# 2003 540 vibration problem



## jun (Oct 10, 2002)

I just got my 2003 540 about 500+ miles ago. I have the vibration problem at 60+mph. I took it to the dealer last 10/20. They rebalanced all 4 tires. They also lowered the tire pressure to 30 and 33. It never solved anything. A tech then drove the car with me as a passenger. As soon as he hit 60, he noticed right away the vibration. I will be taking my car back to the dealer tomorrow, 10/23.

Anybody out there have the same problem? What are the possible solutions to this? It is very frustrating to buy a 50k+ car and have this problem.


----------



## AF (Dec 21, 2001)

I just went through a VERY simliar problem with my wife's brand new Volvo XC90 so I know exactly how you feel. That thing cost me $45k . . . I was extremely frusterated

My first step was to have all the tires rebalanced by the Hunter 9700 which helped since every wheel was slightly off balance but the overall car still had a slight vibration . . . 

2 things ended up fixing it . . .

1) Beleive it or not by the time the car hit 850 to 1000 miles the car smoothed out a lot. I seriously think the car needed to break in because at first with all the new parts, they needed to break in to each other. I have had a lot of new cars and never expereinced anything like this. Also for the record I drove the exact same truck with 8 miles and it drove exactly like our's did, in fact it vibrated much worse . . .

2) the parking brake cable needed to be replaced, it seems to have gotten kinked up slightly and cause the parking brake to still stay slightly engaged. You would have no idea since the brake light was out and it seemed to be completely off yet I played with the Brake and found that the car got smoother afterwards. I was at the point I wouldn't engage the parking brake but you can't go around and not use one, also sometimes I noticed a burning smell but it was very slight so I wasn't sure if it were the new car burning off all the cr*p smell or the emergency brake, nmeanwhile they are actually changing the cable as I type this . . .


Anyway I know these are totally different vehicles but it just goes to show you that strange vibrations can come from anywhere on a car . . .


----------



## jun (Oct 10, 2002)

*also, tech wrote in his worksheet..*

because my 540a has the sports package, it will never be free from vibration because of the suspension and the big wheels and tires. I told the advisor that my previou car, a 2001 330ci, have bigger wheels(18x8.5 BBS) and a lowered suspension with Koni shocks and it didn't have any vibration. The advisor then told me, it's a different car. So now, it is OK to drive a more expensive car and have vibration because it is a different car.


----------



## AF (Dec 21, 2001)

jun said:


> because my 540a has the sports package, it will never be free from vibration because of the suspension and the big wheels and tires. I told the advisor that my previou car, a 2001 330ci, have bigger wheels(18x8.5 BBS) and a lowered suspension with Koni shocks and it didn't have any vibration. The advisor then told me, it's a different car. So now, it is OK to drive a more expensive car and have vibration because it is a different car.


There is no way that is correct . . . keep on it, they told me my wife's truck was normal until I pursued it by going back over and over again

When you had the the tires balanced, did they use a Hunter 9700 and even if they did, they don't always check to see if the wheel is straigth, if the tire is out of round or the road force . . . it can be anyone of these factors

One thing you might want to try is taking your spare and replacing it with one wheel at a time and see if you notice any improvement. Maybe you can pinpoint it yourself.

Did they check the control arms I don't know if this is an issue with the E39 like it was with the E46 but it can cause a vibration ?

When you say a vibration, is it thorughout the entire car or just the steering wheel ?


----------



## jun (Oct 10, 2002)

AF330i said:


> There is no way that is correct . . . keep on it, they told me my wife's truck was normal until I pursued it by going back over and over again
> 
> When you had the the tires balanced, did they use a Hunter 9700 and even if they did, they don't always check to see if the wheel is straigth, if the tire is out of round or the road force . . . it can be anyone of these factors
> 
> ...


The advisor told me that they use the Hunter 9700 and that BMW mandates them to use it.

My spare is of a a different size from the wheels that are mounted even though it is a full size spare. The salesman told me that it is because when the e39 were designed in the mid 90's, the 18 inch wheels were not an option then.

The steering wheel, the gas pedal and the entire(at least the front)floor board vibrate.


----------



## AF (Dec 21, 2001)

jun said:


> The advisor told me that they use the Hunter 9700 and that BMW mandates them to use it.
> 
> My spare is of a a different size from the wheels that are mounted even though it is a full size spare. The salesman told me that it is because when the e39 were designed in the mid 90's, the 18 inch wheels were not an option then.
> 
> The steering wheel, the gas pedal and the entire(at least the front)floor board vibrate.


Jun . . . I am telling you it really doesn't sound like you are doing enough on your part to make sure they checked the car out thoroughly . . . you need to tell them you want the report from the Hunter 9700 machine (it has the ability to print reports) and ask them to check out EVERYTHING I specified above. To check the other things I specified it requires some other additional steps which most mechanics won't do unless pushed. Beleive it or not the whole balancing process takes 45 to 60 minutes if done correctly.

If you want this problem fixed, your going to have to do some legwork yourself . . .

Another solution might be to find a independent tire place that has the Hunter 9700 and ask them to check out each wheel and tire.

My dealer shrugged me off twice with the Volvo and until I started to do the legwork myself, nothng was going to get it solved.

That whole 18" designed in the 90's answer is ridiculous.

About the spare, I am a little confused . . . is it one of those spares that don't have the same exact tire your car came with and it's for emergency's only ?


----------



## jun (Oct 10, 2002)

AF330i said:


> Jun . . . I am telling you it really doesn't sound like you are doing enough on your part to make sure they checked the car out thoroughly . . . you need to tell them you want the report from the Hunter 9700 machine (it has the ability to print reports) and ask them to check out EVERYTHING I specified above. To check the other things I specified it requires some other additional steps which most mechanics won't do unless pushed. Beleive it or not the whole balancing process takes 45 to 60 minutes if done correctly.
> 
> If you want this problem fixed, your going to have to do some legwork yourself . . .
> 
> ...


The car will be back in the dealer tomorrow morning. I definitely will them what needs to be looked at; lug nut torque, wheel condition, tire condition, alignment. If nothing good happens after tomorrow, I'll try to see an independent shop that I have used in the past. This shop has a hunter 9700 machine.

The spare is one of BMW's full size wheel/tire combo from another variation of the 5 series. It is just not the same wheel/tire that I have on the car. I believe all 540 sport models have this same spare wheel.


----------



## possessed007 (May 26, 2003)

2 things come to my head....................

1- Wheels have been bent on the inside usually have them checked. (Most probably this.........did you hit a pothole or anything?)

2- You tires might have a flat spot.


----------



## jun (Oct 10, 2002)

possessed007 said:


> 2 things come to my head....................
> 
> 1- Wheels have been bent on the inside usually have them checked. (Most probably this.........did you hit a pothole or anything?)
> 
> 2- You tires might have a flat spot.


Car only has about 570 miles. I noticed the vibration the first day I got the car.

My car will be at the dealer tomorrow for the second time in a week.


----------



## possessed007 (May 26, 2003)

jun said:


> Car only has about 570 miles. I noticed the vibration the first day I got the car.
> 
> My car will be at the dealer tomorrow for the second time in a week.


It doesn't matter how many miles you have if you hit a pothole than it's dented. You could have hit a pothole at 10 miles doesn't matter. For the flat spot it could be possible as well at 570 miles you get a flat spot from when the car sits on it's tires for more than a month+. Just get the tires checked and the wheels. Than the next thing I can think of is wheel alignement not balancing cause a lot of people mix it up wheel alignement maybe it's off from factory. IF your dealer doesn't find anything bring it to another dealer.


----------

