Wheel Wobble

I have a wobble, oh er mrs, at 60mph when I brake, I have had new discs fitted and I dont believe I have a buckled wheel. The BMW garage are at a loss but say it could be bush's ... another £250 or not. My baby is a 2001 525 desiel sport.
The wife says that if you put your foot on the clutch the wobble goes.

Any help gratefully received.

Right, are you able to isolate which wheel is having this wobbling effect? front or rear?...

there are a number of things that can cause wheel problems, but they differ slightly depending if it is the rear or the front wheels...

If you have basic tools and a bar of some variety you can check the suspension components...

Firstly checking the hubs and wheel bearings....
Jack up the wheel securely, then hold the wheel at 12 o'clock and 6 o'clock, give it a push and a pull and a wobble, if there is movement felt in the wheel you have a problem with the bearing and or hubs...

checking the suspension bushes...
firstly, see here... http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=DL92&mospid=47540&btnr=31_0617&hg=31&fg=05
Number 11 and number 4 are the control arms with a rubber bush at one end and a ball joint on the other....

Now, loosen your wheel bolts, jack up the wheel securely and remove the wheel... (you will not need to go underneath the car at all) now with a bar put pressure on each arm and look at the bushes and balljoints for 'loose' movement.... i should actually meantion also, visually inspect the bushes and balljoints, if the ball joint boots are perished, that arm will need to be replaced and if the bushes are badly cracked then they have had it too...

If i had to guess now, id say it was the bush on number 4 that is perished or soft and that its this causing the wobble... They are quite a common failure..

£250 for a bush is far too much money that you have been quoted!!

If your wobble is coming from the rear, then we will need to discuss this further...

hope this helps...

I also have a wheel wobble at about 40 mph and it goes at about 50 mph , I have had the front wheels balanced and it is still there , mine is a 540 touring

Rogers Rig wrote:I also have a wheel wobble at about 40 mph and it goes at about 50 mph , I have had the front wheels balanced and it is still there , mine is a 540 touring

Hi Roger,
Have you had your tyres changed recently?....

Is there movement in the wheel?.. i.e when you jack that wheel up and hold it at 12 and 6 o'clock and wobble it and push and pull it, does the wheel move at all?

Thanks,

Hi Lee, I have just fitted a new tyre to the front and checked for any movement in the wheel but it all seems ok , I have been told it may be the joints in the tie bar from the steeering box !! any more idea's?

Hi Roger,
Your steering box should be ok, a steering box usually show wear in form of steering play... It could be the ball joints on the tie rods, but if there is no play in the wheel, my guess would be the thrust arm... see here.. http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=DJ62&mospid=47561&btnr=31_0264&hg=31&fg=05

number 5..

When the bushings go soft they give symptoms off such as the 'shimmy' which is felt at a certain speed then disappears after that speed of before it... getting a bar on that arm, then put some leverage on that bush and excessive movement = replacement time,

Check the ball joint aswell and the tie rods, if the rubber boots are crack, split or leaking, then these will need replacing.

Hope this helps.

Thanks again Lee, I am just finding my way around my car, I will check out all the bushes etc now, the symtom is as you say I drive through it but when I slow down on un even roads it starts again,
I just had another puncture today so getting that repaired tomorrow.

Rogers Rig wrote:Thanks again Lee, I am just finding my way around my car, I will check out all the bushes etc now, the symtom is as you say I drive through it but when I slow down on un even roads it starts again,
I just had another puncture today so getting that repaired tomorrow.

not much luck there!

Keep us posted roger...

Thanks,
Lee.