Changed the control arms on my E90 this morn

[gusm325]

Guys, I changed both the "upper " and "lower" control arms of my E90 this morning. (I'm sure the gurus call them by another name, Thrust arms, etc.)

What I wanted to note was that I did not have to remove the bottom engine cover; only had to remove the front half of the fender cover and a couple of bolts holding the bottom cover near the axle, that allows more than enough room to work.
Anyway 3.5 hours for an Old shade-tree guy first timer on this type of Bimmer not bad. (being a CA car nothing rusted to hell under there)...:)

I do highly recommend an impact wrench , 22 mm socket a torx T40, short socket extension and a bottle jack to pre-load bushes (sure there is another way but I used that)
328i not IX, I seen the you tube videos requires a bit more work.
Hopes this helps someone save a few bucks :alright

[greenohawk69]

Good info. Why did you change them?

[gusm325]

Got new tires 74,000 mi, I felt it a bit loose on the steering and the infamous click coming off the driveway.
Ball joints weren't too loose but the clicking was there, the bushings were a bit soft.
Nice and tight steering now.

[Codes2]

Interesting. Glad it's quiet.
I didn't change mine, but removed and put back a month~ ago, doing other work.

Important to note, as I read it, is to pre-load your suspension (ramps, whatever) before you tighten these Control Arms to the Subframe. With every bolt, there is some play. You want these loaded before tightening, so they don't 'settle' after the fact and throw off the alignment.

Further, if these were loose at all, that could cause a click.

I'm imagining you had your alignment done after the above work?

[gusm325]

Nah, I believe it was clearly the ball joints, you can tell by the play on them (most evident in the lower arm), and yes I did pre-load before tightening the bolts on the bushes.
Just like any old bimmer; changed the other arms with the bushes because, I figured not to have do this again for the weakening rubber in the forward arms.
Ball joints were weak/loose, bushings a bit soft but not crumbled or ripped off.
I checked the alignment the "old fashion way" and drove this sucker to work highway 80 miles today, all is great.
Nice tight new car feel again running straight. Time will tell.

[Codes2]

... Ball joints were weak/loose, bushings a bit soft but not crumbled or ripped off.
... I checked the alignment the "old fashion way" and drove this sucker to work highway 80 miles today, all is great.



Always nice when you there is no question about the fault! It provides good peace of mind after the repair.

I've done my own alignments with a laser, but it was on a Jeep with mudders. No odd wear two years later, but I don't have that confidence with these puppies and all their parts/angles :)