Horrible Steering wheel shake....

[Hartge330Ci]

:help
I have a 95 525i. I had the stock wheels and tires on it, 15", and had some shaking, back and forh in the steering wheel at about 60-65mph. I upgraded to 17" wheels and tires, and now the shake is much worse..... Comes on at about 45mph and shakes like crazy. Anyone know what this may be?

[stuntride]

exact same thing with me to a pinpoint. ive since put koni adj. and h&r springs and its not so bad anymore so ive kinda quit caring about it. from what i understand tho if its not the wheels out of balance it oculd be bad bushings, swaybar endlinks. centerlinks/draglinks i believe

[Hartge330Ci]

anybody else?

[kraulto]

anybody else?
Also have a 92 525i, changed to 18" that came from 02 Sport Package 530i, had no handling issues when I had the stock 15" wheels, but now I have major handling issues, bordering on being unsafe, hafta replace the entire lower suspension like Thrust and Control Arm's, Tie Rod's, Center Link. I saw these things myself and they are worn. This a a major expense and will probably do it after the tax season.

[Alan]

Thrust arms are the most likely culprit. Also worth doing the lower control arms and the tie rods to get the car riding like new.

[stuntride]

its not the actual thrust arm or control arm that went bad, its the bushing correct?? unless uve been in a wreck or somehow bent the metal

[Qsilver7]

when you look at the lower and upper arms...there is a small rubber bushing at the end that attaches to the steering arm that isn't really replaceable and is a part of the arm...and the upper arm has a replaceable bushing. Most folks experience has lead to just replacing the whole arm because the small bushing on the end has experienced the same mileage, bumps, wear & tear as the larger replaceable bushing...and many had to go back and change the entire arm after replacing just the upper arm bushing. Do all at once while you got it apart is the best way to go. If you're gonna do the left/right tie rods...you might as well pony up and do the center link and idler arm too because they all are attached to one another.

Steering linkage diagram: #3/#4= tie rod (need left & right); #9= ctr tie rod; #14/#15= idler arm & bushing...
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/images/d/146.png

Front Axle suspension: #2/#3= lower arm; #7/#8= upper arm & bushing...
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/images/s/137.png

[e28 man]

Yeah, if it comes on only at 60-65 gut instincts say that your wheels have a harmonic imbalance i.e. dented or bent. But if you bought new wheels and tires and it got worse, then that's suspension. I disagree with kraulto, you dont need to replace everything, just whatever is worn. What almost always goes first is upper/lower control arms. probably no more than $250, assuming you do your own work.

[PENER]

check out this link. it's DIY for front thrust arm bushings replacement. worked like a charm for me, got rid of the shake. good luck!
http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=267215

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