Hood out of alignment

[RichieP]

My hood appears to be slightly off alignment with the driver's side being maybe 5mm back when compared to the pass side. You can see a bit more of the front bumper on the drv side from above. Its not a big deal but a bit annoying and I'd expect a tighter fit on this car. Anyone else seen this issue and is there an adjustment I can do or should I just let the dealer fix it?

Thanks

[BigHat]

Take it to the dealer. It might just be a byproduct for the vertical adjustment being off. Have you read the threads about a hood not seating flush on one side or the other? You can tweak the rubber bumpers a bit to adjust the vertical seating. This may or may not be helpful to you. In any event, I'd bet the hood is fitted to the car, which hopefully means it can be refitted. Good luck.

[BobsM3Coupe]

I have yet to see a E9* M3 that had a properly fitted hood all around. They all seem to have alignment issues with the fenders and/or front end. I guess BMW has many folks who make these adjustments on the assembly line in need of a vision exam for corrective lenses.

I hope a dealer can help with the alignment. On my car the fender to hood gap gets larger the more you look at it from the front to the rear where it meets the door.

[Mr C]

Originally Posted by RichieP

My hood appears to be slightly off alignment with the driver's side being maybe 5mm back when compared to the pass side. You can see a bit more of the front bumper on the drv side from above. Its not a big deal but a bit annoying and I'd expect a tighter fit on this car. Anyone else seen this issue and is there an adjustment I can do or should I just let the dealer fix it?

Thanks

I looked at two (2) brand new 2011 M3 Coupes the other day, and both of them were out of alignment. The front was NOT aligned, with both the right and left edges of the front of the car. It was extending over by at least ¼ inch. It was also off by the Roundel. What’s up with this?

[besiktas]

I havent heard of alignment issues but many "not closing evenly" issues

[Mr C]

My 2011 E92 M3 is on the Ship…

Question, is there any way to get an M3 with a perfectly aligned hood. Also, if it comes in not aligned is there anything they can do about it? I don’t see how they can possibly move the hood back in order to line it up. My other 2009 BMW is aligned perfectly.

[King Tut]

The hood is adjustable just like the hood on any other car. I know when I got mine I had to make some adjustments to the rubber hood stops to get the front edges of the hood to line up with the fender.

[Mr C]

Originally Posted by King Tut

The hood is adjustable just like the hood on any other car. I know when I got mine I had to make some adjustments to the rubber hood stops to get the front edges of the hood to line up with the fender.

Thanks for the info.

That is exactly what it was, the hood was not aligned with the bumper, and it was about ¼ inch or so past where the bumper meets.

[RichieP]

Thanks for the replies. I had seen the posts on the closing issues and on adjusting the rubber stops. I looked at the hood and front end more closely and found that the front bumper alignment moves quite a bit with adjustment of the four torx screws in the front. In fact, I had changed out my grill for CF and didnt realize how much play was in the bumper. So I loosened things up a bit and retightened while putting forward pressure on the rubber bumper. Now the front is nicely aligned. Looking at the back of the hood by the windshield, there is a tiny variance in the gap with the fender comparing both sides but its minimal (1-2mm). I'll control my OCD now ..LOL. I need to remember that you cant compare car building to brain surgery where 1mm-2mm off counts. Anyway, I love the car...

[dynamite]

Same here, there is more gap between the fender and hood on the driver side when compared to passenger side. Even I checked it with digital calipers.

[BobsM3Coupe]

Originally Posted by dynamite

Same here, there is more gap between the fender and hood on the driver side when compared to passenger side. Even I checked it with digital calipers.

On my car, the fender to hood gaps are the same. The problem is the gaps start out narrow at the front and then widen as you sight along the gap towards the windshield. Maybe there is room allowed for expansion due to the plastic front fenders? But more than likely, just poor quality control on BMW's part. I would have mentioned it to the dealer, but if they try to realign it, they will no doubt just wind up chipping the paint near where the front doors meet the front fenders.

But at least I know my car isn't the only one with misaligned hood/fenders.

[ooowowizstev]

Mine do not line up correctly either, I just ignore it though.

[Mr C]

You can count on me checking out my new M3 before taking delivery.

What do you do if it doesn’t align, just accept it?

[ooowowizstev]

Originally Posted by E82Pilot

You can count on me checking out my new M3 before taking delivery.

What do you do if it doesn’t align, just accept it?

You could always ask them to adjust it.

[besiktas]

Or you can let the gap stay there, once you hit the gas the engine compartment will need every bit of extra air to cool down

[Alex1911]

Mine didn't line up correctly either, it can be adjusted. The guys at the Performance Center fixed it for me (more on that later) and were perfectionists about it.

[leemik]

seems like a common problem.. my stock hood wasn't 100% perfectly aligned either.. seemed slightly off in front.. but not horrible to the point that it bothered me.

[Hershey]

Just thought I'd add to this.....since I was just doing research on this issue because my 2011 E92 had the same exact issue!!

I went down to the garage & checked, popped the hood open....and...lo and behold...the right bumper plug was was looser and "higher" than the bumper plug on the left!!


I had the same issues as someone here who posted that their hood had a slightly larger gap on the driver side (FROM the perspective of one who would be/were standing in front of their car)after being closed

I tightened the "higher" bumper plug down and it shut easier and all is aligned.

[eisenb11]

My dad noticed this last time we were at the dealer. He looked at the hood of every M3 on the lot and not a single one had a hood that aligned properly. The should be embarrassed to have an issue like this - it's not a cheap car!

[ChrisK]

I've had to slightly re-align hoods and/or trunks on the last 3 BMW's I have owned.

[ChrisK]

I'm going to get flamed, but two BMW's a '98 Z3 and '00 M Roadster I had we're both perfect.

Hey Germany whatcha doing? - Both of these cars we're built in Spartanburg, SC USA

[KIS]

After reading this thread I'm afraid to go into the garage. I know the first thing that I'll do is check the hood alignment and if it's off..............