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Chasing Front End Vibration - 04 330ci

15K views 6 replies 5 participants last post by  Protostar1 
#1 ·
Hi All-

I've got a e46 330ci coupe with 114k miles which has developed a strange and intermittent frond end vibration at highway speed (55+).

Symptoms:
-Vibration and shake in the steering wheel which varies in intensity when going over 55-60mph. Changes and smoothes out at certain speeds. Some days the shake is barely noticible, other times it literally feels like a wheel is loose.
-Play in both wheels when shaken with front end off of the ground. Passenger side is worse.
-Popping sound from front end when turning (in either direction) and applying brakes at slow speeds - ie. pulling into/out of a parking space. Noticible metallic "pop" as you stop to change direction if that makes sense.
-Steering is crisp & tight, car does not shake/feel loose under braking.

Here's what I've done so far:
-Balanced tires (2 times, different shops), cleaned all wheel hubs and properly torqued wheels.
-Inspected front end suspension parts: car has recent Meyle HD CABs and I have not found any visible play in the control arm ball joints or tie rods.
-Replaced steering shaft flex joint/guibo.
-Replaced front brake pads, rotors, guide pin bushings and bled brakes thoroughly. Calipers are in good condition and not sticking.

Could this be bad front wheel bearings? I would'nt think they would cause this much vibration/shaking but I guess it is possible. Are control arms still not out of the question even if they have no visible play that I've found?

Appreciate any second opinions before I start throwing money at the problem.
 
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#4 ·
Update - should have mentioned in first post:
-Tires are recent Conti DWS with good tread
-Took all the wheels off and looked for bends/bubbles in tires, didnt find anything. Checked the front tires again when mounted and no visible damage found.

I thought it was control arms, however after jacking the car up twice and having someone pull on the wheels (12 & 6, 3 & 9, etc) to check for play, I cant find any in the ball joints, in the control arms or tie rods.

Would play in the wheel without play in the suspension point toward wheel bearings? Meaning, if someone is shaking the wheel and it has some play but the suspension isnt moving.
 
#5 ·
Another update on my vibration problem for anyone with similar issues:

I still have the vibration after the following:
-Replaced front LCAs and LCA bushings with Meyle HD parts. Outer ball joints on the original arms had some vertical play when applying pressure with vice grips, however it was minimal. Bushings had been previously replaced with Meyle HD on the OEM arms and were in good shape.
-Rebalanced all four tires - all wheels balanced out. I did this myself using the equipment at a BMW indy shop where I have worked in the past.
-Thoroughly inspected the tie rods, steering rack, sway bar endlinks and shocks for any visible failures, play, leaks, etc. and found none.


I'm going to be replacing the RTABs shortly with the Rogue Engineering street bushings as I'm sure my RTABs are on their way out, but I doubt this is causing the problem.

I'm still suspicious of the play in the passenger front wheel without any play in the suspension itself, will probably end up replacing this wheel bearing. Is there any way to identify damaged/defective tires short of dismounting them? All wheels are straight, no bubbles/damage to the exterior of the tires.
 
#6 ·
If there is play when you wiggle the wheel up and down and side to side, it is typically the wheel bearing. Try re-torquing the front wheel bearings first before you replace them. Also run your hands along the tire to feel if the tire itself is "warped" or "Cupped". Worn suspension components, bad shocks, and bad alignments will cause your tires to wear abnormally and will cause noise and vibration. Hope this helps.
 
#7 ·
BMW2k3, I just sent you a PM along the lines of:

I have a remarkably similar issue to what is described here. No obvious parts are sloppy and the car generally feels quite tight despite the mileage (173k). However, at speed and especially under higher speed braking, I have a moderate vibration. I am thinking it might be the upper strut bearing, but am far from sure. I have checked all other items noted here (did replace FCABs as one was torn about 6k miles ago) and none seem to be an obvious suspect. Any advice anyone can provide would be greatly appreciated!
 
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