Pic request: M-Sport front fender liner

[Bimmer-Bob]

Hi, I was hoping someone could snap a quick pic of their front fender/wheel well liner. Prefer driver's side with wheels at full-lock left for comparison to my pic below.

I'm looking at doing some brake ducting and want to see how your fender liner differs from mine (non-M-Sport) to allow airflow to the wheel wells, as mine are pretty well enclosed. I suspect yours are shorter or narrower or something, but would like to confirm.

Here's what mine look like:

Thanks!

[Kgolf31]

Hope this helps

[3002 tii]

I wonder if you can do a fog delete, run the hoses from fogs to access panel via fender liner and the use a deflector plate of sort to direct the air to rotor (similar to Porsche's). It's not perfect not direct but it's clean and better than factory solution of hitting front of tire.

[Bimmer-Bob]

Originally Posted by Kgolf31

Hope this helps

Thanks! This is super helpful. Is this the brake duct?

If so, is it just one piece (I assume p/n 51748046300, #4 in this diagram) that runs directly to the bumper?

Originally Posted by 3002 tii

I wonder if you can do a fog delete, run the hoses from fogs to access panel via fender liner and the use a deflector plate of sort to direct the air to rotor (similar to Porsche's). It's not perfect not direct but it's clean and better than factory solution of hitting front of tire.

I did do a fog delete, of sorts. Picked up a Performance aero kit - the front bumper does not mount fogs. For the 135i, the bumper has the ability to mount brake ducts. What I'm trying to figure out is why I can't go ahead and mount the Performance ducts - it seems like it should work, assuming I retrofit the appropriate fender liners at the same time.

The other question I have is do the Performance ducts augment or replace the stock ducts? I think they totally replace them.

[135TX]

Yes that is the brake duct, I would just cut out the hole in your existing fender liners, with the exception of the hole they should be identical.

[135TX]

I'm sure one of us could help you with some rough measurement estimates for placement, however it may be more precise to install the bumper and trace where the ducts touch your liner and then jigsaw, or sawzall the hole out

[chris82]

I remember I had the ducts for my M sport bumper but the hole wasn't there, so I traced with a sharpie where the hole would be, then cut it out with a razor blade

[Bimmer-Bob]

Originally Posted by 135TX

Yes that is the brake duct, I would just cut out the hole in your existing fender liners, with the exception of the hole they should be identical.

Yeah, I might do that. It sounds pretty easy...although, if I'm gonna go through all the trouble of getting the OEM bumper removed to put in the OEM brake ducts, might just spring for the correct OEM fender liners. They don't look too expensive.

Originally Posted by chris82

I remember I had the ducts for my M sport bumper but the hole wasn't there, so I traced with a sharpie where the hole would be, then cut it out with a razor blade

What?!? That's crazy. I wonder if they just made a mistake or what. Anyway, how'd you know "where the hole would be?" Could you feel the duct hitting against the fender liner or something?

And, incidentally, I guess even with the factory cutouts, the duct isn't secured to the liner in any way? It just sort of lines up?

[chris82]

Originally Posted by Bimmer-Bob

Yeah, I might do that. It sounds pretty easy...although, if I'm gonna go through all the trouble of getting the OEM bumper removed to put in the OEM brake ducts, might just spring for the correct OEM fender liners. They don't look too expensive.



What?!? That's crazy. I wonder if they just made a mistake or what. Anyway, how'd you know "where the hole would be?" Could you feel the duct hitting against the fender liner or something?

And, incidentally, I guess even with the factory cutouts, the duct isn't secured to the liner in any way? It just sort of lines up?

Yea it never had the M sport bumper as a factory option, so when the place I got it from put it on they never cut the hole out. And if you look into the duct you can see it contacting the fender where the hole should be. I traced that then cut it out.

The duct itself has a "leg" that secures itself so it can't move. And the way all the pieces behind the bumper fit together hold it in place. There's only one position for it to go

[Suhb]

Bob, don't you have the aero bumper? I was under the impression that the brake ducts were different for the M Sport Bumper and the aero bumper.

[Bimmer-Bob]

Originally Posted by Suhb

Bob, don't you have the aero bumper? I was under the impression that the brake ducts were different for the M Sport Bumper and the aero bumper.

I do have the aero bumper, and the brake ducts themselves are different from the M-Sport bumper, but the front fender liners are the same. However, my car came with the Sport Package and thus the standard 128i bumper, so the fender liners are closed. So if I want to fit the aero bumper brake ducts, I also need to retrofit the ducted M-Sport fender liners.

[chris82]

Originally Posted by Bimmer-Bob

I do have the aero bumper, and the brake ducts themselves are different from the M-Sport bumper, but the front fender liners are the same. However, my car came with the Sport Package and thus the standard 128i bumper, so the fender liners are closed. So if I want to fit the aero bumper brake ducts, I also need to retrofit the ducted M-Sport fender liners.

I don't think you need M-Sport fender liners. Just look at where the brake ducts are contacting the fender liner and that's where the hole goes. Trace that and cut the hole out no?

[Bimmer-Bob]

Originally Posted by chris82

I don't think you need M-Sport fender liners. Just look at where the brake ducts are contacting the fender liner and that's where the hole goes. Trace that and cut the hole out no?

Well, yeah, I could just cut my fender liners. I'm just saying that BMW made fender liners with and without the holes precut already.

[carscatscoffee15]

Originally Posted by Bimmer-Bob

Well, yeah, I could just cut my fender liners. I'm just saying that BMW made fender liners with and without the holes precut already.

Hey! I wanted to know if you found a solution to this as I'm in the same boat. I've been searching threads and threads on this to no avail this is the closest I can get on this subject as I too have a non M sport front bumper

[Bimmer-Bob]

Originally Posted by carscatscoffee15

Hey! I wanted to know if you found a solution to this as I'm in the same boat. I've been searching threads and threads on this to no avail this is the closest I can get on this subject as I too have a non M sport front bumper

No, I didn't, but I don't remember if I hit technical roadblock, or if it was a time/money thing. Or maybe I just forgot, lol.

Frankly, I don't think brake ducts are strictly necessary for this car, but if it's just a matter of mounting the ductwork and cutting a hole in the fender liner, than it seems easy enough. That way you at least make the Performance Aero bumper functional.

[Bimmer-Bob]

Originally Posted by carscatscoffee15

Hey! I wanted to know if you found a solution to this as I'm in the same boat. I've been searching threads and threads on this to no avail this is the closest I can get on this subject as I too have a non M sport front bumper

So it looks like if you order the BMW Performance Cold Air Package, you get modified brake ducts that run from the Aero bumper to the wheel wells. If you have an M-Sport car, no problem, you remove the stock air ducts and replace with the new ones. If not, it gets a little trickier. I'm sure there's space to route the new ducting, and as mentioned above, you can either cut holes in your existing fender liners or buy the M-Sport pre-cut versions - but I can't quite figure out where the ducts mount. They each have two tabs with holes for hardware, and I don't know if the non-M cars have the mounting points in place, or if we need to add a bracket or something. It's times like this that I sort of hate how sealed off the undercarriage is - I'm going to need to remove the splash guard and/or fender liner just to take a peek.

The other issue is money. The stock M-Sport ducts are about $11 apiece. The Cold Air Package is >$260!. Kind of crazy. It also includes new ducting for the 135i oil cooler, but obviously we don't need that part, and the individual kit components cannot be ordered separately.

[Suprgnat]

Originally Posted by Bimmer-Bob

The stock M-Sport ducts are about $11 apiece.

Not to be pedantic, but I paid $37.08 for the duct just to replace the stupid little rubber piece that I lost and can't buy separately.

[Bimmer-Bob]

Originally Posted by Suprgnat

Not to be pedantic, but I paid $37.08 for the duct just to replace the stupid little rubber piece that I lost and can't buy separately.

Yeah, I think I actually got the $11.00 figure from RealOEM, which of course is not reflective of current market value. I should've plugged the part number into a vendor's site.

[Suprgnat]

Originally Posted by Bimmer-Bob

Yeah, I think I actually got the $11.00 figure from RealOEM, which of course is not reflective of current market value. I should've plugged the part number into a vendor's site.

I only mention it because it pissed me off. Well, I pissed me off for losing it.

[carscatscoffee15]

Originally Posted by Bimmer-Bob

So it looks like if you order the BMW Performance Cold Air Package, you get modified brake ducts that run from the Aero bumper to the wheel wells. If you have an M-Sport car, no problem, you remove the stock air ducts and replace with the new ones. If not, it gets a little trickier. I'm sure there's space to route the new ducting, and as mentioned above, you can either cut holes in your existing fender liners or buy the M-Sport pre-cut versions - but I can't quite figure out where the ducts mount. They each have two tabs with holes for hardware, and I don't know if the non-M cars have the mounting points in place, or if we need to add a bracket or something. It's times like this that I sort of hate how sealed off the undercarriage is - I'm going to need to remove the splash guard and/or fender liner just to take a peek.

The other issue is money. The stock M-Sport ducts are about $11 apiece. The Cold Air Package is >$260!. Kind of crazy. It also includes new ducting for the 135i oil cooler, but obviously we don't need that part, and the individual kit components cannot be ordered separately.

the kit I ordered from ECS tuning has these included so no issues there

I just need to get the wheel liners from either the 135i or F30 (I've seen people use these on E82s but I wonder what the difference is)

[Jay15180]

Originally Posted by Bimmer-Bob

So it looks like if you order the BMW Performance Cold Air Package, you get modified brake ducts that run from the Aero bumper to the wheel wells. If you have an M-Sport car, no problem, you remove the stock air ducts and replace with the new ones. If not, it gets a little trickier. I'm sure there's space to route the new ducting, and as mentioned above, you can either cut holes in your existing fender liners or buy the M-Sport pre-cut versions - but I can't quite figure out where the ducts mount. They each have two tabs with holes for hardware, and I don't know if the non-M cars have the mounting points in place, or if we need to add a bracket or something. It's times like this that I sort of hate how sealed off the undercarriage is - I'm going to need to remove the splash guard and/or fender liner just to take a peek.

The other issue is money. The stock M-Sport ducts are about $11 apiece. The Cold Air Package is >$260!. Kind of crazy. It also includes new ducting for the 135i oil cooler, but obviously we don't need that part, and the individual kit components cannot be ordered separately.

Pardon the bump of this old thread. Does anyone know whether the M sport ducts require a bracket for installation in a non m sport 128i? I already retrofitted an m sport bumper previously and will be cutting holes in my fender liners to accommodate the ducts.

[spidertri]

I installed the 135i M sport bumper on my non-M sport 128i. The brake ducts do rely on the outer pieces inside the bumper to mount. So on the driver side, there's like a closed scoop part (51748046473) and on the passenger side the brake duct uses the oil cooler duct (51748046326) to mount.

I don't have the passenger side oil cooler on my 128i so I used some black plastic sheet to fab up a mounting solution for the passenger side brake duct.

I've searched but never found a blank closed scoop part for the passenger side of the bumper, I think all 135i came with the oil cooler.