Quick question on steering wheel play...

Boosted12a · 06-29-2020, 03:18 PM

I think it is the center that gets adjusted. I still haven't gotten around to trying to adjust mine yet

gIzzE · 06-29-2020, 04:21 PM

Seen loads of posts talking about it, but no one posts the details.

I have done it on an E60 and it was a 17mm wrench on that.
I have an F31 and it is a special tool for that.

The LCI e91 I can't find any info at all. I tried yesterday with a garage full of gear but no joy. I was trying to do it from above and could hardly see it which doesn't help.

ryanful · 08-20-2020, 07:27 PM

Problem solved!

06 e91 325xi LHD automatic 193k kms

The steering free play was bad! Enough slip to cause a motorway wander, but confident feeling while the steering was under load. I was about ready to rebuild the entire front suspension!

I was able to tightened both the bolts (below the joint at the rack, and above the joint to the steering shaft) WITHOUT any disassembly. Both bolts had E10 torx heads. Lower was reachable beside the driver side front wheel using a 6" extension and ratchet turned about 1/4 turn. Upper bolt required an 18" extension turned maybe 3/8 of a turn. . The whole "repair" took less than 10 minutes, with the car idling, and my 13 year old daughter in the driver seat wiggling the steering wheel to check for motion. Simply tightening the bolts solved the problem.

E92William · 08-20-2020, 08:15 PM

I haven't tested how tight the bolts on my xi are but this could be a possibility. However I believe the lower steering joint is actually bad itself as you can see in this video. I'm gonna try what you just did.

Angelcma · 08-21-2020, 08:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by E92William

I haven't tested how tight the bolts on my xi are but this could be a possibility. However I believe the lower steering joint is actually bad itself as you can see in this video. I'm gonna try what you just did.

I have this exact problem. Please keep us updated.

ryanful · 08-21-2020, 07:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Angelcma

Quote:

Originally Posted by E92William

I haven't tested how tight the bolts on my xi are but this could be a possibility. However I believe the lower steering joint is actually bad itself as you can see in this video. I'm gonna try what you just did.

I have this exact problem. Please keep us updated.

It costs nothing to tighten both of the E10 bolts (assuming you have the tools).

Try torquing them down. This has fixed the problem for SO many other users

Fell in love with my e91 steering today! It's amazing that a slightly loose bolt makes such a profound difference.

E92William · 08-21-2020, 08:15 PM

That's what I'm going to be attempting this weekend. However if there's no improvement I will swap in a somewhat good junkyard joint in place and see what happens. Hopefully tightening a bolt solves my issue though

E92William · 08-30-2020, 08:55 PM

I just checked the bolt in my linkage and it was quite tight. I loosened it and I believe it's torqued time 11 foot pounds? Seems low. Either way this is most definitely not the problem. The play is I believe in the steering rack itself as you can see here I have my brother turning the wheel off the center back and forth and nothing is happening from the linkage to the tie rods.

e90yyc · 08-31-2020, 01:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by E92William

I just checked the bolt in my linkage and it was quite tight. I loosened it and I believe it's torqued time 11 foot pounds? Seems low. Either way this is most definitely not the problem. The play is I believe in the steering rack itself as you can see here I have my brother turning the wheel off the center back and forth and nothing is happening from the linkage to the tie rods.

Seems we’ve been twins lately when it comes to the issues we’ve been having

.

I have this exact same issue. I’m 99% certain it’s the rack, though I will be replacing full tie rods within the next month as they’re original and I’ll be doing control arms anyways. Any used replacement rack I buy won’t have tie rods either, so I figure it makes sense.

My rack is also noisy too—almost a groaning/grinding sound. PS pump, reservoir, fluid, etc all new. Actually replaced the PS pump more than once too... So given the issues I’m having with wandering as well as that exact same noise when wiggling the wheel or driving at low speeds, I can’t see there being any other culprit. I too tried to isolate the steering linkage, and the noise seemed to persist. It also didn’t sound like it was coming from the U joint itself either...

So I guess the question is: Are you gonna replace the rack? I shudder thinking about doing that job, but it might be necessary eventually for me

E92William · 08-31-2020, 02:07 PM

I can blame most of the problems this car has had on the xdrive system and it's suspension setup. I don't hate xdrive but I certainly wouldn't recommend anyone buy a car with it unless strictly necessary.

I wouldn't even bother doing tie rods. Mines are tight. When I recorded that my brother was moving the steering wheel and I was feeling at the wheels and tires and nothing moved unless he was moving back and forth off the center of the steering wheel more than 10-20 degrees to either side. I did it myself with him checking too.

It also makes that noise in the rack but I believe it might need a ps fluid change which well I'm definitely not going to invest in now.

When driving on the highway my steering wheel can be turned a bit to the right or to the left while the car is going straight depending on the angle of the road as if there was nothing in the middle of the wheel travel. I'll have to see because this much play doesn't make sense to me.

Wonder if I can replace just the rack input shaft. If I replace the entire rack I'll probably take apart the replacement one and see if I can fit rwd rack internals into it. If so it'd mean I can run an m3 rack ratio on xdrive.

KD_e92 · 10-05-2020, 08:40 AM

I've had a loose steering wheel / clunk in my drivers side when going over slow bumps for a couple of months now and have went through replacing all control arms, drop links, struts, springs, top mounts etc with no luck. Moving on to the steering rack, I found this thread. Will be giving it a try this weekend.

Does anyone know what the official torque spec for those two Torx bolts is? I noticed some users saying that the bolt wasn't loose to begin with, but tightening it further resolved their issue. I'm afraid of stripping the bolt off

Buug959 · 10-05-2020, 09:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KD_e92

I've had a loose steering wheel / clunk in my drivers side when going over slow bumps for a couple of months now and have went through replacing all control arms, drop links, struts, springs, top mounts etc with no luck. Moving on to the steering rack, I found this thread. Will be giving it a try this weekend.

Does anyone know what the official torque spec for those two Torx bolts is? I noticed some users saying that the bolt wasn't loose to begin with, but tightening it further resolved their issue. I'm afraid of stripping the bolt off

I just looked mine up on newTis.info and it says 24Nm. It also says to renew the bolt, retorquing is NOT permitted. I have a 2008 335xi so it may be different than your car. It would be better for you to check with your own vin on newTis.info.

KD_e92 · 10-05-2020, 10:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LemansE90335xi

I just looked mine up on newTis.info and it says 24Nm. It also says to renew the bolt, retorquing is NOT permitted. I have a 2008 335xi so it may be different than your car. It would be better for you to check with your own vin on newTis.info.

This thread keeps on giving. I didn't know such a resource existed! newTis.info states 24Nm on mine also. Better go give it a wiggle before ordering replacement bolts. Fingers crossed they are indeed loose. Thanks for your help!

e90yyc · 10-05-2020, 01:23 PM

My steering shaft bolts were also tight. The low torque spec is correct; they come with threadlocker on the bolts to keep them in place.

E92William : I removed my steering shaft as it appeared to have play in it coming from lower double u-joint. As you probably saw, there’s a ball-and-socket linkage that sits between the two joints. On mine as well as every shaft I found at the junk yard, the rubber boot that protects this linkage was torn and the joint was contaminated.

Once I got the shaft out I cleaned the joint and lubricated it. I also put some anti-seize on the splines @ rack side because removing it was a pain in the ass and I’ll be replacing all this stuff soonish anyway.

After reinstalling, the clunking/clicking from my wheel when on center is gone. The rack is still noisy of course, and the jury is still out on whether the car still wanders on the highway.

200,000 club · 10-08-2020, 05:16 PM

There is a bit of play in my steering column after I refreshed my suspension and got an alignment. When I turn the wheel side to side quickly, I hear a clacking sounds every left turn. Not sure what it is, but it seems to be coming from the upper steering column, will give an update soon

Angelcma · 10-10-2020, 10:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 200,000 club

There is a bit of play in my steering column after I refreshed my suspension and got an alignment. When I turn the wheel side to side quickly, I hear a clacking sounds every left turn. Not sure what it is, but it seems to be coming from the upper steering column, will give an update soon

Thanks man, please keep us updated

E92William · 10-10-2020, 11:34 AM

This seems to be a trend in cars I buy lol the e46 I just got has also play in the steering wheel though not as much as my e92.

200,000 club · 10-16-2020, 12:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by E92William

This seems to be a trend in cars I buy lol the e46 I just got has also play in the steering wheel though not as much as my e92.

Yea I know the e46 has issues with the steering shaft guibo, I didnt know the e90s has similar problems

E92William · 10-16-2020, 08:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 200,000 club

Quote:

Originally Posted by E92William

This seems to be a trend in cars I buy lol the e46 I just got has also play in the steering wheel though not as much as my e92.

Yea I know the e46 has issues with the steering shaft guibo, I didnt know the e90s has similar problems

If only the e90 had just a replaceable guibo lol. I honestly haven't looked into the issue at all but I think being RWD even if the e46 needed a rack it would be much easier

vladskies · 10-16-2020, 09:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LemonD

Anyone know how difficult / involved it is to change the steering rack on 330i E90 auto?

Would I have to drop the subframe? Gulp.

It looks like this is my problem, not trackrod ends, not suspension bushes and not column - they are all tight - not much else left... Can't yet check the inner trackrod ends (I will) but probably unlikely.

Thanks CharleyBrown, that is just what I did with a friend. Nice and clear pic!

Take a look at that video to give you an idea

Btw if anyone has a cheap steering rack from a part out they got sitting around with lower then 100k miles then please PM I need a rack and pinion

200,000 club · 10-18-2020, 10:24 PM

Does anyone rebuild/remanufacture e90 steering racks?

gIzzE · 10-19-2020, 04:05 AM

That play looks more like wear in the rack itself, have you actually adjusted the preload on the rack yet?

That would be my first port of call.

Turn it no more than 1/8th or a turn each time, if you go too far the wheel won;'t centre itself as you come out of corners, dangerous.

However, that is what the pre load adjuster is therefore.

06-29-2020, 03:18 PM	#67
Boosted12a Second Lieutenant 68 Rep 210 Posts Drives: BMW 335i x Join Date: Jun 2019 Location: Va iTrader: (0)	I think it is the center that gets adjusted. I still haven't gotten around to trying to adjust mine yet
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06-29-2020, 04:21 PM	#68
gIzzE Major General 363 Rep 5,984 Posts Drives: F11 + 911 C4 Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Norfolk, UK. iTrader: (2)	Seen loads of posts talking about it, but no one posts the details. I have done it on an E60 and it was a 17mm wrench on that. I have an F31 and it is a special tool for that. The LCI e91 I can't find any info at all. I tried yesterday with a garage full of gear but no joy. I was trying to do it from above and could hardly see it which doesn't help.
	Appreciate 0 Quote

08-20-2020, 07:27 PM	#69
ryanful Second Lieutenant 51 Rep 200 Posts Drives: 16 X5,06 e91 325ix,03 Mini R50 Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Vancouver iTrader: (2) Garage List 2016 BMW X5 xDrive3 ... [0.00] 2006 BMW 325xiT WAGON [0.00] 2009 BMW 128i Conve ... [0.00]	Problem solved! 06 e91 325xi LHD automatic 193k kms The steering free play was bad! Enough slip to cause a motorway wander, but confident feeling while the steering was under load. I was about ready to rebuild the entire front suspension! I was able to tightened both the bolts (below the joint at the rack, and above the joint to the steering shaft) WITHOUT any disassembly. Both bolts had E10 torx heads. Lower was reachable beside the driver side front wheel using a 6" extension and ratchet turned about 1/4 turn. Upper bolt required an 18" extension turned maybe 3/8 of a turn. . The whole "repair" took less than 10 minutes, with the car idling, and my 13 year old daughter in the driver seat wiggling the steering wheel to check for motion. Simply tightening the bolts solved the problem. Attached Images
	Appreciate 1 e90yyc2425.00 Quote

08-20-2020, 08:15 PM	#70
E92William Banned 1998 Rep 2,026 Posts Drives: 2008 E92 328xi Join Date: Nov 2019 Location: Miami iTrader: (0) Garage List 2008 BMW 328xi [0.00]	I haven't tested how tight the bolts on my xi are but this could be a possibility. However I believe the lower steering joint is actually bad itself as you can see in this video. I'm gonna try what you just did.
	Appreciate 0 Quote

08-21-2020, 08:15 PM	#73
E92William Banned 1998 Rep 2,026 Posts Drives: 2008 E92 328xi Join Date: Nov 2019 Location: Miami iTrader: (0) Garage List 2008 BMW 328xi [0.00]	That's what I'm going to be attempting this weekend. However if there's no improvement I will swap in a somewhat good junkyard joint in place and see what happens. Hopefully tightening a bolt solves my issue though
	Appreciate 0 Quote

08-30-2020, 08:55 PM	#74
E92William Banned 1998 Rep 2,026 Posts Drives: 2008 E92 328xi Join Date: Nov 2019 Location: Miami iTrader: (0) Garage List 2008 BMW 328xi [0.00]	I just checked the bolt in my linkage and it was quite tight. I loosened it and I believe it's torqued time 11 foot pounds? Seems low. Either way this is most definitely not the problem. The play is I believe in the steering rack itself as you can see here I have my brother turning the wheel off the center back and forth and nothing is happening from the linkage to the tie rods. Attached Images
	Appreciate 0 Quote

08-31-2020, 02:07 PM	#76
E92William Banned 1998 Rep 2,026 Posts Drives: 2008 E92 328xi Join Date: Nov 2019 Location: Miami iTrader: (0) Garage List 2008 BMW 328xi [0.00]	I can blame most of the problems this car has had on the xdrive system and it's suspension setup. I don't hate xdrive but I certainly wouldn't recommend anyone buy a car with it unless strictly necessary. I wouldn't even bother doing tie rods. Mines are tight. When I recorded that my brother was moving the steering wheel and I was feeling at the wheels and tires and nothing moved unless he was moving back and forth off the center of the steering wheel more than 10-20 degrees to either side. I did it myself with him checking too. It also makes that noise in the rack but I believe it might need a ps fluid change which well I'm definitely not going to invest in now. When driving on the highway my steering wheel can be turned a bit to the right or to the left while the car is going straight depending on the angle of the road as if there was nothing in the middle of the wheel travel. I'll have to see because this much play doesn't make sense to me. Wonder if I can replace just the rack input shaft. If I replace the entire rack I'll probably take apart the replacement one and see if I can fit rwd rack internals into it. If so it'd mean I can run an m3 rack ratio on xdrive.
	Appreciate 0 Quote

10-05-2020, 08:40 AM	#77
KD_e92 New Member 12 Rep 27 Posts Drives: 2008 e92 330d Join Date: Oct 2018 Location: Belfast iTrader: (0)	I've had a loose steering wheel / clunk in my drivers side when going over slow bumps for a couple of months now and have went through replacing all control arms, drop links, struts, springs, top mounts etc with no luck. Moving on to the steering rack, I found this thread. Will be giving it a try this weekend. Does anyone know what the official torque spec for those two Torx bolts is? I noticed some users saying that the bolt wasn't loose to begin with, but tightening it further resolved their issue. I'm afraid of stripping the bolt off Attached Images
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10-05-2020, 01:23 PM	#80
e90yyc Art Collector 2425 Rep 3,448 Posts Drives: 2007 328xi (GM-delete 6MT) Join Date: Feb 2018 Location: Canada iTrader: (0)	My steering shaft bolts were also tight. The low torque spec is correct; they come with threadlocker on the bolts to keep them in place. E92William : I removed my steering shaft as it appeared to have play in it coming from lower double u-joint. As you probably saw, there’s a ball-and-socket linkage that sits between the two joints. On mine as well as every shaft I found at the junk yard, the rubber boot that protects this linkage was torn and the joint was contaminated. Once I got the shaft out I cleaned the joint and lubricated it. I also put some anti-seize on the splines @ rack side because removing it was a pain in the ass and I’ll be replacing all this stuff soonish anyway. After reinstalling, the clunking/clicking from my wheel when on center is gone. The rack is still noisy of course, and the jury is still out on whether the car still wanders on the highway. __________________ When I'm dead, just throw me in the trash.
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10-08-2020, 05:16 PM	#81
200,000 club Private 28 Rep 77 Posts Drives: BMW e90 328i 6MT Join Date: Oct 2019 Location: North Carolina iTrader: (0)	There is a bit of play in my steering column after I refreshed my suspension and got an alignment. When I turn the wheel side to side quickly, I hear a clacking sounds every left turn. Not sure what it is, but it seems to be coming from the upper steering column, will give an update soon
	Appreciate 0 Quote

10-10-2020, 11:34 AM	#83
E92William Banned 1998 Rep 2,026 Posts Drives: 2008 E92 328xi Join Date: Nov 2019 Location: Miami iTrader: (0) Garage List 2008 BMW 328xi [0.00]	This seems to be a trend in cars I buy lol the e46 I just got has also play in the steering wheel though not as much as my e92.
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10-18-2020, 10:24 PM	#87
200,000 club Private 28 Rep 77 Posts Drives: BMW e90 328i 6MT Join Date: Oct 2019 Location: North Carolina iTrader: (0)	Does anyone rebuild/remanufacture e90 steering racks?
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10-19-2020, 04:05 AM	#88
gIzzE Major General 363 Rep 5,984 Posts Drives: F11 + 911 C4 Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Norfolk, UK. iTrader: (2)	That play looks more like wear in the rack itself, have you actually adjusted the preload on the rack yet? That would be my first port of call. Turn it no more than 1/8th or a turn each time, if you go too far the wheel won;'t centre itself as you come out of corners, dangerous. However, that is what the pre load adjuster is therefore.
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