Home » My BMW Just Found A Hilarious New Way To Fail Me

My BMW Just Found A Hilarious New Way To Fail Me

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My BMW 320D was an impulse purchase. It’s quickly becoming a lesson on why those are often a bad idea in the car world. Thus far, I’ve contended with fueling issues, a recalcitrant transmission, and an interior door handle so sticky it threatens the very fabric of my relationship. But this latest failure, oh. It knew I had big, important plans, and it struck me right where it hurts—my incredibly tender hip pocket.

When last we spoke, I thought I had it licked. Replacing the fuel quantity control valve had sorted the car’s hesitation issues. The transmission stopped shifting poorly soon after, likely because it wasn’t getting surprise torque spikes from the inconsistent fuel delivery. I was ready to enjoy the car; heck, I was ready to sell it. I took it out for a couple of spirited drives, enjoyed the E90’s wonderfully balanced handling, and figured the best time to sell a BMW is when it has the minimum number of warning lights on the dash.

Vidframe Min Top
Vidframe Min Bottom

I got cocky. Speaking to the gang in Slack, I outlined my grand plan to sell the BMW to fund a future convertible purchase. I’d rely on my iffy-but-trusty Mercedes E240 in the meantime. Literally, I was just waiting for the weekend, all set to list the 320D this coming Sunday night. And then I did the stupidest thing possible—I drove it to McDonald’s.

I was working my way down the highway at a handsome 50 mph, admiring my good hair day … when I heard a clunk. Or, indeed, a pair of clunks. “That sounded like me,” I mused. And yet, the car seemed unbothered, so I elected to drive on. Denial, the first stage of grief.

Thirty seconds later, though, truth rang home when the “Charging Fault!” warning flashed up on the dash. Okay, so it threw a belt. I figured I had a good ten to twenty minutes before the battery ran out, but I didn’t want to push things. I decided to pull off the highway, only to get stuck at a light for TWO WHOLE CYCLES. Anger.

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Nonetheless, I got the car parked up five minutes later and went under the hood to inspect the carnage. I was honestly a little surprised. Expecting a shredded mayhem of rubber, instead I found a seemingly-intact serpentine belt merely sitting off the pulleys. I soon realized that this was probably not the ideal result. A snapped or destroyed belt would suggest a belt replacement might fix the problem. An intact belt suggested issues with pulley alignment, tensioners, or other fiddly things. The presumed bill in my head had started at around $50; now I was adding a 1 or a 2 in front of it.

I elected to leave the car, not wanting to fiddle with it on an empty stomach, nor limp it in heavy traffic. I returned post-nightfall, fresh for more investigation. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad! Maybe I could lever the belt back on and see how it goes for a few days? Bargaining

I popped the hood, propping it up with a large stick from a gum tree because the gas struts are shot. The belt came out freely, and I peered into the engine bay to figure out my next move. I figured I’d start by trying to get the V-belt on to the crank pulley first, before winding it around the accessories. Something was strange, though. The crank pulley, boy, it sure was awfully smooth. I thought about messaging Thomas to get the benefit of his experience with the E90 range. “Hey, the crank pulley… no grooves on these?” No, that sounded stupid even in the dark.

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I didn’t have to hunt long for an answer. Shifting the flashlight around revealed the source of the ka-clunk I’d heard earlier. It was the crank pulley, or, more accurately, half of it. See, the crank pulley on the N47 diesel engine is a two-piece affair. It’s a common design, where there’s a part rigidly mounted to the crankshaft, which is then joined via a rubber damper to the part that actually mates with the accessory belt. It damps vibrations and it’s all very nice. That is, until the rubber perishes and the front half of the pulley tumbles off into the bottom of the engine bay. Big ups to the splash guard which stopped it bouncing out into the road and ruining somebody else’s day, too. Depression.

The chunky half of the crank pulley was quite something; it appears this pulley has been on its way out for some time. The rubber has separated all around and the front half has simply torn itself free from the part that’s still bolted to the engine.

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It’s kind of an interesting shape, no?

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It was now obvious to me that I wouldn’t be fixing this on the side of the road. I decided to limp the car home. I figured I’d have enough battery to keep the engine on and headlights lit for the short journey back, and threw the half-a-pulley and still-intact belt in the back.

Without the accessory drive belt, I’d be down air conditioning, charging, and power steering. The latter was the most hilarious. Now, I’m no stranger to cars without power steering.  My own Miata had a depowered rack for its quick ratio and excellent feel. A depowered E90 is something else entirely. Turning the wheel was like trying to run almost-set cement through a 19th-century butter churn. Hilariously, though, the car otherwise drove great. Perhaps even quieter than usual, given all the accessories that were no longer spinning around. I took the slow lanes and a safe route home, and made it back without too much drama. I was glad, at least, for having saved myself the additional hassle of a tow truck. Acceptance.

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I’m no rubber expert, but it looks like this has been in the process of failing for quite some time. Today, it must have been dangling by a thread, until it wasn’t.

So, what now? Well, for one thing, I’m kind of glad I didn’t sell the car last week when I first had the idea. It would have been an unwelcome surprise for the new owner to have bits falling off the engine so soon after purchase. Do I wish I’d sold it months ago? Well, that’s another question entirely.

I’m going to have to fix it, and annoyingly, it won’t come cheap. It’s going to cost me a few hundred bucks for the crankshaft pulley alone, and potentially another $50 or so for a set of sockets to deal with the hardware. Beyond that, there’s the question of whether I leave the belt and idlers alone, or change them as well. Swapping them out would be the best thing for longevity, but I’m also totally done with this car and want it out of my life. Spending more money on things that aren’t broken is not my bag of hammers.

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“IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE OVER BY NOW!” *screams*

It’s not a hugely difficult fix, but it’s going to take a few hours that I simply don’t have right now. It looks like I’ll be piloting the Mercedes until time clears.

Really, though, I’m just annoyed at this whole debacle. The car’s got just over 100,000 miles on it. It’s not unheard of for an N47 to throw a crankshaft pulley at that age, but come on—really? I’m a lover of engines that don’t quit. My Ford Falcon hit almost 300,000 miles on its original crank pulley, and still had its original head gasket. The B6 engine in my Miata achieved much the same. Meanwhile, I’m supposed to accept that BMW can’t make a crank pulley last much more than 100,000 miles?

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Okay, I’m getting back to anger now. Fundamentally, some of the fault is mine. I’m supposed to know better. I bought a cheap used BMW, even after hearing all the horror stories. I wanted to believe it wouldn’t happen to me, but it did.

That gorgeous steering feel, the supple handling that BMW was known for? Just ask a friend to give you a drive. Don’t invite this storm into your own home. Learn from me, and be stronger for it.

[Editor’s Note: Used BMWs can be great fun, but they aren’t great impulse buys. There’s a joke that every modern BMW comes with one engine that will last forever and three that will spawn class-action suits, and the N47 falls into the latter category. If you’re enticed by an E90 3 Series, either go for the N52B30 naturally-aspirated gasoline-powered inline-six like I did, or the M57D30 turbodiesel inline-six. Everything else has real problems. -TH]

Image credits: Lewin Day

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Slow Joe Crow
Slow Joe Crow
8 months ago

That reminds me of our 1995 Ford Escort that reminded us to change the timing belt by ejecting the rubber damper from the crank pulley every 56,000 miles or so. Since replacing the pulley got you most of the way to the timing belt that got replaced every 60,000 miles it became a “while you are there” job. Fortunately in the early oughts the whole job ran about $300

Frank Wrench
Frank Wrench
8 months ago

Had the balancer fail on that pinnacle of reliability, the 300-6 in my 92 F-250. It took over a year to diagnose. It would occasionally move inward and rub against the timing gear cover making scary noises I though were coming from the clutch. Or randomly shred a belt. It never slipped to where it wouldn’t spin the accessories, though.

It finally carved a hole in the timing cover so it was flinging oil everywhere and I thought my main seal went bad. It wasn’t until I took the whole mess apart that I realized what was going on. Fixed the cover with JB Weld and considered welding the old balancer together but wisely bought a new one.

Naterator
Naterator
8 months ago

I own a Mini R53 and this can be a common part to fail.

Jdesigner
Jdesigner
8 months ago

Common failure on M57’s and N47’s. NBD here, carry on.

Abdominal Snoman
Abdominal Snoman
8 months ago

Had the exact same failure in a 3 series in a Lemons race once, when that one went though it even managed to warp the crankshaft by about 3mm so even after we replaced the pulley, the crank position sensor isn’t able to read the crank. Ended up only salvaging the heads in the end from that engine.

DEcarTrouble
DEcarTrouble
8 months ago

I have a 2001 Z3 with the M54B25. It has almost 300k miles on it and other than some areas that need to be refreshed and possibly a new torque converter, it runs like a dream. I think I got lucky with it because it was an impulse buy but I knew it would need work.

DEcarTrouble
DEcarTrouble
8 months ago
Reply to  Lewin Day

Not totally sold on the torque converter being the issue, but has I fix more things it is looking more and more like the culprit. I bought it knowing it would be a project though so it will survive to 300K+ on my watch.

Cheap Bastard
Cheap Bastard
8 months ago

Can you not find one in a junkyard?

Tristan Hixon
Tristan Hixon
8 months ago
Reply to  Cheap Bastard

It’d be a hell of a find – most would likely be in similar condition to the one he has. Rubber has a shelf life, and crank pulleys aren’t usually considered consumable maintenance items.

Cheap Bastard
Cheap Bastard
8 months ago
Reply to  Tristan Hixon

Unless that failure is what put that car into the junkyard I think it will be a *bit* better than the one he has 😉

A junkyard part might also be newer or from a lower mileage engine. If its intact, not showing any sign of imminent failure and if its cheap enough I think it’s worth a shot.

SlowCarFast
SlowCarFast
8 months ago
Reply to  Cheap Bastard

Is it worth the effort to install one that will likely fail within the year? I guess if you’re just looking to sell it, then maybe.

Cheap Bastard
Cheap Bastard
8 months ago
Reply to  SlowCarFast

Depends on how much you need that car to move and not be a paperweight.

Cheap Bastard
Cheap Bastard
8 months ago
Reply to  Lewin Day

Any chance the part is common to something else? My Mazda 5 shares its front sway bar links with the 740i.

Phuzz
Phuzz
8 months ago
Reply to  Cheap Bastard

Really? How come? Was there some weird BMW<>Mazda parts sharing going on, or do they both happen to be a standard size?

Cheap Bastard
Cheap Bastard
8 months ago
Reply to  Phuzz

Dunno but it does.

Last edited 8 months ago by Cheap Bastard
James Carson
James Carson
8 months ago

I swore off anything German a couple of decades ago, VW, BMW, Mercedes, Mercur, unreliable, overpriced, vindictive, spiteful spawn of hell, drainer of bank accounts begone!

Michael Beranek
Michael Beranek
8 months ago
Reply to  James Carson

Never speak ill of the great and mighty Mercur.

SlowCarFast
SlowCarFast
8 months ago

Someday I need to drive a properly-sorted XR4Ti. I had a SHO at the time, and felt too competitive with them to give them proper consideration. (Maybe I was suffering from wing envy.)

James Carson
James Carson
8 months ago
Reply to  SlowCarFast

Mine was quick. Handled well, nice car, excel for the gremlins and the dealer which were awful.

James Carson
James Carson
8 months ago

Of the four they were the least troublesome. The xr4 started harving issues with the engine 6 months from new. The problems moved seemingly randomly through electrical, fuel, ignition, drivetrain, suspention at which point I gave up and traded it for a BMW. The Scorpio was a lightly used tradein. It was great until it wasn’t due to an engine valvetrain failure. Dealer fixed under warranty, but it never ran properly after. I suspect the dealer was the issue on both cars. They were less that enthusiastic about supporting the cars and we’re always trying to sell me a mustang.

Freelivin2713
Freelivin2713
8 months ago
Reply to  James Carson

“That’s totally inappropriate. It’s lewd, lascivious, salacious, outrageous.”
-Jackie Chiles

James Carson
James Carson
8 months ago
Reply to  Freelivin2713

When they worked, yes. The problem is the other 6 months of the year.

Freelivin2713
Freelivin2713
8 months ago
Reply to  James Carson

Yeah, I actually agree…when I was a teenager I wanted a Bummer but not anymore…I used to have an 84 Jetta which was fun to drive and still like old VW’s like that (Bug, Bus,etc) but no new ones…I’m sticking w/ Honda for now

James Carson
James Carson
8 months ago
Reply to  Freelivin2713

All except the my 58 Bus and Scorpio were new. The cars were all great, but fragile and expensive to fix. My BMW 325is had a boatload of issues from new. My. Mercedes 190e was better, but suffered from random electrical issues and ate brakes. The Merkur’s also had mechanical and electrical problems. My Bus was old and tired and a first car.Kept it for years but seldom drove it. The last was a 98 new bug. Actually a pretty good car suffering from a million niggling little problems the indifferent dealer couldn’t or wouldn’t fix. All of the dealers were craptastic and hell to deal with.

James Carson
James Carson
8 months ago
Reply to  James Carson

I have a newish Accord and an older Subaru now. Both are great, reliable cars.

Michael Beranek
Michael Beranek
8 months ago
Reply to  James Carson

Ok well I was just being a smartass because I thought it was odd to include Mercur along with those brands. That’s pretty cool that you had one of each, bet there’s not more than 10 others who could say that.
I wrenched on an parked cars back then, the Scorpio’s interior was awesome. As good as the Acura “Sterling”.

James Carson
James Carson
8 months ago

I was a fool for cars back then. A friends sisters husband was a Ford area rep and let me drive an xr. Got hooked on it. Got a great deal through him. The Scorpio just called out to me after being mauled by the BMW and Mercedes. The Scorpio did have a sweet interior. I figured what the hey, it’s a Ford so it should be better than the others. Another assumption shot to heck. I’ve only seen pics of a Sterling. I don’t recall them ever coming to Canada.

Michael Beranek
Michael Beranek
8 months ago
Reply to  James Carson

I don’t think the Sterlings made it up there. But take a “Honda” Legend, iron some stiff creases into the bodywork, and give it a full-on English drawing room interior. Oh, and those lovely Lucas electrics.

James Carson
James Carson
8 months ago

I’ve got direct experience with the prince of darkness and the magic smoke. Owned a tr6 and a tr7. The 6 worked great after I replaced the entire electrical system. I ultimately yanked the 6 and dropped a 327 and top loader into it. Was a mad thing after that. The 7 had serious electrical problems too. Wierdly the clock was the only part of it that didn’t malfunction regularly. Used to carry a can of contact cleaner around to cool down the ignition module when it overheated and caused to engine too quit. Eventually replaced the distributor with a cut up Acadian body welded up to the dolomite drive shaft. Used an msd module for the spark. Overheating problem went away. Sold it took my brother who was t-boned by an idiot who didn’t see him. Can’t imagine driving it today with all the brodozers.

Mechjaz
Mechjaz
8 months ago

VANOS strikes again.

EmotionalSupportBMW
EmotionalSupportBMW
8 months ago

Do you feel emotionally supported yet?

Chronometric
Chronometric
8 months ago

No he feels like he got involved in a land war in Asia.

Shooting Brake
Shooting Brake
8 months ago

The truth of the matter is, if all of the Autopian writers here drove Toyota’s, there would be no content! Am I wrong? ┐(´ ∀`)┌

Chronometric
Chronometric
8 months ago
Reply to  Shooting Brake

Unless we drove Mirais.

Shooting Brake
Shooting Brake
8 months ago
Reply to  Chronometric

You definitely should spend the extra money and buy the extended warranty! 😉

Thomas Ogle
Thomas Ogle
8 months ago
Reply to  Chronometric

Or C-HRs.

Shooting Brake
Shooting Brake
8 months ago
Reply to  Lewin Day

It’s the classic Man V Machine scenario and sometimes you win and sometimes you don’t!

( Some day’s you’re the bug and some day’s you’re the windshield! ) 🙂

DDayJ
DDayJ
8 months ago

I’m a BMW fan, because I hate money, but yeah they are love / hate relationship cars. BTW I’ve had two E90s, a 328i wagon (N52 powered) and a 335i sedan (N55 powered that I still have). The supposedly good one (N52), broke way more than the supposedly less good one (N55). So even the “reliable” ones can throw you off.

Shooting Brake
Shooting Brake
8 months ago

Hmm… so I assume that you too drove to McDonalds in a huff? 😉

Chronometric
Chronometric
8 months ago
Reply to  Shooting Brake

Well he doesn’t own a Ferrari.

Shooting Brake
Shooting Brake
8 months ago
Reply to  Chronometric

But as a BMW owner, with the regularly occurring break downs, I’m sure he is sick of taking it in the Chuff! 😉

Shooting Brake
Shooting Brake
8 months ago
Reply to  Lewin Day

(。♥‿♥。)

Rollin Hand
Rollin Hand
8 months ago

I feel your pain, Lewin. I had 3 of my four window regulators fail in my 97 540i6. Two of them within a week of each other. My wife’s 2002 Sentra? All four went the distance (well over 200k kms before trade in) without a single problem.

The global auto industry knows how to build generic parts (like window regulators) that last, but for some reason the German carmakers can’t (or won’t) do it.

Freelivin2713
Freelivin2713
8 months ago
Reply to  Rollin Hand

Surprising since I used to have a 2002 Sentra for only like a year and a half and had to replace the driver’s window regulator and fuel pump (& previous owner replaced fuel pump too- they had problems w/ those)

Chronometric
Chronometric
8 months ago

You know it is a bad day when you find your crankshaft pulley in the engine bay.

I took my NA Miata to the dealer for its 60,000 mile service including a timing belt change. A few days later I was returning from the airport at night and the car just stopped running on the highway. I coasted to the shoulder and looked under the hood. In the plastic pan was the main drive pulley WITH THE END OF THE CRANKSHAFT STILL CONNECTED! Well that can’t be good. It seems the 1990 Miatas had a weak crankshaft end and the factory manual published the wrong torque setting for the crankshaft nut. The dealer and Mazda stood behind it so I got a 1991 longblock with the improved crankshaft for no charge.

DialMforMiata
DialMforMiata
8 months ago
Reply to  Chronometric

The dreaded Short Nose Crank.

Chronometric
Chronometric
8 months ago
Reply to  DialMforMiata

Yes indeed. I was one of the first victims which is why I got a full replacement. 60,000 free miles didn’t suck.

Cheap Bastard
Cheap Bastard
8 months ago
Reply to  Chronometric

You know it is a bad day when you find your crankshaft pulley in the engine bay.

You mean that place where the engine is supposed to be?

Cerberus
Cerberus
8 months ago
Reply to  Chronometric

Subaru had a similar issue with the wrong torque spec for the EJ22 published everywhere but in the factory manuals and I had the same thing happen because of it after the first time I did a t-belt change, though I was lucky in that the pulley is what took most of the damage and the crank only had a small piece taken off the end of the keyway with plenty left intact. IIRC (which I’m probably not, but the point is the difference was large), the aftermarket spec was something like 85 lbs and the real one was 120.

Bizness Comma Nunya
Bizness Comma Nunya
8 months ago

This is a failure item on some other random engines, from a combination of environmental conditions, age, etc..

For instance, this happened to lots of old Ford CVH 4 cylinders on late 90s early 2000s Escorts/Focuses…even when they were only a few years old. They would make a hell of a noise when it would happen haha.

Older 6.5 GM diesels had issues with the harmonic dampener too, although those issues would actually lead to catastrophic damage later on.

Newcarpetsmell
Newcarpetsmell
8 months ago

I think this is even a known failure on JZ engines.

Ben
Ben
8 months ago

The LS1 is also known to have issues with harmonic balancer failures due to worn out rubber isolators.

Bizness Comma Nunya
Bizness Comma Nunya
8 months ago
Reply to  Ben

Interesting, didn’t know about the LS or JZ motor issues.

Angry Bob
Angry Bob
8 months ago

I wouldn’t bother replacing the belt. You’ll have it off again soon anyways.

Thomas Metcalf
Thomas Metcalf
8 months ago
Reply to  Angry Bob

Just add a small 12 v electric motor to spin the alternator to keep the battery charged.

Mike Smith
Mike Smith
8 months ago
Reply to  Thomas Metcalf

I see you, second-law-of-thermodynamics enjoyer. I see you trollin’…

PL71 Enthusiast
PL71 Enthusiast
8 months ago

This happened to my S4 last year. It also shredded both belts. I’m not really sure which one happened first. Thankfully the only sign was that it stuttered (once, under hard throttle) and was leaking coolant everywhere when I got home.

The pulley was designed such that the loose piece was retained by the piece still bolted to the crankshaft.

I ended up having to take the front of it off 3 times because the belts shredded a coolant pipe that was incredibly difficult to replace without destroying the O-ring sealing it.

I really wanted to go one piece crank pulley after it happened but they stopped making aftermarket one piece ones that don’t overdrive the supercharger.

Last edited 8 months ago by PL71 Enthusiast
PL71 Enthusiast
PL71 Enthusiast
8 months ago
Reply to  Lewin Day

It was a PITA but the only thing I learned from it is that I should buy a THIRD unreliable German car (backup for the backup)

Luckily by both belts I mean accessory and supercharger, no timing equipment was harmed

Last edited 8 months ago by PL71 Enthusiast
Doctor Nine
Doctor Nine
8 months ago

German engineering. Plan for failure modes? Nah!!!!!

No wonder they lost the war.

Hillbilly Ocean
Hillbilly Ocean
8 months ago
Reply to  Doctor Nine

What? Over? Did you say ‘over’? Nothing is over until we decide it is! Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Hell no!…

Doctor Nine
Doctor Nine
8 months ago

<blinks>

<blinks again>

Michael Beranek
Michael Beranek
8 months ago
Reply to  Doctor Nine

Forget it, he’s rolling.

SlowCarFast
SlowCarFast
8 months ago

Pffft! Everyone knows the CIA bombed Pearl Harbor! (Maybe)

Cheap Bastard
Cheap Bastard
8 months ago
Reply to  Doctor Nine

He should have bought a Lada…

Danny Zabolotny
Danny Zabolotny
8 months ago

Oh yeah, these fail all the time on the diesels. We didn’t get the 4-cyl diesels here in the US, but the M57 straight 6 diesels blow their harmonic balancers constantly here. A friend of mine had an E70 X5 35D and he was stranded in the same way when his harmonic balancer failed. The funny thing is that he had already purchased the balancer months prior and was just too lazy to replace it.

Danny Zabolotny
Danny Zabolotny
8 months ago
Reply to  Lewin Day

Hopefully your timing chain holds up… it’s at the back of the engine, so replacing it involves either dropping the motor or pulling the transmission and doing the job through the trans tunnel.

IRegertNothing, Esq.
IRegertNothing, Esq.
8 months ago

If you’re done with the car, then just replace the crank pulley and belt and call it a day.

Peter d
Peter d
8 months ago
Reply to  Lewin Day

I am not familiar with this specific case, but sometimes you can loosen the bolts on the idler and tensioner pulleys to help get the belt on and it is easier to tighten up the bolts on the pulley than hang harder on the tensioner lever (with the tool that barely fits the hole because there is no room in the engine bay). I probably should have replaced the pulleys when I did this last time, but only because they would have been like $20 a piece.

Tbird
Tbird
8 months ago

Are there any timing related issues that should be addressed as well? You will already have the harmonic balancer/crack pulley off and that is the biggest hassle aside from access issues. Might as well do chain tensioners and such while in there (I’m assuming a diesel uses a timing chain and not a belt). Maybe throw on a water pump and belt tensioner as well. Seal it back up and run it. Once the front of the engine is opened up, just proactively replace all wear items to reduce headache later.

Tbird
Tbird
8 months ago
Reply to  Lewin Day

That SUCKS!! Ditch this beast ASAP. Do not pass Go, do not collect $200.

Otter
Otter
8 months ago

> go for the N52B30

…and then do a popular mod: buying and fitting a small metal shield to protect the front main crank seal. Why? So this doesn’t happen: (deep breath) the oil filter housing leaks oil onto the pulleys and the belt slips off, wraps around the crank pulley, and then bits of belt chew through the crank seal and start traveling around with the oil in your engine. Yet another Rube Goldberg failure mode from the engine-building geniuses at BMW.

(Seriously, I love the engine, but the gotchas are bizarre.)

Mike F.
Mike F.
8 months ago
Reply to  Otter

This indeed one of the few gotchas with the N52. As my indy mechanic said, “Nothing goes wrong with these things except for the leaks.” Oil filter housing, valve cover, and oil pan are all common. You can pretty much let the valve cover and oil pan leak for as long as you can stand it, but if you don’t keep up with the oil filter housing, then you could suffer for it. (I don’t think the above is real common, but it happens.)

Arthur Flax
Arthur Flax
8 months ago

For what it’s worth, my ’97 Jaguar XK8 threw a crankshaft pulley. It was, however, undamaged, requiring only a new giant bolt, a gallon of Loctite and a really large wrench to fix. Thus demonstrating the superiority of British engineering or something. On the other hand, I once had the plastic intake manifold blow apart, thus demonstrating that bad ideas are bad ideas no matter the nationality.

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