Timm's BMW E31 FTP Fixing
Lug Repairs
The fixing points (seen below where the upper and lower screws secure the FTP to
the nose metalwork) are notoriously brittle, and this combined with the force
that the grilles exert when fitted or removed, means that sooner or later they
are going to crack and fall off:
My previous attempt at using Araldite to repair the top securing tang has
failed, and now the other tang is looking like it is going to fall off:
So, a helpful member of one of the 8-Series Forums mentioned Q-Bond a while ago,
so today, I'm giving it a go.
It is a two-part plan, the adhesive is super-glue, but this is combined with
powders that form a permanent and structural repair (it says). You can build up
layers of the stuff and they reckon it can repair metal castings (using the
metal powder), or plastics using the black powder even in the presence of water
(which is handy for the FTP's).
I used the glue first just to close up the gap - let it dry (a few seconds) and
applied the powder:
...and then the glue - a reasonable amount of fumes are expelled which makes it
seem like it is doing something useful, I probably could have been a little more
careful with the powder and used a little less glue:
And the other side, this one turned out a lot better:
The other tang is completely off and there is old adhesive from previous
repairs:
So, glue the thing back in place and then build up lumps of adhesive and powder:
And finally, more powder and glue on the other side - you can file or
dremel the adhesive to make it prettier:
The FTP survived being refitted to the car and the grille being fitted, which is more than it did last time! I'll update this the next time I need to get the FTP off - but, so far, so good!
Time for a cup of tea