumpy roads tend to cause it. Other thing to note is the airbag recall... Check the carfax on that, most are outstanding.

One other point we had trouble with the roof not registering that it was locked when down.... I used dust off in the trunk around the mechanism and error stopped, no issues since. Same with the fuel cover, the pin was not locking, air dust off and all good!

[roadkillrob]

I have a 2008 (built in November 2007), owned it since new and the top has been very reliable.

The issues I have had are mostly normal 335i issues, water pump, injectors (recall), HPFP(3 under recall). High mileage cares most likely will need a walnut blast to clean the valves, fuel pump problem has been long resolved - if it is over 70k and has not had a waterpump and thermostat, that is likely to go. Early cars leaked automatic trans fluid from mechatronics sleeve, so look for oil under the middle of the car from that - $18 part but is 700-800 to have done at a dealer - 3 hours labor, new pan gasket (and possibly pan if you want a new filter) and $200 of tranny fluid. Look for oil leaks around the oil filter area (where it bolts to the block) the valve cover tends to leak as does the oil pan eventually on the ealry cars.

For convertible top specific issues, the early cars (first 2 years) tended to get a resonance helicopter type of sound (a bit like one window down on the highway in an SUV). The fix was to fill the trunk lid with spray foam - look for spray foam in the trunk lid cavities. My mechanic recommended against the fix when I had the issue, said the issue was the wear on the bridgestone tires and they put Michelins on at mostly no cost to me and the issue went away and has never come back!

Next looks at the fabric strings that run down the C pillar area when the top is going up and down, they are connect to the headliner and help pull a few pieces of the headliner into and out of the right places, the strings run down the roof arms into the trunk area. These strings are white but covered in a black sheath, if you see any white, then they need replaced. This tended to happen on the first 3-4 years of cars and if you see white, they eventually break causing more expensive damage to the headliner. Strings are cheap and many had DIY replaced them fairly easily (there are some instructions on the forum).
Next, listen for rattles, there was a SIB about a wiring harness rattling in the headliner above the drivers head, relatively easy fix. Also listen and watch as the roof hits the top of the windshield, if there is an excessive bang when it hits, it may need some alignment, there was also a SIB about this. A lot of people also had issues with the early tops with a small plastic slider comming unglued, it is on the large metal arm of the top structure and the trunklid has a metal piece that hits it to pop open the plastic doors where the large arm passes through (the doors are closed when the top is open) hard to explain, but will make a bit of noise when the trunk lid closes with the top up - easy fix.
I would also stop the top midway between up and down and just look at everything - you don't need to understand it, just look for cleanliness and buildup of dirt and grime, the key to a happy top is keeping it cleaned and lubed, check the pins between each of the roof units for wear and cleanliness and check the seals to see how dry they are.
As for seals, the manual tells you not to go in a car wash, so they really are not made to deal with high pressure, most leak at the seal joint between the roof, headliner and front top window corner, it is the most complicated joint and will tend to drip a few drops of water even with just a handheld hose, cleaning the drains sometimes helps, you can also shim the seals with a little foam or rubber to put a little more pressure on them to help - keeping them conditioned will also help, but expect the odd drip there in heavy rain or when washing - not enough to do any damage, if you get a stream then it will need more work. This isn't something to look for now, but the salmon colored relays in the trunk tend to be a failure point, if they go, the top no worky, so if the top stops working completely, they are a common issue.

If the car has every had any type of an accident especially in the rear, I would be concerned of the affect on the reliability, so I personally would walk away from anything more than minor bumper damage in it's history.

That is about all I have - Black Knight has had his forever also, maybe he can think of more, otherwise, buy a smarttop or get the car coded so you can put the top up while moving and one touch open and close the top and it makes it an even more wonderful car!

Rob

[Dark_Knight_335]

Originally Posted by Ozzie335i

Paging Black Knight, please pick up white courtesy phone.

Reporting for duty captain Ozzie!

Can't go by me, I've had shit luck with my hardtop, and probably wouldn't buy another, if not for all the issues with seals and leaks, then the extra 450 pounds that really pigs it up.

Truth be told, so far, my hardtop has been good to me, and I do enjoy it when the weather is right. Love hate relationship for sure.


I think Rob's take on things is the gospel, go with it - it is all 100% true for the majority of us vert folks.

[PichaDis11]

Originally Posted by Dark_Knight_335

Reporting for duty captain Ozzie!

Can't go by me, I've had shit luck with my hardtop, and probably wouldn't buy another, if not for all the issues with seals and leaks, then the extra 450 pounds that really pigs it up.

Truth be told, so far, my hardtop has been good to me, and I do enjoy it when the weather is right. Love hate relationship for sure.


I think Rob's take on things is the gospel, go with it - it is all 100% true for the majority of us vert folks.

Ummmm wut?!! That's it???

I had thought immediately that you should def chime in on this upon reading the tittle of the thread. hmmmm maybe it's the rain here in the Tri-state currently?

[Dark_Knight_335]

Yeah it's getting ridiculous isn't it bro? We're looking at a flash flood warning until 11 PM tonight....eek!

Yeah I know....LOL.... everybody expected me to go on a tirade of hardtop horrors, but all things considered, I guess I'm not too bad off.

Besides, I've been driving the wife's GLA most of the time anyway LOL

[davidwarren]

Thanks for the info, guys! You made me look like a hard top vert rock star.