Hi, i have a 99 323i, i am having problems with a severe vibration from the car, it seems to happen at speed, from about 70mph but lately happening at a slower speed aswell, the steering wheel shakes and car vibrates badly, i have today replaced the whole control arm bushings, took the car out got it up to speed and its still doing it, should i replace ball joints? Could that be the problem? How can i tell if ball joints are worn and what damage to the car could happen if i dont replace them?

Thanks for any help you can give

Well, I'm not mechanic, but perhaps a lug nut(s) on one of your wheels has come loose? Otherwise I dont know much about the suspention setup, therefore I dont want to give you any info that may lead to you replacing a part that doesnt need it or wrecking somthing and creating a bigger problem.

Sorry, I dont know about ball joints very much.

It sounds like your alignment might be off. If you haven't already, get the alignment checked, it can cause a ton of vibration, even if it is barely off. It can also prematurely wear down your tires, and even hurt miliage. If the alignment is it, they might be able to tell you when you go to get the aligned.

Hi the alignment is fine i had it checked before i replaced the control arm, should i have it checked again now since ive changed them? They are new wheels and tyres that i bought a few weeks ago and havent noticed any unusual wear on them

Check that your wheels are balanced properly.

Hi the alignment is fine i had it checked before i replaced the control arm, should i have it checked again now since ive changed them? They are new wheels and tyres that i bought a few weeks ago and havent noticed any unusual wear on them

Yes. Anytime you take the wheels off, you should have your alignment rechecked. With new tires, control arms, and the like, if your wheels are aligned and you still have problems with vibration, it could be something else other than steering.

What else could cause this vibration then? Im tearing my hair out trying to think of what it could be and is it safe to be using the car especially with the kids in and the wife nagging me to get it fixed! Any ideas what else it could be??

i`ve got a 2000 323i....also had vibrations,once-cuz my rims were bent,and last week because of my brake caliper.....it`s pretty east to determine of its a caliper or not......just simply feel your rims after u get off highway......one of my rims was just on FIRE!!!

Umm, it could be the wheel alignment, but it also could be something as simple as tire wear on one side (which usually comes from bad alignment)...
Check out both, but don't hold my word for it.
There is a lot of stuff that might cause vibration at higher speeds...

What else could cause this vibration then? Im tearing my hair out trying to think of what it could be and is it safe to be using the car especially with the kids in and the wife nagging me to get it fixed! Any ideas what else it could be??

1. Tell your wife and kids they are riding around in a BMW, they can suck it up and deal with the vibrations for a bit while you take your time (and money) to fix it.
2. As Killa stated, it could very well be uneven tire wear caused by bad alignment.
3. It could also be, as Ukranian stated, problems with the pads rubbing.
4. It may also be problems with your suspension system, not sure where, but somewhere in there.

So, what do I suggest?

In my humblest, take it to a tire place, a reputable one you trust. Buy four brand new tires, and have them ballance and align your wheels. If that doesn't solve it, you can either take it to a dealership or a mechanic, again one that you trust, and have them take a look at it.

I have a question to you Mark.
Does the vibration get more violent as you brake trying to slow down at high speeds? (60+ mph)

If yes, I would have to say that if it's not the alignment, or tire wear, then you will need to check the suspension out, like Cass said.
Check the springs out yourself, because those you can check without much hassle.
If they seem fine, there is nothig left in my mind that could be wrong besides something a little deeper in the suspension.
Something is either loose, or even worse, broken.
I would try to get that checked out faster rather than later, for the risk of doing more damage over time.

Thats what I was thinking with the springs. They could be getting a little on the old side, which would translate vibration into the vehicle. Question...has the car ever been in a nasty accident?

Hi, in answer to your questions no it doesnt get any worse when breaking, and to my knowledge it hasnt been involved in any accidents, ive owned the car 2 years nearly and ive never had an accident in it, i know it has been modified, whoever owned it before has had the suspension lowered and everything looks pretty new to me under there, theres even the the sticker with the private licence plate of the previous owner on it still stuck on the suspension parts, whoever had it before me spent alot of money on it modifying it, it has alot of extras on it that werent factory standard i know. Oh well looks like ill be stripping the thing out again at the weekend and taking another look, the next step is change the disks although they are new anyway. Heres a rundown of what ive done to the vehicle in the last 3 months: New tyres and alloy wheels, new brakes, disks and pads. Balanced, tracked, new control arm bushings, that was a very easy job to do in my opinion, new radiator header tank as the other one split on me 2 weeks ago and steam was everywhere, need to fix power steering have a leak underneath think it might be due to a split pipe, just general wear and tear on a car thats 8 or 9 years old i guess

Hmm, though it might "look" alright when you take a glance yourself, there might still be something wrong there.
I would really take it to a mechanic, and see what he can come up with for an answer as to why it might do that.

I think I might know where your problem is, but it depends on your next answer. Have you had this problem before, or is it fairly recent?

I would guess it's recent since he stated that he had owned the car for about 2 years, and never had a problem with it, nor been in any accidents, Rob.
I could be wrong, though. It might have been an ongoing problem that just got worse over time for all I know.

What you got in mind though Rob?

Hi no its been fairly recent, when i say recent though i mean i first noticed it about a month or so ago but i have just got round to doing something about it, might be a little longer than that but certainly no longer than month and a half

1. Shoddy install job on the part of the previous owner. Parts were put together poorly, starting to come undone or loosen.
2. Shoddy parts. Much like the "Performance Cross Drilled or Slotted Rotors" that you get off eBay, really just refaced and drilled stock brakes. I'm thinking its nothing professional, just done up to look good, really some cut springs or cheap ass eBay stuff.

It could be a combo of both, though, seeing as maybe a shoddy install is eventually starting to come apart, or bad parts are braking down. I don;t know how many "lowered" rides I've been in that have felt like a rickety ass old rollercoaster because it was just some cut springs or cheap ass parts. I'm leaning towards this being the big problem.

I would say before you spend anymore cash, get the springs/shocks looked at, and possibly go back to the OEM parts if discovered to be the problem. I would have a professional look at it, see if you can get an estimate.

*EDIT AFTER SEEING YOUR POST*
I'm still thinking its the suspension. Have it looked at by a professional, and if thats not it, they should be able to tell you whats going on deeper in the set up.

well you know i was thinking that maybe it was the brake disk because the ones i bought were just cheap ones from my local car supply store, i was thinking that maybe under the heat they are just not good enough and may have warped? Maybe i need to get the cross drilled ones upgraded ones that can stand the pace that its put through?

1. Take the car to a professional garage, and have them look at it before you spend anymore money. For all you know, you could be chasing down a problem that's an easy cheap fix. This should be your first priority. Don't dive in just trying to fix everything at once. Find your problem first.

2. Unless you track the car on a bi-weekly basis and drive far more than the piss out of it, then your stock brakes are just fine. You do not need drilled or slotted rotors for the street, and if you do, then your driving harder than I do.

I still think its in your aftermarket suspension. Get that looked at first. If that isn't it, then it could be the brakes. But I really think the springs and shocks are your big problem first.

*EDIT AFTER SEEING YOUR POST*
I'm still thinking its the suspension. Have it looked at by a professional, and if thats not it, they should be able to tell you whats going on deeper in the set up.

That's what I was thinking the whole time...
I would say, like I said before - get it checked out, and see what the mechanic has to tell you.

ok ill take a look at it, im pretty good with fixing cars myself just this one had me stumped, never come across anything like this before in any of the cars ive owned and ive owned a few from range rovers to this bmw, ive re-built engines and basically rebuilt every part of a car in my time but like i said this has me stumped! If i cant find the prob though ill take it to the mechanic, i know a good bmw specialist who used to work for bmw as their senior technician, he is a little pricey though so thats why id like to check things out myself before calling him in