'03 330xi rear vibration / SHAKE under throttle after 40 min drive

[SharkmanBMW]

Hello & Happy new Year to all members

Some of you may remember me from the years I had my 540i, I hope you are all still having a blast with the e34

I have been getting some very unusual issues in the last 2 weeks - since it has been below freezing. I do NOT know if the cold is relevant or just coincidence.

'03 330 XI, 5spd, 75k miles, H&R lowering kit - PLEASE note: XI

PROBLEM:
At first the car is perfect in every way.
After 40 or so minutes of highway driving, I get a BIG vibration/shake/pulsing in the rear end of the car UNDER THROTTLE ONLY.

If I rev with clutch in, NO shake, let off the gas at speed, no shake, if I just maintain my spd, it is barely noticeable, BUT, when you hit the pedal 1/3 or more..... BIG shakey, shakey!
It feels like a sort of pulsing, throbbing sort of shake.

The headlights are literally jerking side to side, so it must be the rear end really twitching.
IF you let the car sit, off or at idle for 15 minutes, it seems to "reset" the problem, meaning it goes away and it takes another 20 + for it to start again.

The steering is normal, brakes are normal, and the first 30 minutes are normal.

ANY ideas what this could be??

OR, who may be able to solve this?
Thanks

[Bill R.]

doesn't get that colde here i have no idea, but if i were to take a wild guess i would take a look at the center bearing on the driveshaft and the rubber surround on it... Possibly ice forming on there and when you stop and let it idle it melts off .

Hello & Happy new Year to all members

Some of you may remember me from the years I had my 540i, I hope you are all still having a blast with the e34

I have been getting some very unusual issues in the last 2 weeks - since it has been below freezing. I do NOT know if the cold is relevant or just coincidence.

'03 330 XI, 5spd, 75k miles, H&R lowering kit - PLEASE note: XI

PROBLEM:
At first the car is perfect in every way.
After 40 or so minutes of highway driving, I get a BIG vibration/shake/pulsing in the rear end of the car UNDER THROTTLE ONLY.

If I rev with clutch in, NO shake, let off the gas at speed, no shake, if I just maintain my spd, it is barely noticeable, BUT, when you hit the pedal 1/3 or more..... BIG shakey, shakey!
It feels like a sort of pulsing, throbbing sort of shake.

The headlights are literally jerking side to side, so it must be the rear end really twitching.
IF you let the car sit, off or at idle for 15 minutes, it seems to "reset" the problem, meaning it goes away and it takes another 20 + for it to start again.

The steering is normal, brakes are normal, and the first 30 minutes are normal.

ANY ideas what this could be??

OR, who may be able to solve this?
Thanks

[sal_park]

Hi,

here's my guess, but please remember it's only a guess ! I've not got any experience of E46's or ix's so I could be way off, but it seems to make sense to me:

I have been getting some very unusual issues in the last 2 weeks - since it has been below freezing.

I suspect this is important. Let's assume that the cold weather has caused a dying rubber bush to break further, but NOT totally.

After 40 or so minutes of highway driving

40 minutes - enough time for the exhaust to get the bushes nice and hot. Hot rubber is much more elastic than cold

I get a BIG vibration/shake/pulsing in the rear end of the car UNDER THROTTLE ONLY.

So when you accelerate you put high forces on the drive train bushing - trying to twist it. This partly broken / hot bush can now stretch much more than before allowing the drive train to touch the body or exhaust perhaps ? Anyway something touching something that it shouldn't

IF you let the car sit, off or at idle for 15 minutes, it seems to "reset" the problem, meaning it goes away...

So the rubber cools a bit and becomes stiffer stopping the parts contacting...

...and it takes another 20 + for it to start again.

...and then heat up again, become more elastic and allow some mechanical parts of the drive train to contact under load.

So I think:

• it's one or more broken pieces of rubber
  
• somewhere connected to the drive train (engine mounts / prop rubber / diff support / exhaust hangers etc)

hth


sal

[Ross]

Agree with BillR. Little chance of ice there me thinks, more likely the rubber is firmer when cold as already mentioned.
What does it do under hard throttle? Wump,wump,wump?

[bsell]

Under throttle only you say...that is a tough one.

At what speed does the pulsing happen? Road speed or much higher? I am thinking either a CV or Universal joint has gone dry and gets hot after driving causing the pulsing. So if the pulsing is faster than road speed, I vote for checking the u-joints on the driveshaft. If it happens at something closer to road speed, then look at the cv joints.

The only concern I have about this is usually they 'talk' on deceleration also, just not as loud as under acceleration.

Really, either way, you need to get under the car and check the condition of all your spinning parts. Check the condition of your differential also as the pinion bearing may be going south also.

Brian

[SharkmanBMW]

Hi guys - I REALLY appreciate everyone's time and knowledge


the UPDATE:

As I have said already, it starts off fine, then starts to build up a shake at approx, 40 minutes.
I THOUGHT that once it started, it just got worse and worse unless you stopped.
***********
BUT, I found that once it starts, if I PLAY with the pedal on & off gently, after about 5 times, it is PERFECT as long as I don't let off the throttle, even just a TINY bit.
So, it shakes, I give it gas and it shakes hard, off/on a few times and all of a sudden it is smooth as normal under full throttle all the way to 100+++.
As soon as I ease off the pedal a bit & press again - SHAKE again!

I had concluded I have a dry CV joint in one or more corners and was prepared to redo them, BUT, the fact that it stops totally if I play with gas on & off TOTALLY baffled me! :cry:

Does that make any sense to you guys?

Chris

[SharkmanBMW]

SOLVED


It turns out that the xi issue is resolved by:
Re-greasing the INNER CV joints .

IF you are lucky, regreasing these will solve the prob 100%

If the joints have WORN too much, they may continue to vibrate and the axles must be replaced, which is very $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$.

The only way to know is to regrease properly and test it on a long drive.

BMW must have been using some really shittty grease