We have this piece of rubber:
This is the rear window guide for my M3 and it was $554.86 + shipping... $154.86 more than it cost to rebuild the motor for the ragtop!
I spent over 16 hours diagnosing why the ragtop stopped working, and I have 7 pages of notes from that process. I’ve been using a new inde shop for the Germans, and I explained to them where I was with it. They let me bring the car in disassembled and didn’t charge me for diag because they were able to deduce what the problem was from my 7 pages of what the problem was not. It was the motor, and I had 3 options. A new motor assembly from BMW for $1800 ish, a rebuilt motor for $650, or they could send mine out to be rebuilt for $400. I chose option 3 and a little less than a month later I got my car back.
The shop sent me a follow up text to make sure everything was working. It has been pouring on and off for the last week here in PA, but it is dry today so I took the M3 to work to test the top out. Now that it is working I’m able to notice that moisture has been getting in where the convertible top meets the rear deck. Of course that has to be the second most expensive weather seal on the car, and I need a rivet tool to install the new one.
Almost 12 years ago 22 year old me did not know that coupe>convertible. So I bought my first dream car sans roof. I would not do that again, but I love it and I’ve got too much heart and soul into the car at this point to do anything but keep it tip top.
