BMW 3.0CS Front Strut issue

D

Deesta

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Good morning all. I have 17" Alpina replicas with 225/45 tyres all round. Front guards are rolled. Bilstein's all round and updated springs (can't recall the name right now). All was going well however the front right wheel scrubs on the guard. I have measured the height and it's about 10-15mm lower than the passenger side (or left hand side, it's a RHD). The rear ride height is fine. I have tried different springs and shocks and I still have the same issue. When I look at the car from the front it looks like it leaning a bit to the left which makes sense since it's 10-15 mm lower on that side. Could the strut mount bearing need replacing?

Any advice?
 
Are your strut housings the same length? An E12 strut housing will fit in place of the E9 housing and it's about 12mm shorter.

E12
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E3/E9

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They measured the same so while I was there I measured a few other things. It appears that the strut on the Drivers side is about 12 mm further away from the sub frame than on the passenger side. Also the inside wall of the top of the tyre is further away from the outside of the strut on the drivers side.

Given the strut is further away from the sub frame, the tyre would be further away as well causing it to hit the guard, however this doesn't explain why it is 10-15mm lower.

I've probably raised more questions!
 
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That is a pretty big difference from side to side. How is your steering?

I would measure your tie rods and control arms and report back.
 
If the tire is 12mm further from the strut on one side, I can think of 4 possibilities:
- a wheel spacer is being used,
- the wheel offset is different
- the tire size is different
- somehow the hub flange is further. Does the e3 strut have the flange further out?
 
Bmachine said:
If the tire is 12mm further from the strut on one side, I can think of 4 possibilities:
- a wheel spacer is being used,
- the wheel offset is different
- the tire size is different
- somehow the hub flange is further. Does the e3 strut have the flange further out?
Click to expand...

According to Don the front stub axles like to bend over time, and many front strut assemblies are bad. Perhaps the strut with the wheel 12mm closer to the housing is actually the bad one. I would also measure from the rotor instead of the wheel, just to take the wheels out of the equation.
 
Good news; next I would try to switch the wheels and tires from side to side and see if anything changes. Also, look at the top of the struts and see if they appear to be the same. In the US, there were spacers inserted on top of the strut bearings between the bearings and the fender. If you Aussies also had these, and if one were removed but the other were not, this could cause your problem.
 
Teahead makes another good suggestion. Check to see if your wishbones are the same from side to side. Given your description they probably won't be angled the same way in the car up and down, but they should have the same shape. One of mine was bent from a shunt into a curb that happened prior to my ownership.
 
Thanks for the advice so far. It's been a great help. I removed the wheels and put a spirit level on the rotors, the drivers side is +camber a fir bit while the passenger side is negative (I think I have that right, passenger side top leans out). Photo's attached of each side
 

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Have you checked the adjustment on the nut that holds the front rotor and bearing in place?
 
Ohmess said:
Try the check in Picture 9.3 here: http://www.e9coupe.com/tech/autobooks/chapter9/autobooks_manual_096.htm
Click to expand...
Good suggestion. I also removed the rotors and checked the measurements and also the levels. The strut on the drivers side definitely sits out 10-15 mm more than the passenger side. I remeasured the length of the strut again as Mike suggested. It turns out that there is about 10 mm difference in length. Weird thing is that it's 10mm longer on the drivers side. I was thinking maybe the strut bearing might be worn out on the driver side. Has anyone experienced this? My other option is to try another strut housing and see if that makes any difference.
 
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