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Thread: Suspension and/or steering making clunky sound and not tight

  1. #1
    Join Date
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    2006 525xi

    Suspension and/or steering making clunky sound and not tight

    Hey guys- working on a 2006 e60/525xi.
    I had to drop subframe as part of removing oil pan and major engine work.
    Now my steering has a little play in the center, basically not as tight as I think it should be.
    I don't specifically remember there being play before I did the work, but I bought it non-running and the extent of me driving it was onto and off of a trailer.
    Also, I should note that the suspension (or something) is making a clunky sound when I go slow over bumps. Seems to do it on both sides.

    I should note that I bought this car to learn about wrenching. So I will likely ask some dumb questions

    Oh ya, and lastly, the 4x4/dsc light comes on randomly, but I think that's unrelated and a steering angle sensor issue.

    Thanks in advance!


    ETA new title for attention
    Last edited by acarpenter86; 05-23-2018 at 01:56 PM.

  2. #2
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    Did you get the car professionally aligned after you worked on it? If not, do that first. Centering steering is part of what they do, and they'll see anything amiss down there, especially if you mention it to them in advance.

    Clunks are concerning and likely a symptom of something being loose/worn or incorrectly installed. The steering feel could be a number of things, from a bad alignment to the steering coupler, to the power steering system, to the rack and tie rods.
    Last edited by TostitoBandito; 04-30-2018 at 08:36 PM.
    1999 M3/2/5 - Titanium Silver - Track/Weekend Toy


  3. #3
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    2006 525xi
    Thanks- I'll double check my work firstly then take it in!


    Quote Originally Posted by TostitoBandito View Post
    Did you get the car professionally aligned after you worked on it? If not, do that first. Centering steering is part of what they do, and they'll see anything amiss down there, especially if you mention it to them in advance.

    Clunks are concerning and likely a symptom of something being loose/worn or incorrectly installed. The steering feel could be a number of things, from a bad alignment to the steering coupler, to the power steering system, to the rack and tie rods.

  4. #4
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    OK, so most of the issue was from me not retightening the two 18mm steering rack bolts- THAT'LL DO IT EVERY TIME! Doh.
    I really never should have loosened them, but I mistook them for sub frame bolts. Only problem is I couldn't get a wrench to hold the nut on the RH side. I tightened it as much as I could, but thinking maybe when I take for an alignment they can use impact to get it to grab.

    Turn out the LH tie rod bushing is worn, so might as well replace those too. Could be some of the clunking as well.

    But, most importantly the majority (maybe all, I can't tell) of the play is out of the steering.

    Now to figure out how to clean steering angle sensor...

  5. #5
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    You're talking about the two bolts/nuts which connect the rack to the front subframe? Yeah that'd do it. You should be able to get a wrench on the top of them to get the nut, though it's a tight squeeze as is everything above the subframe. That's the only way to tighten it, since the bolt will just spin endlessly unless you can hold the nut on the other end.

    By tie rod bushing I assume you mean the ball joint on the end of the tie rod end which connects to the wheel? Tie rod ends are pretty straightforward to replace, you'll just need an alignment after. You'll also likely need a ball joint separator or a pickle fork and a big hammer to get the ball joint separated from the wheel/hub so you can get the tie rod end off. The ends just screw onto the threaded portion of the inner tie rods which come out of the rack, and are secured by a nut and locking sleeve one the toe has been adjusted.
    Last edited by TostitoBandito; 05-03-2018 at 08:33 PM.
    1999 M3/2/5 - Titanium Silver - Track/Weekend Toy


  6. #6
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    Yeah, when I realized my reassembly mistake a felt real dumb. Haha.

    i was getting my parts mixed up- I was thinking control arm bushing, but I did mean the tie rod ball joint. Is it advisable to go ahead and replace the complete tie rods at 123k miles vs trying to diagnose if it's outer only?

  7. #7
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    Ugh. So I bought outer tie rods because the inners seem perfectly fine. Got the old ones fully released except for the connection between the inner and outer. Of course the most important part. I got the lock nut and the sleeve off fine, but there is no rotating the outer from the inner. I even tried using PB Blaster overnight and two pipe wrenches today. Is there anything else to try besides just giving up and ordering the full tie rods? I'd rather not buy a torch just for this, but I will if it will do the job.

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by acarpenter86 View Post
    Ugh. So I bought outer tie rods because the inners seem perfectly fine. Got the old ones fully released except for the connection between the inner and outer. Of course the most important part. I got the lock nut and the sleeve off fine, but there is no rotating the outer from the inner. I even tried using PB Blaster overnight and two pipe wrenches today. Is there anything else to try besides just giving up and ordering the full tie rods? I'd rather not buy a torch just for this, but I will if it will do the job.
    I assume you're holding the inner with a 13mm wrench while cranking on the outer with something? If that won't move it once the lock nut is out of the way, I don't know what to say. I suppose it could be cross-threaded or rusted or something. Did it spin and then stop at some point, or was it totally seized from when you took the nut off? If it comes down to not being able to get the outers off without removing the rack from the car, I'd vote for just replacing the inners too.

    If you do need to replace the inners as well, I don't think it's that bad and it's probably a good idea with that many miles anyways. I didn't have to since I just bought a new rack with inners already installed, but I think you just have to more or less remove the dust boot and its clamps, and then you can get at the inner ball joint which I think threads into the rack sort of like a bolt. You'll probably want to replace the boots, clamps, and other associated hardware when you do this but I think it's pretty cheap. I was planning on doing inners at one point in the past, so I went through and put together a shopping cart of parts and didn't remember it being bad at all.
    Last edited by TostitoBandito; 05-14-2018 at 02:15 AM.
    1999 M3/2/5 - Titanium Silver - Track/Weekend Toy


  9. #9
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    Thanks.
    Unfortunately they didn't budge. Neither side in either direction. All I can figure is road salt caused a nice rust bond to happen. I have one more idea, but if it doesn't work I'll just order completes. I think they're like $50 a side. Now I'm afraid the inkers will give me trouble... hopefully the boot helped them stay less rusty.

  10. #10
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    Still need to replace tie rods as time has not allowed it, but I took a video today of a noise I am getting on the passenger side.
    What do you guys' instincts tell you about it? Sway bar links?

    These noises are hard to diagnose, especially solo. I can get it to make this noise, but take the wheel off and go grab on all the components and silence...


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