From lightweight Japanese roadster to complicated BMW M car, what could go wrong? F87 BMW M2 content

Nothing major, just had some nice weather today and took the opportunity to swap out spark plugs. To be clear, the old plugs appeared to be working just fine, I just don't know the history of the car. 

Nothing too difficult. Removing/re-installing the strut brace and engine covers was a bit tedious. The silly foam stuff underneath the engine covers was annoying to push back into place, but that's probably the "worst" part of the job. 

The engine bay with all the covers removed so you can get to the spark plugs: 




When I pulled the stock plugs, I noted they were all gapped between .030 to .032 (all but one of them were probably at .031 but my gap tool set only has .030 and .032, so I kind of have to guess). The forums led me to believe they would be between .028 and 0.30, which was not what I experienced. I honestly should have left the new plugs alone and completely ignored the internet until I removed the stock plugs, which would have saved me from doing the job twice. Oh well. 

Notes: 

The plugs are not perfectly offset, so you'll want one of these fancy tools/spark plug sockets that swivels a bit. I bought a cheap thin walled magnetic one off of Amazon, which seemed to work just fine. A link to the tool I bought: 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0977LK9KS?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1

I also used a legit spark plug gap closing tool (screw based) to tighten them, along with a set of feeler gauges:




Because the holes for the plugs don't perfectly align with the coil pack tubes, threading them in feels a bit unnerving. I really took my time putting them back in to be sure I wasn't going to strip anything. 

I bought these plugs off of FCP Euro and they claim they're the same as OEM plugs (stock/BMW on the left, replacement on the right): 






^^^Notice the OEM/BMW plugs are made by Bosch and are labeled ZMR5TPP330 whereas the ones I put in (which are a fraction of the price on FCP Euro, $7.49 per plug vs the BMW plugs priced at $29.99) are also made by Bosch and labeled ZR5TPP330 (missing the "M"). The OEM plugs are labeled Bosch ///M whereas these plugs just say double platinum. One guy on the forums claimed to have a misfire from these plugs, others claim they work just fine. I went for a drive afterwards and so far, they feel just fine. I'll report back if I end up having any problems with them. 

Overall, it took me a little over an hour to get this job done, that was with me taking my time, checking the gap of every plug and re-gappings the new plugs I put in. On FCP Euro's site they claim these new plugs are gapped to .031 and they probably were before I listened to the internet and closed their gaps down just a bit before I got started. Moral of the story: the factory/Bosch has it right, check them, but until you check your stock plugs, don't listen to the Internet, just leave them alone. 

Either way, not a bad job. 

Aside from the coolant, I do believe maintenance is now all caught up on the M2. 

Well, E36 M3. 

I'm thinking about selling the M2. Wonderful car, an absolute blast to drive, but I just can't seem to get it to stop irritating my right knee. 

I've altered the mounting position of the seat a bit, bent the right lower bolster out a bit, slightly altered the mounting position of the accelerator pedal, added a knee pad (that I've moved a couple of times) to the center console, altered the lowest seat rake with shims and played with all the controls more times than I can count. I've even tried wearing a knee brace and various shoes while driving. Nada. 

After going to physical therapy for a couple of months, I think my PT and I are both out of answers. I went to an orthopedist, got x-rays and was told my knee looked great (apparently much better than expected). I have no problems running, jumping, etc. The problem didn't start with some major injury, it was just overuse from excessive driving (I believe it's call "gas pedal knee") when I first bought a 2014 or 2015 Audi A3 and was also in a car for ~10 hour shifts at work years ago. The problem only occurs when I'm driving certain cars or sitting in certain seating positions for prolonged periods of time. I can't explain it and neither can the 2 doctors I've consulted. I've gone 6+ months at a time with no issues as long as I'm staying away from certain cars. 

I've considered investing in an aftermarket seat, but I don't know if I want to invest thousands of dollars in something that I'm not sure will alleviate the problem (I'm more thinking it has to do with the accelerator pedal's proximity to the transmission tunnel- not sure a seat will fix it). 

I'm going to continue on strengthening and stretching the muscles surrounding the knee, hoping that might help. I have zero problems putting in the work, but at this point, I'm not convinced it's going to be resolved. I'll give it some more time, but if I can't get this solved, I may end up parting ways with this car. Which is a damn shame- this is one of the most fun cars I've ever driven. We'll see. 

That's a downer. I wish seat shops would offer loaners. 

Sorry to hear that.

Have you thought about swapping the seat from the 128? Maybe there is something else in the design, the supports, the padding, the whoknows that makes the M2 ones hurt.

Maybe worth a try before you sell a car you obviously enjoy.

That sucks.  I'm curious how the seating position in the 128 is different enough to be comfortable for you but the M2 isn't.

In reply to OHSCrifle :

You and me both! I would hate to spend all the time, money and effort on aftermarket seats just to find out they didn't alleviate the problem... 

In reply to Piguin :

I'm not sure if the mounting holes are the same (it's an entirely different chassis), but I suppose it wouldn't hurt to try. 

I'm not convinced the seats in the M2 are the problem though. They're nearly identical to the 128i seats, at least their dimensions are close to identical. 

In reply to docwyte :

So, the seat heights in the 2 cars are pretty much identical. The dimensions of the seats are also pretty similar. I think it has more to do with the placement of the seat and layout of the interior. It would appear that the M2 has a wider transmission tunnel and center console. I suspect this was done for the beefier transmissions they put in the later F-series cars. The accelerator pedal in the M2 seems a good bit closer to the transmission tunnel vs the 128i. In the M2, at rest, my right knee kind of presses into the center console and I feel like I'm turning my right foot slightly inward during steady-state driving. No such thing happens in the 128i- my leg/foot feels a bit more straight and my right knee never presses uncomfortably into the console (it doesn't really even touch it). 

I've fixed this problem in the past in my old CRX, but I had to go to some extreme measures to get there. I used a heat gun to melt the part of the dashboard that was jabbing my right leg and shaped it around my leg. I then bent the [metal] accelerator pedal to match my foot's resting position and bolted an aluminum Kirkey seat to the floor in a position of my choosing. Viola, no more knee pain. 






Needless to say, that was for more of a track build, in which I had zero berkeleys given. I'm not keen to take my beautiful, street car M2 down the same path and with the wider transmission tunnel and plastic gas pedal, I don't know if it would work out anyway. 

Do you think you'd have better luck in an F30 or F32? 

Also, wanna trade for my F32? 

peanutpckrupper said:

Do you think you'd have better luck in an F30 or F32? 

 

Also, wanna trade for my F32? 

Given that they're all essentially based on the same underpinnings/chassis, with seemingly identical transmission tunnels/center consoles, I would be wary about having the same issue in the F30/F32. But I know they're just a bit wider, so maybe not?

I drove an F20 M240i quite a while back. Great car. I would absolutely daily an F20, F30 or F32 (assuming no knee problems), but for a fun weekend car, the M2 is its own thing. The M240i I drove was really enjoyable, but far more relaxed- the fun factor was taken down a few notches. I feel like the F32 is just a slightly larger F20. If I get rid of the M2, assuming I replace it at all, it would be replaced by something on the fun, weekend car spectrum of things. As much of a downgrade as it sounds, likely another NC2/NC3 Miata. 

Oh man. I really feel bad for you. I've had a couple cars that just never fit me correctly and caused similar issues. Good luck.

In reply to CAinCA :

No worries, brother! 

I'm actually getting a bit excited about getting another NC Miata and boosting it with Flyin' Miata's new CARB legal turbo kit. 

I'll give it some time and see, but either way, I'm sure I'll still have some fun behind the wheel.