still vibrates, DANG THING

[gcrygetr]

I just did a bunch of suspension stuff to my 99 528 touring.

struts, upper strut mounts, thrust arms w/bushings. 4 new tires

i put billie's up front (still waiting on the rears to arrive). There is a regular vibration at lower speeds now. 20-35mph or so. It pretty much goes away as i go faster, but its still definitely not right. I will be curious to see what rear shocks will do when i get those in, but i'm pretty sure that the vibration is coming from the front (at least in part). The vibration of the wheel is definitely not side-to-side; its like the car is "bouncing" up/down really fast.

those billie's are STIFF! not really an OEM ride quality... oh well. side note (bilstein HD's did not raise the front of the car up at all, appears the same, for those who were asking.)

anyone have any thoughts on what i should try next? I will probably have to do rear ball joints and front wheel bearings, yeah? The front bearings seem tight, there's no play at all that i can notice.

any ideas would be helpful. tanks, Benji

[e39dream]

check out rear subframe bushings, tie rod ends too.

[ViolinARC]

It's amazing how vibrations can travel and fool you as to their true location...GL!!

EDIT: Interesting link; http://www.kenrockwell.com/bmw/540mods.htm

[ViolinARC]

You know...I did everything I could to try to quiet the vibration on my 750 and was never truly successful (would go away and come back). Has anyone researched to find out if it is a factory defect in the frame?? After going nutz on the suspension, the vibration persisted and even the indy shop I went to couldn't find the problem. They even complimented me on the work I performed so I know I did it right. My Bro (jamesdc4) even mentioned that it could be an oddball master cylinder problem but the indy I go to said most likely not. Unfortunately, she was stolen so I couldn't continue with the project.

I've noticed an unusual number of owners who have been experiencing vibration issues. Of course some of the problems are easily fixed i.e. bad thrust arm bushings, ball joints, wheel bearings, driveshaft bearings, etc. but what about the ones that just don't seem to go away? I've heard of the cracking subframe problem on the 3-series but haven't heard about any of the other models. Once again...possible factory defect?

[Jason5driver]

Bent wheels?
Upper ball joints bad?

Put the car on a lift and rotate the wheels to see...
Jason

[jamesdc4]

The oddball master cylinder thing happened to my Sienna. The push rod was adjusted too tight and the brakes were always slightly on. The resulting vibration would show up after driving a medium distance and would start small and would later become violent. It was also intermittent, so I don't think it is what you are dealing with.
I am curious about one thing though. Open your hood and look closely at your strut towers. The tops should be flat and the bolts should all be on the same plane with each other. I have seen people have issues with the strut tower bulging upward causing the bolts to be out of alignment with each other. I think this results in the body on that side of the car riding lower. I wonder if you have this problem and it is causing a vibration.:dunno
I'll post some pics if I can find them.
This is what it SHOULD look like:
http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a282/jamesdc4/Left20Strut.jpg

This is a pic of one bulging. Notice the three bolts are not pointing straight up:
http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a282/jamesdc4/Right20Strut1.jpg

[bmwlovr]

when was the last time you had a wheel balance? Did you get an allignment after installing the front shocks? A road force balance fixed my vibes - the e39 is particularly sensitive to front wheel balance.

[BIMMER74]

AHHH!!! The ultimate vibrating maching, no wounder why girls flock to you when you drive up. lol

[gcrygetr]

AHHH!!! The ultimate vibrating maching, no wounder why girls flock to you when you drive up. lol

HAHA :lol

the only two girls i'll get in the car are my wife and my soon to be born baby girl...

quote: I am curious about one thing though. Open your hood and look closely at your strut towers. The tops should be flat and the bolts should all be on the same plane with each other. I have seen people have issues with the strut tower bulging upward causing the bolts to be out of alignment with each other. I think this results in the body on that side of the car riding lower. I wonder if you have this problem and it is causing a vibration.:dunno

I'll have to look in the morning when it's light, but i remember when i put in the upper mounts, that the bolts had a slightly difficult time lining up, they all fit in the end, but it took a little force to get the mounts into the holes on the chassis.

I just got brand new tyres and all the wheels were balanced than (off the car) I might have a slightly bent wheel on the rear. I plan to have it straightened... And i have not had an alignment done since i did new struts/ thrust arms/ upper strut mounts. Need to get that too.

I should get the rear shocks this week i hope. Does anyone think blown out rear shocks could cause (or maybe worsen) some vibration???

lates, Benji

[ViolinARC]

AHHH!!! The ultimate vibrating maching, no wounder why girls flock to you when you drive up. lol
:lol:lol:lol:lol :buttrock:buttrock