Anyone know how fast I should get this replaced?

[expidia]

Looks like a grounding strap from the rear muffler to the frame. I saw it was in two pieces when I was under there finishing installing my mud flaps.

It's almost powdery and breaks to the touch so to me since the X5 is only a year old it looks more like electrolysis damaged than corrosion, so I'm wondering if its OK to wait.

I've been back to the dealer 4 times over the past few weeks. First to diagnose my PDC issue and then they order the part. Same thing when it turned out to be a broken harness wire and yet another trip after they ordered the harness.

I'd like to put off replacing this strap if possible till the next oil change.

How important is this strap?

Thx

[lowlevelhell]

Don't sweat it.

[expidia]

Originally Posted by lowlevelhell

Don't sweat it.

I'm thinking its grounded because that rubber bushing is a sound dampener, so the muffler is not really connected to the frame. but why would a "muffler" have to be grounded anyway?

[turboawd]

i've never seen an exhaust pipe grounded before. maybe it has something to do with static electricity?
the exhaust is connected to the engine, which is already grounded though. maybe its just redundancy.

[expidia]

Originally Posted by turboawd

i've never seen an exhaust pipe grounded before. maybe it has something to do with static electricity?
the exhaust is connected to the engine, which is already grounded though. maybe its just redundancy.

Thats what I was thinking too. Maybe the muffler throws off static electricity and that can raise issues with the computer.

The two rear PDC's are just in front of that rear muffler. Maybe they can throw off static. Like I said above the cars too new for corrosion so for that strap to turn green powdery and flakey there must be some electrolysis going on back there.

It looks to me like it maybe there as "a sacrificial anodes are highly active metals that are used to prevent a less active material surface from corroding. Sacrificial Anodes are created from a metal alloy with a more negative electrochemical potential than the other metal it will be used to protect".

During the winter months the bottom is bathed in salt water from the roads and brine can cause various metals to be eaten away. They use a sacrificial anode on the bottom of outboard motors to protect the aluminum outboard casings.

The anode gets eaten first and as its eaten it looks just like that strap that broken in half.

Thx for your post.

[r33_RGSport]

expidia that should be under warranty if your car is a year old.
It is not a big deal, but there should be a reason why BMW put it there.

[expidia]

Originally Posted by r33_RGSport

expidia that should be under warranty if your car is a year old.
It is not a big deal, but there should be a reason why BMW put it there.

Thanks. Yes its under warranty. I actually spoke with the service dept today and they said ok to wait until next oil change. He's seen this strap break before but not in only a year's time. He didn't know why they use it.

P.S. thx for your response . . . BTW I like seeing all your pics of wheels on those primo cars. Nice marketing

[ingenieur]

Radio reception - to prevent interference noise.

[expidia]

Originally Posted by ingenieur

Radio reception - to prevent interference noise.

Nice. If thats correct, it makes sense. I figured it had something to do with electronics. But i think the strap metal they used is reacting to the aluminum muffler to corrode out so fast.

[r33_RGSport]

Originally Posted by expidia

P.S. thx for your response . . . BTW I like seeing all your pics of wheels on those primo cars. Nice marketing

Thanks.
I try to put my X5 picture in it also, but the forum policy on signature image resolution kept getting smaller and smaller.

[aschmidt]

Guys anybody knows part number for this strap?

Found it: 12427840591