[Jon D]

I'll soon be taking delivery of a 535d M Sport and I've noticed that on many photographs the bonnet (hood for our US cousins) front edge shut line appears to be uneven.
This sort of issue annoys the s++t out of me and I'll be doing a pretty thorough acceptance inspection, whilst paying particular attention to this area.
Does anyone know if the LH and RH latches have a vertical adjustment to enable near-perfect alignment?

[gatoman39]

no vertical adjustments. But there are two latches, sometimes when you shut the hood,uh bonnet, both latches don't catch. You have to make sure both latches shut or else it will appear that the hood is uneven, but it's not.

[Jon D]

Originally Posted by gatoman39

no vertical adjustments. But there are two latches, sometimes when you shut the hood,uh bonnet, both latches don't catch. You have to make sure both latches shut or else it will appear that the hood is uneven, but it's not.

Many thanks for taking the trouble to take and post the pictures.
I know about the two catches and the possibility of one being not fully latched, but I've seen pictures of cars with just a small misalignment, which appears to be caused by less than perfect fitment, rather than the significant gap you'd expect from one catch not being fully engaged.
I was hoping there'd be some form of fine adjustment to match up the shut lines, but I guess it's just luck of the draw on the assembly line.

[gatoman39]

I wouldn't worry about it. Once you get the car, if it's not perfect, then deal with it. I waited for this car for about 7 years, it's been better than I could have imagined. I'm still horribly uncomfortable parking it anywhere other than my garage, but I'm sure this too shall pass.

[Jon D]

PS: those secondary safety catches look somewhat lethal ; I take it you wiped off the blood stains before taking the photos.

[gatoman39]

Yeah, you can see in the second photo there is a warning about hitting your noggin on those things, that would really suck

[Jon D]

Originally Posted by gatoman39

I wouldn't worry about it. Once you get the car, if it's not perfect, then deal with it. I waited for this car for about 7 years, it's been better than I could have imagined. I'm still horribly uncomfortable parking it anywhere other than my garage, but I'm sure this too shall pass.

I know what you mean about parking and no matter how far away from the store you leave the car, you'll always come back to find someone's rusty heap two inches from your pride and joy, whilst there are abundant free spaces remaining as far as the eye can see.
Just think yourself lucky with the size of marked spaces you get over there; you'd have a conniption-fit if you saw the measly allotment we get in the UK.
However, it does provide an incentive to keep reasonably slim!

[gatoman39]

Originally Posted by Jon D

I know what you mean about parking and no matter how far away from the store you leave the car, you'll always come back to find someone's rusty heap two inches from your pride and joy, whilst there are abundant free spaces remaining as far as the eye can see.
Just think yourself lucky with the size of marked spaces you get over there; you'd have a conniption-fit if you saw the measly allotment we get in the UK.
However, it does provide an incentive to keep reasonably slim!

Yeah, I've been to the UK. While the F10 is considered a midsized car here, it's a gigantic car for you guys. I can't imagine trying to navigate a 7 series, or S class in the UK, it would be madness. Mini's and Golfs make sense in your world, but here, they look like toys.

[smanoj77]

Originally Posted by Jon D

I know what you mean about parking and no matter how far away from the store you leave the car, you'll always come back to find someone's rusty heap two inches from your pride and joy, whilst there are abundant free spaces remaining as far as the eye can see.
Just think yourself lucky with the size of marked spaces you get over there; you'd have a conniption-fit if you saw the measly allotment we get in the UK.
However, it does provide an incentive to keep reasonably slim!

I hear you bro! I come back to my car half expecting it to be scratched by the opening door of the neighbouring car. I don't think I'm ever going to outgrow that. I can't imagine how someone can have any peace of mind with a 7 series.

[ghueser]

Originally Posted by Jon D

I'll soon be taking delivery of a 535d M Sport and I've noticed that on many photographs the bonnet (hood for our US cousins) front edge shut line appears to be uneven.
This sort of issue annoys the s++t out of me and I'll be doing a pretty thorough acceptance inspection, whilst paying particular attention to this area.
Does anyone know if the LH and RH latches have a vertical adjustment to enable near-perfect alignment?

Actually the hood does have a vertical adjustment, in fact it can be adjusted an infinte number of ways for perfect alignment. I highly doubt that you will have any issue as this is something that BMW guages at the factory for near perfect fit. What you are probably seeing is the fact that people aren't slamming the hood hard enough to ensure both latches catch properly. None the less, you should thorougly go over your car to make sure everything is to your liking and report any anomolies that you feel need fixing. When your'e paying money for a high end car, it should be perfect.

[Jon D]

Originally Posted by ghueser

Actually the hood does have a vertical adjustment, in fact it can be adjusted an infinte number of ways for perfect alignment. I highly doubt that you will have any issue as this is something that BMW guages at the factory for near perfect fit. What you are probably seeing is the fact that people aren't slamming the hood hard enough to ensure both latches catch properly. None the less, you should thorougly go over your car to make sure everything is to your liking and report any anomolies that you feel need fixing. When your'e paying money for a high end car, it should be perfect.

Thanks, that's reassuring to know.
As regards my pre-acceptance checks, the list is growing! Before I took early retirement I spent 40 years in helicopter maintenance and the biggest part of the job was inspection, so I'm used to looking for defects.
However, things can and do go unnoticed, especially on unfamiliar equipment, so any F10 specific tips would be welcome - thanks.