Is there an elegant/simple solution?

VictorH · 01-02-2016, 05:02 PM

Probably for many of us irrespective of whether we are the original owners or not the screw holes for the airbox and brake fluid reservoir are probably stripped out. Mine is totally courtesy my local BMW dealer. There's otherwise nothing wrong with my airbox or brake fluid reservoir cover (it's part of the upper engine trim not the cover that's stripped), but each and every screw hole is stripped out since it's plastic and the mechanics in their rush apply too much torque.

Is there a simple fix to this? I'd really like to have a metal threaded insert that would still work with the oem screws. Anyone have a fix for this?

vsix · 01-02-2016, 06:01 PM

You can do that with threaded bushing's or fill a glue- like material into the hole's and redo the thread's.

8600RPM · 01-03-2016, 12:51 PM

Get slightly larger screws for airborne that are a bit thicker. I had that on my last e92 m3

Beemdog · 01-03-2016, 03:50 PM

As 'vsix' mentioned, you can fill the stripped screw hole with a suitable epoxy, let cure, and then drill a pilot hole through it. At this point you can either tap the hole or possibly run a self-tapping screw through to thread the hole. The trick here is certain epoxies thread tap better than others. Some cure to a nice plastic-y texture while some are too brittle to really tap smoothly. I've used a 10-minute two-part liquid epoxy and let cure for 24 hours before drilling and tapping. Make sure it is fresh and thoroughly blended in the recommended ratio (generally a 50/50 mix of the two parts).

The nice thing about this fix is that the original BMW fastener is still used and the fix is practically invisible when completed. Cost is less that $10 plus your labor.

01-02-2016, 05:02 PM	#1
VictorH Major 433 Rep 1,286 Posts Drives: '09 M3 Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: SC iTrader: (4)	Is there an elegant/simple solution? Probably for many of us irrespective of whether we are the original owners or not the screw holes for the airbox and brake fluid reservoir are probably stripped out. Mine is totally courtesy my local BMW dealer. There's otherwise nothing wrong with my airbox or brake fluid reservoir cover (it's part of the upper engine trim not the cover that's stripped), but each and every screw hole is stripped out since it's plastic and the mechanics in their rush apply too much torque. Is there a simple fix to this? I'd really like to have a metal threaded insert that would still work with the oem screws. Anyone have a fix for this?
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01-02-2016, 06:01 PM	#2
vsix Lieutenant Colonel 602 Rep 1,611 Posts Drives: M3 E92 sold, M4 F82 Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: ATL iTrader: (0)	You can do that with threaded bushing's or fill a glue- like material into the hole's and redo the thread's.
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01-03-2016, 12:51 PM	#3
8600RPM Lieutenant Colonel 657 Rep 1,749 Posts Drives: e92 m3 Join Date: Oct 2014 Location: AZ iTrader: (0)	Get slightly larger screws for airborne that are a bit thicker. I had that on my last e92 m3
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01-03-2016, 03:50 PM	#4
Beemdog Woof! 352 Rep 1,323 Posts Drives: '11 M3 ZCP LeMans Blue Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: Sonoma Cownty, CA iTrader: (0) Garage List 2005 Dodge Viper [9.00] 2011 BMW M3 E92 [9.50] 2009 Ducati Hypermo ... [10.00]	As 'vsix' mentioned, you can fill the stripped screw hole with a suitable epoxy, let cure, and then drill a pilot hole through it. At this point you can either tap the hole or possibly run a self-tapping screw through to thread the hole. The trick here is certain epoxies thread tap better than others. Some cure to a nice plastic-y texture while some are too brittle to really tap smoothly. I've used a 10-minute two-part liquid epoxy and let cure for 24 hours before drilling and tapping. Make sure it is fresh and thoroughly blended in the recommended ratio (generally a 50/50 mix of the two parts). The nice thing about this fix is that the original BMW fastener is still used and the fix is practically invisible when completed. Cost is less that $10 plus your labor.
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