[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by AviatorBimmerFL

Why are people suggesting getting an impact wrench in order to get a couple of 8mm screws holding a plastic tray to the vehicle's undercarriage? Someone even boasted how the impact wrench he purchased for this purpose has 1,000 lbs of torque. lol

What next? Replace the screws after use with new aluminum ones?

1,200 inch-pounds Dork; torque is a measurement of force times distance. I mentioned it because buying such a tool with 100 lb-ft of torque has MORE uses than just removing 16 screws to release the E90 under engine pan, which implies buying a compact electric impact gun is worth the investment because it can be used for numerous repairs.

Read, understand, then learn. Some people here contribute to help other members work on their car. The OP has a legitimate beef. Unscrewing 16 screws goes far more quickly using a rotating tool of some fashion.

[DrRobert]

Here is what mine looked like after I ran over a dead deer that was laying in the middle of the freeway while going 60 MPH in the middle of the night. This was a stinking, bloody, hairy mess that was very difficult to clean off. Car is still in the shop a month later with $7500 in damage, including broken intercooler, serpentine belt, power steering pump, coolant lines and other assorted parts in the lower front end. I can only imagine how much worse the damage would have been without the undercarriage cover. I'm getting a new one and keeping it right where it belongs!

[6ixSpd]

Invest in a basic set of power tools and your woes are over.

Last summer I invested in a set of electric impact drivers of various size and power from DeWalt. They've allowed me to do everything from removing panels to exhausts, suspension, so on. I barely ever bust out the ratchets anymore.

In my 10 years of messing with cars, that was the single smartest decision I've ever made and it's saved me thousands in labor costs in under two years. I just wish I made this decision years ago, I can't imagine how much more money (and angst!) I'd have saved...

[MysticRob]

Originally Posted by NGEE

Here is the gauge that tells you whether the car is leaking oil:

LMAO! Truth.

Originally Posted by AviatorBimmerFL

Why are people suggesting getting an impact wrench in order to get a couple of 8mm screws holding a plastic tray to the vehicle's undercarriage? Someone even boasted how the impact wrench he purchased for this purpose has 1,000 lbs of torque. lol

What next? Replace the screws after use with new aluminum ones?

Sadly some here would seriously say titanium. I took my trays off to do the oil and tranny fluids months ago and have left them off to judge how badly things leak. Surprisingly clean driveway for a 137k mile vehicle. Hopefully I'll have time to crawl under there and inspect better when I do the brake fluid this weekend.

[CTinline-six]

Originally Posted by AviatorBimmerFL

Why are people suggesting getting an impact wrench in order to get a couple of 8mm screws holding a plastic tray to the vehicle's undercarriage?

My electric impact can remove all of those 8mm screws and put them back much faster than I can with a nut driver.

It is more for convenience. Instead of sitting there fumbling with a screw driver I can have all the plastic trays off in 2 minutes, making longer jobs on the car seem less tedious.

[tylerboland01]

I just use a power drill( with variable speed) and a 8mm nut driver. Zips it on and off in under a minute. Judging torque values on these small fasteners is easy, get it hand tight then give it a quarter turn.

[AviatorBimmerFL]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

1,200 inch-pounds Dork; torque is a measurement of force times distance. I mentioned it because buying such a tool with 100 lb-ft of torque has MORE uses than just removing 16 screws to release the E90 under engine pan, which implies buying a compact electric impact gun is worth the investment because it can be used for numerous repairs.

Read, understand, then learn. Some people here contribute to help other members work on their car. The OP has a legitimate beef. Unscrewing 16 screws goes far more quickly using a rotating tool of some fashion.

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

1,200 inch-pounds Dork; torque is a measurement of force times distance. I mentioned it because buying such a tool with 100 lb-ft of torque has MORE uses than just removing 16 screws to release the E90 under engine pan, which implies buying a compact electric impact gun is worth the investment because it can be used for numerous repairs.

Read, understand, then learn. Some people here contribute to help other members work on their car. The OP has a legitimate beef. Unscrewing 16 screws goes far more quickly using a rotating tool of some fashion.

LOL My bad! I misread the post as suggesting such a powerful impact tool just for these fasteners.

I completely agree with you, having a good electric impact wrench is a HUGE benefit for us at-home mechanics.

A few months ago I purchased the Milwaukee 2763-22 M18 1/2" Inch Impact Wrench and boy is it a must have tool!

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by AviatorBimmerFL

LOL My bad! I misread the post as suggesting such a powerful impact tool just for these fasteners.

I completely agree with you, having a good electric impact wrench is a HUGE benefit for us at-home mechanics.

A few months ago I purchased the Milwaukee 2763-22 M18 1/2" Inch Impact Wrench and boy is it a must have tool!

I figured you did. No harm meant.

[Shane335]

Mine is gone and I'm not in any hurry to get it back on there.

[rsyed07]

What about a basic breaker bar? More than enough leverage to get those 8mm screws off.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by rsyed07

What about a basic breaker bar? More than enough leverage to get those 8mm screws off.

Nope, you need at least a 1-inch drive, 1,500 lb-ft impact gun. They take about 15CFM @ 120PSI, so you may need to upgrade your air compressor too.

[AdamAllenE93]

Originally Posted by rsyed07

^Came for this

Yes exactly. My oil filter housing was leaking oil and I had no idea because there was never any oil on the ground. When I pulled it off to replace the water pump I found fresh oil all over the bottom of my engine. It was all from the oil filter housing gasket gone bad.

I left my belly cover off, but then the damn cover under the driver's side started flapping on the highway and partially ripped. I came across this forum post while trying to figure out if I should just take them all the way off, or spend $100 on a new driver side cover and put it all back on there.

[Jesda]

I drive my car in Michigan winters. That splash shield is gold to me.

[dmatre]

Originally Posted by AdamAllenE93

Yes exactly. My oil filter housing was leaking oil and I had no idea because there was never any oil on the ground. When I pulled it off to replace the water pump I found fresh oil all over the bottom of my engine. It was all from the oil filter housing gasket gone bad.

I left my belly cover off, but then the damn cover under the driver's side started flapping on the highway and partially ripped. I came across this forum post while trying to figure out if I should just take them all the way off, or spend $100 on a new driver side cover and put it all back on there.

The OFH (and any leak) is visible from the top of the engine compartment. No need to remove the belly pan to inspect it.

[Buug959]

Originally Posted by Welcome to NBA Jam

It's about time I get myself a 3/8 in. impact.

The one mweisdorfer linked to above is a good one... lots of power and small enough to get into some pretty tight spots.

[John 070]

I like the shield. Until I got a Lexus, I did not own a rechargeable driver (that thing has like 26 fasteners). imho the smoother the airflow underneath the better in theory (Lexus is like .27 cd and .26 cd with air suspension which I don't have). But it's theory, the frontal area is huge, whereas it's small on our E9x's

edit p.s. Lexus engineers are pretty good like having things prevent anything from dropping under the seats or weird things to block the gap between rearview and top of windshield so sun can't get through, but they don't even have a hinge for the oil drain plug like our 3's do haha

[e90yyc]

Originally Posted by LemansE90335xi

...small enough to get into some pretty tight spots.

See? Society's got it all wrong. Being super small has its advantages.


I have a 1/4” impact that cranks out 2,000 in-lbs. While it’s awesome that I can literally swap my wheels with it, I actually find it’s tough not to overtorque the belly pan fasteners. Setting the torque to the lowest value helps for sure; I just have to be careful...

[iqraceworks]

I took all of the ones under the motor and transmission on my 335i off. Not a big deal....and it's so much easier to access everything now (and faster).

[John 070]

Originally Posted by e90yyc

See? Society's got it all wrong. Being super small has its advantages.


I have a 1/4” impact that cranks out 2,000 in-lbs. While it’s awesome that I can literally swap my wheels with it, I actually find it’s tough not to overtorque the belly pan fasteners. Setting the torque to the lowest value helps for sure; I just have to be careful...

It's amazing what battery powered can do nowadays. I got new HVAC installed in my house this summer, and I don't even think the crew plugged into any AC power at all, to include mixing mortar.

I didn't go name brand with my impact ratchet (don't use it enough), but my other stuff is in the DeWalt 20V family....

[imperix1]

Originally Posted by AviatorBimmerFL

Why are people suggesting getting an impact wrench in order to get a couple of 8mm screws holding a plastic tray to the vehicle's undercarriage? Someone even boasted how the impact wrench he purchased for this purpose has 1,000 lbs of torque. lol

What next? Replace the screws after use with new aluminum ones?

Titanium man get it together 😂😂

[tlow98]

Love my Bosch impact 12v and Milwaukee Fuel 12v drill. Both have incredibly long batteries, are shockingly strong and are super light which makes them easy to use.

If I add one more tool it would be an 18v impact and I’d have pretty much all I need. Just very rarely need 18v type power.

[3PedalJake]

I like the Milwaukee M12 power screwdriver for stuff like this, especially for putting them back on I just set the clutch to slip when they're tight. The screws are $7.99 for a bag of 50 so there's no excuse not to replace them if they're rusted out.