Jap built e36's vs Germany built

[briancol 3]

Jatco box's tend to develop the famed Jatco jerk and flaring between gears. I have never experienced the flaring in any e36 I have driven with the exception of a high km thrashed 328i.

The ZF boxes are supposedly far tougher and smoother. The stories of repair costs vary alot, so it might pay to ask some specialists

My E36 has the "Jatco flare" and I have been quoted $2,500.00 to have it rebuilt with a 12 month warranty.

I can get a manual conversion done for $1,800.00 plus in my case I want the flywheel lightened and balanced $200.00, a short shifter, new boot and gearknob. Approx price all up $2,500.00.

By getting the Jatco rebuilt does nothing to the value of the car.

A manual conversion will add value and improve the driveability and appeal.

Guess which way I'm going?

[dirtydoogle 383]

Wait, what? Can you get a source for any of that?

I've heard of that too and as far as I'm aware it is true.

My E36 has the "Jatco flare" and I have been quoted $2,500.00 to have it rebuilt with a 12 month warranty.

I can get a manual conversion done for $1,800.00 plus in my case I want the flywheel lightened and balanced $200.00, a short shifter, new boot and gearknob. Approx price all up $2,500.00.

By getting the Jatco rebuilt does nothing to the value of the car.

A manual conversion will add value and improve the driveability and appeal.

Guess which way I'm going?

Hmmm....rebuilding the Jatco? Why would you bother...

[_ethrty-Andy_ 2132]

was told by our mechanic. and cbf looking in depth right now for verification on the net, but first search result on google here; read the first three paragraphs

http://www.pngcars.com/index.php?option=co...ws&Itemid=2

im sure a search yourself will bring something up if your interested

[camera doctor 25]

not sure if BMW is included, but sometimes cars made for the JDM are built using lesser quality parts, as cars are removed from japanese roads once they hit 8 years old iirc, and therefore the cars are usually built to have a usefull life of 8 years, as opposed to 20+ elsewhere in the world.

I would find this hard to believe - economy of scale dictates that would actually costs more to do, not save any money.

I would say that is a 'NZ New Only' car dealer making up reasons why his cars are more expensive ? !!

[_ethrty-Andy_ 2132]

^ first point is correct, but because the cars have to have some japanese parts in them by japanese law, its these parts which are lower quality because they dont need to be the same quality as thier german replacements, and also to make up for the loss of economies of scale

[Top Secret 2]

That link you showed me hits and misses on many counts.

Firstly, it talks about Japanese cars being in great condition. That's a load of crap, and all the proof you need is to have a look at the mid 90s Japanese cars NZ is inundated with. So many have been smoked in, and that goes all through the ventilation. They barely ever service their cars to the level that the average person in NZ would. This is still true for performance cars. Lastly, if they're stuck in traffic jams all the time, the bulk of the km are stop start traffic.

as cars are removed from japanese roads once they hit 8 years old

Removed from the road? Come on now.. that's ridiculous.

edit: getting off topic, my bad.

Edited May 31, 2010 by Top Secret

[elmarco 56]

not sure if BMW is included, but sometimes cars made for the JDM are built using lesser quality parts, as cars are removed from japanese roads once they hit 8 years old iirc, and therefore the cars are usually built to have a usefull life of 8 years, as opposed to 20+ elsewhere in the world.

Say what???  I think you will find that there are a large number of components that are common across JDM and exported vehicles to achieve greater manufacturing efficiencies and economies of scale.  Having worked in the automotive industry supply chain for a number of years, I find it very difficult to believe that anyone in Japan designs based around a different expected life or accepts lesser quality parts in their production.

Removed from the road? Come on now.. that's ridiculous.

This part is reasonably accurate - at a certain age (I can't remember what the age actually is though), the car is forced to go through an incredibly strict WoF type inspection (body panels off etc kind of thing).  The problem is that is isn't cost effective to keep them and put them through it for anything that isn't real special or expensive.  And the economics only get worse if it has been pranged of has any mechanical failures.  If I remember correctly, the registration costs escalate significantly at a certain age as well (and I believe this also happens in Singapore).

Back on topic, I would personally be looking at NZ New vehicles (ie: first registered in NZ, and NZ spec model) as a preference, but the reality is that getting one that has been well looked after and serviced and has the spec you want is probably more important.  Make sure you get a pre-purchase inspection from a BMW dealer or service centre (like BM Workshop or Botany Motor Worx etc) for whatever you end up liking though.

[Braeden320 0]

not sure if BMW is included, but sometimes cars made for the JDM are built using lesser quality parts, as cars are removed from japanese roads once they hit 8 years old iirc, and therefore the cars are usually built to have a usefull life of 8 years, as opposed to 20+ elsewhere in the world.

Can't say I've heard of that one before, especially the second point!

In Singapore you get a large tax imposed on you for having a car over x years old (I think around 7) . Thats why when you go there they have such late model cars and the older ones get exported offshore

Anyway I've owned 2 Jap E36's and My GF has a Jap E46, All have been great cars costing nothing out of the ordinary to maintain. Neither of the E36's had the 'Jatco Jerk' I wouldn't hesitate to buy a Japanese import again 1 bit.

Just beacause it's Nz New, Don't assume its been looked after!

Edited May 31, 2010 by braeden.

[simplysimon 0]

Does anyone know if you can decipher what automatic transmission (ZF or Jatco) is in your car with

the VIN number. I have a 1997 E36 328i M-Sport with 5 speed auto and believe it should be ZF but can't seem to find any way to confirm this!

[balancerider 752]

@simplysimon impressive thread resurrection. If you enter your VIN into RealOEM it should tell you what the gearbox is

[jom 98]

The Jatco box is also used in a Nissan, with a different sump. I would be very surprised if BMW removed/used cheaper components in the JDM E36. (The E46 may be different - the same parts as used in the E36 seem to fail earlier?) . 250,000km and 24 years later my JDM E36 still runs sweet.

However - as Andy said, that doesn't necessarily apply to all manufacturers, but I suspect it may be with locally assembled (and part sourced) CKD kits. I worked at the "university on the hill" and things like carpets, wiring looms, ehausts were locally sourced. There were also bits left out - possibly for spec changes (e.g. no rear wiper) but some other bits were deleted to make assembly easier. I'll leave it at that....

 

[KwS 2421]

How the car was used in Japan will also factor into how the trans fares. I suspect my first E36 was used in a lot of start stop traffic in Japan, as it had 80 odd thousand KM when it came into NZ, but the trans flared like a bitch between 1st and 2nd. Got to the point i couldnt trust it to change gears when I needed it to, so manual swapped it. I wish i did more research into Jatco jerk before i bought it, as i should have picked up on it on the test drive.

Cars that were previously assembled in NZ (or Aus and sold new in NZ) had to have a certain amount of local content, so they usually differed from JDM models in things like seats and trim. My old Corolla was a good example; being late 90s NZ built the seats were rubbish with little to no bolstering and thin cheap fabric that split at the seams. The same car, of the same year was also sold NZ New, but built in Japan. Those had much better quality seats (to the point i bought some from Pick A Part and swapped them in).

[Driftit 2069]

11 year thread dig huh.