[KD_e92]

Yet another update on my never ending struggle...

Went into a local indy, who had a look through it as a goodwill gesture and advised it might be the steering column joint (intermediate shaft).

I finally had a chance to do some work on it this weekend, and replaced the steering column together with the intermediate shaft to rule them out as they weren't overly expensive. Ironically, the used steering column (from a newer model with less miles) had more play than my original one. The intermediate shaft was also absolutely solid. Still changed both of them in the off-chance that it might make a difference.

Also put in poly roll bar bushes just to rule them out - the originals were still solid too so it wasn't them.

The noise is still there

Only good news at this stage is that there isn't anything else left other than the steering box / power steering unit. The search continues, but I'm nearing the end of the road here

[fatty5000]

These things are a right pain in the hoop sometimes!

That said mine went in yesterday and the driver side drop link was knackered this time, brand new on in March!

Sounds nice again now, but it appears I've sprung an oil leak on the rocker cover gasket and the turbo to IC pipe is barely hanging on so a new is on it's way from Germany. Only £185

[KD_e92]

For anyone chasing the same issue, I have now replaced:

Shock Absorbers
Springs
Top Mounts (twice)
Lower and Upper Wishbone Arms (M3)
Inner and Outer tie / track rods
Droplinks
Anti roll bar bush
Steering Column (with new bolts)
Steering Bellow joint
Steering Rack (with a used unit)

When you move the steering wheel from side to side with the engine off, the clunk is still there. Same as when going over bumps. From reading other forums it sounds like a common steering rack issue in multiple models and with my luck the used replacement rack is also worn in the same way.

At this stage I have given up as literally every suspension / steering component has been replaced. I've accepted the clunk. It is part of who I am now!

[rasa bmw]

maybe the rack itself,im sure the ends have some sort of bush/bearing

[Tambohamilton]

The rack has a tension screw on it, which can be adjusted. This may just be enough to solve your issue

[KD_e92]

Originally Posted by Tambohamilton

The rack has a tension screw on it, which can be adjusted. This may just be enough to solve your issue

This is news to me!

Do you know which if it's either #1, #2 or one of the others?
Apart from 'tightening things up' do you know what effect adjusting the bolt has? (Can it be overdone causing other issues?)

Having spent so much money on the suspension, I'd be both relieved, and furious to find I could have just tightened a screw on the existing rack!

[Tambohamilton]

Ah, sorry, I'm not really familiar with the epas racks. On the hpas ones, I believe the tension screw adjusts the mesh between the rack and pinion gear (column shaft and rack slider). It only takes a fraction of a turn. Tighten it too much and the rack becomes very stiff, especially towards full lock.

[KD_e92]

Originally Posted by Tambohamilton

Ah, sorry, I'm not really familiar with the epas racks. On the hpas ones, I believe the tension screw adjusts the mesh between the rack and pinion gear (column shaft and rack slider). It only takes a fraction of a turn. Tighten it too much and the rack becomes very stiff, especially towards full lock.

Having done some further research (found a ZF rack repair manual) and it is noted as a 'yoke adjustment screw'. There's a repair kit out for the F30 which looks to be experiencing the same issue as me.

Really annoyed I didn't come across this before rebuilding the front end, feels like this is going to solve it... I guess it's important to ask the right questions!

Will update after I give it a try this weekend (maybe on the old rack first) but regardless, thank you for pointing me in the right direction!

[Tambohamilton]

Fingers crossed!

[KD_e92]

Update: Naturally nothing comes easy with this car. ZF / BMW didn't want people messing around with their steering components so the adjustment socket isn't a standard size / shape (has 8 sides instead of 6). Tried a bunch of different sockets I had around the house - an imperial 15/16 fits loosely but as the nut is a soft metal it rounded it off really quickly.

Ordered a "Tool Hub 10250 Electric Power Steering Rack Socket BMW/Mercedes 25mm 8 Point" which looks to be the right size / shape for this rack. Fingers crossed once again!

The adventure continues....

[RajB]

Well I really hope this does solve your issue but agree it will be infuriating to know if it this after you've replaced the complete front end.

[fatty5000]

Be careful. I tried this years ago on an Octavia, did it a bit too tight on the first go and lets just say the test drive was interesting

It did made no difference on the Octy BTW!

[KD_e92]

One final update for anyone searching for mysterious steering noises....

Adjusting the preload solved it.

The rattle / looseness in the front end got significantly worse in the last couple of weeks, to the point I was worried about driving it in case I lost steering.

After tightening the preload (to the point I couldn't turn the steering wheel - as warned previously) it was noticeably less audible (but not gone). Having found the sweet spot I took it for a test drive and to my surprise the noise was just as bad going over uneven surfaces. Brought it back in, up on jacks, and figured that the current clunk is coming from a faulty drop link. Ironic how a brand new (overpriced) Lemforder lasted just over 3 months (under 1k miles).

Either way, with new drop links and preload in the rack tightened she is good as new (and feels like you would want it to feel having spent a small fortune replacing all components with new).

Some images of what the preload mechanism looks like (the head is a soft aluminium and I ended up rounding it off even with the custom adjustment socket - luckily this is the old rack so I could mess around with it). There's service repair kits for the F series as the fault is found in those too, but nothing I could find for the E.

With the adjustment socket and new drop links, it worked out as a £50 fix. Shame the trial and error was so expensive

[jacbo]

i'm glad you managed to fix it!

So to fix this clunk, all you have to do is get a special socket and tighten the preload bolt on the steering rack?

My friend went through the same process of replacing everything on his e92 and still has a clunk so i want to show him this.

[KD_e92]

Originally Posted by jacbo

i'm glad you managed to fix it!

So to fix this clunk, all you have to do is get a special socket and tighten the preload bolt on the steering rack?

My friend went through the same process of replacing everything on his e92 and still has a clunk so i want to show him this.

I did end up doing a happy dance, having chased it for about half a year...

Not sure if I'm allowed to post links, this is the name of the socket: "Tool Hub 10250 Electric Power Steering Rack Socket BMW/Mercedes 25mm 8 Point" - if you google it you'll find it. It's around £20.

If you search 'F30 steering rack clunk' there's a video on Youtube explaining what causes the noise. Since there's no repair kit for the E series I chanced just tightening it instead of replacing the yoke and it worked.

If he has the same noise (when jerking the steering wheel with the engine off / driving over uneven surfaces at low speeds) then this will likely fix it.

Pretty simple job:

Raise both front wheels off ground
Remove bottom guard
Give the head of the bolt a good clean (it collects dirt and will stop the socket from seating properly - it's a really soft aluminium so you don't want to round it off - see images of my old one above).
Turn to tighten - I think I needed an equivalent of 3-4 ratchet clicks, it needs very little adjustment
Turn steering wheel lock to lock a couple of times and make sure there's no sticky points - if the steering is too heavy loosen the bolt a degree or two.
If it's overtightened the steering wheel wont self centre when driving.

I had to do 3 test drives to get it just right (steering felt fine up in the air, but was too heavy even with power steering on the ground).

Hope this saves someone £££s!

[Tambohamilton]

Hell yeah! Love that new car feeling! ...don't worry, it won't be long before you find the next thing to fix

I do hear a lot about the ARB droplinks failing prematurely... Be aware that they're handed (as are the front struts), and will not last long if installed on the wrong side.

Also thanks for those pics - very interesting! I think I might try and tweak my rack next time I'm under there. This leads me to the conclusion that you can test for this issue by popping off a rack boot and feeling for rotational play at the end of the rack.

[rasa bmw]

post 3 ha ha

[fatty5000]

Success 👍

Drop links are terrible on these cars. They last anything from weeks to years 🤦*♂️

[jacbo]

Originally Posted by rasa bmw

post 3 ha ha

Which droplinks do you have now?
Mine need doing soon and was looking at moog.

[rasa bmw]

no idea,,just let garage replace the one that went ,so just be a motor factor one from npa,but im sure the other side is gone now,,they were from autodoc and were febi,,not buy febi again,,although my control arms and radius arms have been finr from febi

[KD_e92]

Originally Posted by rasa bmw

post 3 ha ha

Indeed a step ahead of me

The faulty drop link did sound significantly worse than the steering rack (was noisy regardless of speed or road surface, where the rack only clunked at low speeds). The 'original' noise that slowly grew over time and prompted me to start this unfortunate adventure was the rack though (didn't go away with new drop links)!

Time to sign up to a monthly subscription of ARB drop links to keep it running quiet...

P.S. I do believe my struts and drop links were installed on the correct side as I try to pay attention to what I'm taking out (taking before pictures and lining new parts up to keep myself alive!). Bought a pair of cheap links in my local parts store to keep me going. I've heard good things about adjustable drop links (Either JOM or ProSport), they appear to be good build quality and are cheaper than Lemforders (which are probably factory seconds, I don't see why else would they keep failing so quickly). If the adjustable ones don't last, might try Meyle HD ones next?

[rasa bmw]

my thoughts are over stressed,unless the suspension all round is perfect like it left factory,,then will put more pressures on the drop likns,and as they are the smallest suspension part,anyway tha's what i think,probably bollox ha ha