[gds52]

Update: Dec 23, 2014
Bumping my old thread so that others can also benefit.
After mounting broader/bigger wheels, my steering used to shake.
Finally I got it fixed.
2 weeks back, I got M3 Upper/lower control (thrust) arms installed. These are direct fit.
All that shaking/shimmering in the steering is gone.
The steering feels tight and stable all the times.
I would highly recommend this update if you are going this route.
Parts Cost from Turner Motorsports $387.
Let me know if you need more information.
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2007 E93 328i, 60k miles.
Car was running perfectly fine with stock wheels.
225/45/17 all around.
Base suspension.

Then modified to following.
ADVAN RS 19'' wheels (lighter in weight). Brand new wheels.
General G-MAX AS03 brand new tires.
F: 235/35/19 et 32
R: 265/30/19 et 35

I got the wheels/tires balanced and mounted. No alignment.
Car drivers nicely and no problem with steering either. In fact the steering felt even better.

Then after 10 days, I go back for wheel alignment.
The problem starts after that.
After alignment, the steering shakes at 40-50 MPH. Not very heavily, but if you take your hands of it shakes pretty good. Car pulls to right.

I went again for re-balancing and alignment.
Now aligment feels fine, no pulling to any side.

But the steering still shakes at 40-50 MPH
At higher speeds, it doesnt shake, but I feel some sort of vibration which I never felt before.

The shop (reputed in the area) tells me to uprade the "bushings".
I trust those guys, but how come no problem for 10 days.

Is there a chance that the rim got damaged during test drive?
The road outside the shop is very bad.

Should I go to another shop and get the wheel balanced again in front of my eyes?

Any ideas??

Thanks in advance.

[Yvette]

I would go another shop and request check on wheel. might have been bent.

[bkrM3]

check the wheel for bends, although it would take a heck of a bend for you to feel it like that. balance problems are much more common.

if the "shake" is a left-right shimmy of the steering wheel at moderate street speed ~35 to ~55mph, it definitely could be the front tension strut/upper control arms. They have a hydraulic bushing that fails (leaks) and causes that wheel shimmy. Mine are being replaced monday with upgraded (rubber) bushings (my car just hit 70k miles last weekend).

the shop that's doing mine said they just replaced them on an E93 that had 50k miles, which they found shocking.

if that sounds like your vibration, see this thread: http://www.e90post.com/forums/showth...g+wheel+shimmy

i bought these control arms: http://www.hpashop.com/product.sc?pr...categoryId=175

good luck - see you at KoP soon =)

[bmiller085]

i was under the impression you should always do an alignment whenever wheels are changed. is this true?

[Legion5]

Originally Posted by gds52

2007 E93 328i, 60k miles.
Car was running perfectly fine with stock wheels.
225/45/17 all around.
Base suspension.

Then modified to following.
ADVAN RS 19'' wheels (lighter in weight). Brand new wheels.
General G-MAX AS03 brand new tires.
F: 235/35/19 et 32
R: 265/30/19 et 35

I got the wheels/tires balanced and mounted. No alignment.
Car drivers nicely and no problem with steering either. In fact the steering felt even better.

Then after 10 days, I go back for wheel alignment.
The problem starts after that.
After alignment, the steering shakes at 40-50 MPH. Not very heavily, but if you take your hands of it shakes pretty good. Car pulls to right.

I went again for re-balancing and alignment.
Now aligment feels fine, no pulling to any side.

But the steering still shakes at 40-50 MPH
At higher speeds, it doesnt shake, but I feel some sort of vibration which I never felt before.

The shop (reputed in the area) tells me to uprade the "bushings".
I trust those guys, but how come no problem for 10 days.

Is there a chance that the rim got damaged during test drive?
The road outside the shop is very bad.

Should I go to another shop and get the wheel balanced again in front of my eyes?

Any ideas??

Thanks in advance.

The 3 series is designed for a certain amount of cushioning between the body, suspension, steering, tires and road. If you stiffen up the suspension or change the profile of the tires it will cause the car to want to tramline or follow the groves in the road slightly more than stock, this will make the steering wheel shake when you go over rough or slightly imperfect roads but not when you are driving on perfectly smooth road.

I had this issue with both my 3 series and my friend's mini cooper (steering shaking slightly on imperfect roads at certain speeds) after switching to lower profile tires and lowering springs respectivly.

This problem will only show up between certain speeds for example 30-45 or 45-60, the reason is that if you go to slow it doesn't deflect the steering enough because the car is designed to handle a certain amount of deflection force on the steering without moving (and by modifying it you're actually causing the force the car was designed to cope with to go out of spec) and if you go too fast you glide over the imperfections in the road and the deflections cancel each other out.

To fix the problem try adding some Toe in on your alignment or lowering your tire pressure.

If you are experiencing this issue on smooth and bumpy roads then you have another problem entierly.

The reason you didn't experience this issue before your alignment is that when you install wider tires and wheels and generally move the outer edge of the wheel further away from the center of the car that actually works to counteract the forces on the steering by changing the geometry of your alignment. However, when you re-aligned it, that canceled out the effects of wider wheels and tires.

Hope that helps.

[bmiller085]

^^ That's great information!

Sorry about my post earlier - I apparently didn't see the fact that you went back for an alignment

[apme123]

could be the thrust arm bushings and ball joints are worn out, they are ususally bad by about 50k miles and need replacing

[X-ray man]

I had the same issue with same whee/tire setup. Once the car was realigned the shimmy stopped. Also experienced this vibration on my vw when new 18s went on same issue. The alignment fixed it. I was always told alignment is necessary when messing with wheel setup or suspension. I never believed such minor changes could alter ride so significantly, I'm a believer now.

[N0OS3]

I recently had the same problem with my 20" X5 wheels after putting them onto spacers. The culprit turned out the be the bore size of the front spacers was too large (i ordered them from TMS), making the wheel essentially sit low on the hub causing an uneven rotation. The solution i came up with (because i can't return mounted spacers to TMS) was to wrap aluminum tape (the kind you use for overhead air ducts in houses or offices) around the spacer until the gap of the wheel bore was filled. It took a few test fits, measurements, and break-in periods, but i ended up getting rid of it that way. Your car pulling to the right is definitely something with the alignment that's off... either that or you have a warped wheel.

[gds52]

Originally Posted by bkr335

check the wheel for bends, although it would take a heck of a bend for you to feel it like that. balance problems are much more common.

if the "shake" is a left-right shimmy of the steering wheel at moderate street speed ~35 to ~55mph, it definitely could be the front tension strut/upper control arms. They have a hydraulic bushing that fails (leaks) and causes that wheel shimmy. Mine are being replaced monday with upgraded (rubber) bushings (my car just hit 70k miles last weekend).

the shop that's doing mine said they just replaced them on an E93 that had 50k miles, which they found shocking.

if that sounds like your vibration, see this thread: http://www.e90post.com/forums/showth...g+wheel+shimmy

i bought these control arms: http://www.hpashop.com/product.sc?pr...categoryId=175

good luck - see you at KoP soon =)

Thanks man for the information. This really helps and im relieved now :-)
will go this route.

[gds52]

Originally Posted by bmiller085

^^ That's great information!

Sorry about my post earlier - I apparently didn't see the fact that you went back for an alignment

np man :-) , fellow members chiming in, really helps.

[gds52]

Originally Posted by Legion5

The 3 series is designed for a certain amount of cushioning between the body, suspension, steering, tires and road. If you stiffen up the suspension or change the profile of the tires it will cause the car to want to tramline or follow the groves in the road slightly more than stock, this will make the steering wheel shake when you go over rough or slightly imperfect roads but not when you are driving on perfectly smooth road.

I had this issue with both my 3 series and my friend's mini cooper (steering shaking slightly on imperfect roads at certain speeds) after switching to lower profile tires and lowering springs respectivly.

This problem will only show up between certain speeds for example 30-45 or 45-60, the reason is that if you go to slow it doesn't deflect the steering enough because the car is designed to handle a certain amount of deflection force on the steering without moving (and by modifying it you're actually causing the force the car was designed to cope with to go out of spec) and if you go too fast you glide over the imperfections in the road and the deflections cancel each other out.

To fix the problem try adding some Toe in on your alignment or lowering your tire pressure.

If you are experiencing this issue on smooth and bumpy roads then you have another problem entierly.

The reason you didn't experience this issue before your alignment is that when you install wider tires and wheels and generally move the outer edge of the wheel further away from the center of the car that actually works to counteract the forces on the steering by changing the geometry of your alignment. However, when you re-aligned it, that canceled out the effects of wider wheels and tires.

Hope that helps.

great info. thanks man.
i'll see if i can get those part replaced from the dealership, but i doubt they will do it based on after market wheels. but its worth a try.

[DASHOCKER]

are the wheels hubcentric? if not you will need hubcentric rings.

[gds52]

Originally Posted by DASHOCKER

are the wheels hubcentric? if not you will need hubcentric rings.

This is another interesting point, thanks.
I'm looking at this and searched some Mitsubishi forums with guys installing same wheels as of mine (ADVAN RS) and they are talking about hub centric rings.

[zamboni]

Just got a 12 vert with 850 miles and had a similar problem when the top is down, is this normal?

[gatoracer]

Originally Posted by DASHOCKER

are the wheels hubcentric? if not you will need hubcentric rings.

^ I've read this can be a serious issue, especially if you are using spacers. Make sure the spacers are hub centric. Although your original post did not mention you had spacers.

[ryan stewart]

Originally Posted by bmiller085

i was under the impression you should always do an alignment whenever wheels are changed. is this true?

Its really only requried when you change or suspect damage to a steering/suspension component.

[ryan stewart]

Originally Posted by gatoracer

^ I've read this can be a serious issue, especially if you are using spacers. Make sure the spacers are hub centric. Although your original post did not mention you had spacers.

VERY VERY MUCH SO.

The studs/bolts are only supposed to hold the wheel to the car, they are not made to support the wheel. If you use spacers they must be hubcentric and have a tightly fitting flange. If they are too thin then ditch the spacers and use centering rings (providing the offset allows it).

People get away with running wheels not supported by the hub but its plenty risky.

[bmiller085]

Originally Posted by ryan stewart

Its really only requried when you change or suspect damage to a steering/suspension component.

Thanks! That's good to know.