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Thread: Vibration in '90 535i

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jun 2004
    Location
    Binghamton, NY
    Posts
    61

    Default Vibration in '90 535i

    My 1990 535i has a (fairly light) vibration from about 50 - 65 Mph. I just put new wheels and tires on the car, and that had no effect on the vibration. The vibration is not felt specifically through the steering wheel, rather is is non-specific in nature. It happens in any gear and even in neutral, at the speeds I indicated.

    I am going to replace the upper and lower control arms and sway bar ends as general maintenance, but based on my experience with my '95 530i and my '89 535iA I don't think that is the problem. I am thinking that it may be driveshaft related. I also think that a caliper in the rear may be hanging up slightly, could that be a cause? What do you experts think? Is there anything else I should be looking for?

    Thanks in advance for your help.
    - Hal

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
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    PA
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    5,403

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    Quote Originally Posted by hlenoble
    My 1990 535i has a (fairly light) vibration from about 50 - 65 Mph. I just put new wheels and tires on the car, and that had no effect on the vibration. The vibration is not felt specifically through the steering wheel, rather is is non-specific in nature. It happens in any gear and even in neutral, at the speeds I indicated.

    I am going to replace the upper and lower control arms and sway bar ends as general maintenance, but based on my experience with my '95 530i and my '89 535iA I don't think that is the problem. I am thinking that it may be driveshaft related. I also think that a caliper in the rear may be hanging up slightly, could that be a cause? What do you experts think? Is there anything else I should be looking for?

    Thanks in advance for your help.
    - Hal

    Its got to be the control arm bushings... got with 750i bushings... it shouldn't be driveshaft related as you said it remains shaky when in neutral...

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jan 2004
    Location
    Sydney, Australia
    Posts
    35

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    When you put ur wheels on do they move around a bit on the hub? Because i did the whole bushing and arm thing and had no success till i got hub centric rings for the new wheels.
    Last edited by Julius; 08-19-2004 at 03:03 AM.

  4. #4
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    Dec 2003
    Location
    Lincoln, NE
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    559

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    Just as an FYI, the driveshaft does not stop spinning when in neutral. Vibration in neutral while coasting does not totally rule out the driveshaft, though it is less likely.

  5. #5
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    Feb 2004
    Location
    Minnesota
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    Hal,
    Please let us know whether replacing the control arms and sway bar ends fixes your problem.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jun 2004
    Location
    Binghamton, NY
    Posts
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    Quote Originally Posted by Julius
    When you put ur wheels on do they move around a bit on the hub? Because i did the whole bushing and arm thing and had no success till i got hub centric rings for the new wheels.
    No, the wheels are correctly fitted, and the vibration existed with the original wheels and tires as well. Thanks for the thought.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jun 2004
    Location
    Binghamton, NY
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jon K
    Its got to be the control arm bushings... got with 750i bushings... it shouldn't be driveshaft related as you said it remains shaky when in neutral...
    Jon, I am replacing the upper and lower control arms and sway bar ends next week. I have the parts, complete with the 750i bushings. I did the job a short time ago on my '89 535i and it was fairly simple and the handling improvement was incredible. The '89 front end was in MUCH worse shape than the '90 and didn't have the same vibration, which is why I'm not sure if that will fix the problem

  8. #8
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    PA
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    Quote Originally Posted by hlenoble
    Jon, I am replacing the upper and lower control arms and sway bar ends next week. I have the parts, complete with the 750i bushings. I did the job a short time ago on my '89 535i and it was fairly simple and the handling improvement was incredible. The '89 front end was in MUCH worse shape than the '90 and didn't have the same vibration, which is why I'm not sure if that will fix the problem
    sounds good, I wouldn't be too concerned with the vibration not "feeling" the same as the suspension parts may be in different stages of failure. Good luck with the bushings/control arms, let us know how it goes.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jun 2004
    Location
    Binghamton, NY
    Posts
    61

    Default Still Vibration, Driveshaft?

    Quote Originally Posted by hlenoble
    My 1990 535i has a (fairly light) vibration from about 50 - 65 Mph. I just put new wheels and tires on the car, and that had no effect on the vibration. The vibration is not felt specifically through the steering wheel, rather is is non-specific in nature. It happens in any gear and even in neutral, at the speeds I indicated.

    I am going to replace the upper and lower control arms and sway bar ends as general maintenance, but based on my experience with my '95 530i and my '89 535iA I don't think that is the problem. I am thinking that it may be driveshaft related. I also think that a caliper in the rear may be hanging up slightly, could that be a cause? What do you experts think? Is there anything else I should be looking for?

    Thanks in advance for your help.
    - Hal
    So, I replaced the upper and lower control arms today as well as the sway bar ends. Total job took only 2 hours start to finish - it's nice that I practiced on my '89 535iA about 8 weeks ago...

    BUT, the vibration that I originally posted about still exists. It is not felt specifically through the steering wheel, rather it is felt throughout the car. As the wheel and tires, and most of the front end is new, I am back to my original question regarding the driveshaft. How do I troubleshoot that? What should I be looking for?

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Mar 2004
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    148

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    Are you sure that one of the back wheels aren't bent or out of balance? That would cause a vibration that you would feel through the seat, as opposed to through the steering wheel.
    Mike S.
    1992 535iM black/black
    1997 540iM white/gray
    Retired: 89 535iA, 85 318i


    <<Support your local autobahn, stay out of the left lane!>>

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