Wheel Bearings

[willisssteve0]

Hey guys the owner of wicked e30 318is coupe have a little problem though

Im thinking that the problem is the front tapered wheel bearings but im not 100%

The problem started when i got 4 new tires and the traking repositioned

at speeds over 60 miles an hour i get a major vibration through the car and when driving slow the steering wheel rocks a couple cm front left to right

Also when driving at speed ie country roads and under braking not particulary heavy the car becomes very nervous and difficult to control

i need to get this fixed but funds are tight at the moment so want to make sure i know the exact problem before i start speending money on unessisary things??

any ideas? all feed back appreciated!

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[sam325is]

sounds light the wheel balancing is wrong

[willisssteve0]

yer but when driving at 20 there is rocking in the wheel at that speed i would not have thought that would be viscious enough to create that much play

[hartgefan]

sounds well dodgy mate,i would be checking the tightness of the wheel bolts and cleaning the hub faces,it could be the wheel is not flush on the hub.if not that the tyre company have bent a steering rod or something.good luck

[willisssteve0]

yer it is they were messing around with the steering wheel with the tracking but im know the wheel bolts are fine cause i checked them?? and the wheels are perfectly flush though there does seem to be a little play in the front wheels not up and down but side to side without the steering wheel moving???

[ian332isport]

Im thinking that the problem is the front tapered wheel bearings

Not on an E30 it won't be. E30 front (and rear) wheel bearings are not of the taper design, and cannot be adjusted. If it is the bearings, you have to replace the complete front hub (comes with new bearings already pressed in).

Ian.

[willisssteve0]

i know the front wheel bearings are tapered ones i have already changed them a year ago and had the hubs off???

[ian332isport]

i know the front wheel bearings are tapered ones i have already changed them a year ago and had the hubs off???

I can assure you they're not.

[agreen]

willisssteve0 wrote:
i know the front wheel bearings are tapered ones i have already changed them a year ago and had the hubs off???


I can assure you they're not.

Hmmm i know i will ask for help when someone gives it to me i will call them a liar

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do ... g=31&fg=10

Now do you see . ?

[willisssteve0]

this is what my front wheel bearings are similar too the back ones are pressed!!!

[agreen]

this is what my front wheel bearings are similar too the back ones are pressed!!!

Well then you dont have an is with 51mm struts.

[willisssteve0]

well weather my front hubs are different from other 318 is coupes im not sure but i can garentee you that they are tappered cause i bought and fitted them myself but thats not really helping me with the problem i have looked at the bearings and they seem fine and after less than a years use i would bloody hope so i know the hubs are flush against the wheel is there anything that could be wrong with the steering column or the traking rods that could cause this?

its very nervous im gonna end up killing someone or worse myself

[Ant]

What wheels are you running ?

low speed vibration/rocking sounds like an egg shaped tyre, or a wheel not centred correctly on the hub.

FYI, I've not seen anything other than the OE ball bearing races installed in BMWs, and thats in 16 years or so of daily spannering.

not saying you're "wrong" but its certainly oddball for defo.

[agreen]

FYI, I've not seen anything other than the OE ball bearing races installed in BMWs, and thats in 16 years or so of daily spannering.

not saying you're "wrong" but its certainly oddball for defo.

I would be slightly more worried about why my "is" has the wrong bearings in the hubs or wrong hub or wrong struts for that matter ?

If ant aint seen it im sure they dont have them .

An "is" deffo does not, what year is it any pics ?

[willisssteve0]

okay well whether i have the wrong bearings fitted then im gonna find i think the hubs might be different my brother owned the car before me and i know it has uprated discs and calipers but thought the hubs were standard though there was no probblem like this before the car had the traking done???

[willisssteve0]

oh yer its 1990 september

[agreen]

Dont know about the hubs but the car looks

but those mirrors looool

[willisssteve0]

I think im just gonna go and get the front bearings changed?

[jone23]

Are they Alpina reps? I don't know if they need spiggot rings but i spent months trying to track down a vibration and it turned out i had the wrong sized spiggot rings... Basically, the wheel isnt centered on the hub.

Also, as someone already said, check your new tyres are actually round.

[agreen]

AV3?

[willisssteve0]

okay checked the tyres they seem good and i had my mate make sure they were balanced i got all the sprigot rings with the alpinas and they seem pretty tight fit so i dont think there is a problem there but i have just noticed a bit of play in the track rod end ball joint?

[willisssteve0]

AV3 they do the body work kits!

[Martinaston]

Double check the tracking, sounds like the toe in is set wrong.