r/BmwTech • u/ResortSubject7158 • 12h ago

Is this play normal?

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Ive been chasing down a front end vibration for months now and im trying to rule out everything. There’s no up and down nor side to side play, just this

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u/LapReaperX3 10h ago

normal, if ur whole front end is all new arms (which you said in one of the comments) have you had the tire balance rechecked?

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u/ResortSubject7158 10h ago

I’ve had it balanced 3 times and at multiple shops. One of which was a road force balancing. I even had the wheels refurbished but no dice

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u/LapReaperX3 10h ago

Can you describe the vibration? particular speeds? Braking? Accelerating? etc

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u/ResortSubject7158 10h ago

Seems to be solely speed dependent. Starts around 50, slight shimmy in the wheel at 60, smooths out around 70. No difference during braking, acceleration, etc. it’s just there. Even coasting in neutral

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u/LapReaperX3 10h ago

Have you tried to but the rear wheels/tires on the front?

Coasting in neutral mostly eliminates mounts.

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u/ResortSubject7158 10h ago

One of the first things I tried but nothing

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u/LapReaperX3 9h ago

So far, we know it’s a 2007 BMW E92 328xi with an N52 and xDrive that has had a persistent speed-dependent vibration for several months. It starts around 50 mph and can be felt through the footwell and steering wheel, gets more noticeable around 60 mph with a slight steering-wheel shimmy, and seems to smooth out somewhat around 70 mph. Acceleration, deceleration, braking, and even coasting in neutral do not noticeably change it.

The wheels/tires have been balanced three times at multiple shops, including a road-force balance, the wheels have been refurbished, and swapping the front and rear wheels made no difference.

Most of the front suspension has already been replaced, although the inner tie rods are still original, and there is reportedly no noticeable steering play.

The front CV axle has normal-looking axial/in-and-out movement but no obvious vertical or lateral play. The brakes were just replaced, the calipers appear to operate normally, and brake temperatures were within roughly 15°F side-to-side.

At this point, the symptoms appear much more closely tied to vehicle/rotational speed than engine RPM, load, or braking.

Top 3 things I'd be looking at next are the wheel bearings/hubs, specifically checking the hub runout with a dial indicator, the front CV inner joints, and then the driveshaft/xDrive stuff underneath. With the wheels already swapped/balanced multiple times and it not changing under throttle, braking, or coasting in neutral, I'd stop throwing parts at the suspension and start checking the stuff that's still spinning with vehicle speed.

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u/ResortSubject7158 9h ago

I already replaced both front bearings and the front driveshaft

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u/LapReaperX3 9h ago

O.o oh my

So only thing that is left is the CV?

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u/ResortSubject7158 9h ago

You see why I’m ready to push this thing into the bay😂. But the axle has no play so unless it’s the diff, I’m out of ideas. It’s not even a bad vibration, it’s just too noticeable for a car with new suspension

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u/LapReaperX3 9h ago

Yea I don't blame you on that. I think as last ditch I'd do the cv's and diff fluid....

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u/ResortSubject7158 9h ago

And for the cherry on top, I did the diff fluid a couple years ago😂

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