Anyone recognize this?

#1

Found it bolted to the bottom of the engine while replacing rod bearings. Nothing connected to the other end so I left it off when reassembling.

[attachment=1905]IMG00035-20121114-1057.jpg[/attachment]

#2

That is a brace that makes it harder for the drivetrain to shift forward in the event of a front end collision. For a while I removed mine, and then a front end collision put my Jesus nut into my aftermarket double-pass radiator. After that I put the brace back.

Your brace is missing a rubber buffer that goes on the forward end.

#3

Got a pic or a link to a pic? It’s been long enough that I’ve forgotten exactly what it was fastened to. And the opposite end was just hanging in space. Is this one of those “replace with delrin” bushings? Doesn’t seem like it would matter in this application.

#4

Don’t be helpless, go find the engine diagram in RealOEM.

Get the OEM rubber bushing. That’s all you’re going to find anyhow.

#5

Wasn’t aware of RealOEM. Thanks for the tip. I see now that the other end apparently wasn’t supposed to connect to anything and the only part in the diagram that doesn’t have a corresponding price and p/n in the associated BOM is the rubber bumper. C’est la vie. Does this mean the dealer also can’t get it? NLAs seem to have the notation Ended in the notes.

#6

Ah so. RealOEM is a huge resource. Just be aware that it’s not perfect. For example it has the wrong brake bias valve for my car.

I bought one of those rubber bumpers a couple yrs ago. I’ll see if I can find the part #.

#7

Here you go. http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=1113&mospid=47309&btnr=11_0073&hg=11&fg=10

RealOEM can be odd when parts in a diagram don’t show up in the parts list. It can mean that a particular part is not on your particular model, or it can mean that it’s on another diagram. Or it can mean that it’s just an error.

#8

Doh!:pinch: Didn’t try changing manufacture date. Thanks.

#9

[quote=“RRhodes” post=69379]Doh!:pinch: Didn’t try changing manufacture date. Thanks.[/quote]If the site’s database was better, the part would have been listed for your car’s build date too. It’s many holes and errors are odd. I supposed that it came right from BMW’s database and you’d have thought that would have been pretty error-free.

Too bad the data is dead. Would be nice if there was a way to get corrections made.

In RealOEM’s defense, every time I try to find a part # for a Ford truck I end up thinking kindly towards RealOEM.

#10

I personnally prefer http://bmwfans.info/

#11

I was just sitting here thinking (that’s the faint burnt clutch odor wafting from your monitor, it’s not your backlight failing) about the need for this part in a car that has poly mounts with through and through fasteners. The stock mounts routinely fail with just a few decades of minor twisting going on. Granted this is not shear and a front end collision will put a LOT of shear force on the MM and tranny mount bolts, but I wonder if the stop bracket is needed with this mod.

#12

Don’t be a hardhead. I’ve bought 3 aftermarket radiators in the last year. Two of those would have been avoided had I put the brace in place earlier. If others can’t learn from my mistakes, what’s the use of me making them?

#13

LOL.:laugh: Good point. I guess I’ll reattach it.

#14

Rob,
I wish I would have had one on my M42 318is a couple years ago. Minor fender bump at stop light with idiot who hesitated after starting to move. the M42 + eng mounts tore from the subframe and went forward. Engine didnt hit the radiator but the shift lever fell into the tunnel. Of course the idiot left the scene. Replaced subframe & welded in AKG reinforce plates at the engine mounts.

When I started getting the 325i(s) i noticed the part you show in your pic. It bumps into back of subframe in just such an event. I believe i got a cheap new little rubber bumper widget at ECSTuning.com or autohausaz.com to replace the nasty, crumbling one. Seems like its bolted on down on bottom of bellhousing or near there. Think of it as ballast.

doug

post teardown pic attached of widget in place on bottom of bellhousing

[attachment=1914]Eng_Bumper.jpg[/attachment]

#15

duh. cant type. PRE teardown pic shown.

#16

Got it, thanks Doug. Also thanks for the reminder, the Cobra goes into it’s rented winter home this weekend so front and rear subframes can come off for reinforcement, toe adjusters, bushings, diff mounts, etc. It would be just like me to have forgotten the MM reinforcements.

#17

a little tip from experience, i run hpde events in my track built e30 with a somewhat built/modified engine. Last year on Shenandoah i heard a load clunk going into the carrousel first run of the day. On the last run of the day the steering seemed to be sticking a bit, weird. Then there was a loud clunking noise under the right front. After pulling into pits and pulling the right front tire i see the engine mount sitting on the tie rod. Not supposed to be like that is it?
come to find out the engine mount had broken the bottom tab off the cradle. I bought the reinforcement kit from Bimmerworld and welded everything back together and all was fine, but I got a tip from a fellow racer. The piece you show in the photo does in fact stop the engine from going forward in case of a hit in front end. However it can also prevent the engine from moving forward enough to break the engine mount tabs on the cradle under continued hard braking, say the end of the straight at Summit Main. So i bought a transmission mount for an e30 and trimmed it down some and enlarged the hole in the end of that piece and bolted the trans mount to it to reduce the forward movement of the engine under hard track braking. So far all is good after a year of track days!