[DRad]

I have a BMW F30 320d Sport line in manual. It is a 2012 with just over 90k miles on the clock.

For the past few months I have had some vibrations from the engine bay and have yet to diagnose the problem. I have taken it to my trusted BMW specialist (independent garage) and he cannot figure it out and said to keep an eye on it to see if it worsens. Other garages just say it is the DMF without even looking/driving it.

Here's a thorough description of the symptoms:

VIBRATION IS FELT THROUGH THE SEAT AS IF COMING FROM THE ENGINE:
> The vibration is felt when engine reaches above 2,000 rmp (especially in gears 1, 2 & 3)
> However, if I increase the revs very gradually, I can get to 4,000 rpm without feeling any noticeable vibration
> If I have the car in neutral and hit the accelerator then the vibration can be felt very clearly

VIBRATION FELT THROUGH THE SEAT AND THE CLUTCH PEDAL:
> The vibrations are felt through the clutch pedal when changing gears but only when changing at above 2,000 rpm
> However, if I change gears whilst keeping my foot on the accelerator then the vibrations are muted. This means that the revs don't get a chance to drop.
> If I change gears on a steep incline the vibrations are muted
> On a cold morning the car doesn't show any symptoms for the first 20 seconds which I find strange.

> Oh yeah, the other week the engine management light came on saying there was a drive train problem. This was the only time this came on in the past few months and then never re-appeared.

As you can see, I've experimented a lot and the symptoms are pretty strange. All the power is still there so I'm pretty sure there are no mis-fires (which should come up on the dash anyway).

I've read many forums and posts and thought it may be the clutch, DMF, engine mounts, EGR valve etc but nothing quite fits the bill.

I'm very keen to have this resolved but want to avoid paying £1k to replace the DMF and clutch only to find that it wasn't that after all.

I'll be grateful for any help or guidance anyone can give me.

[davethefish]

I had similar symptoms with a 12 plate 320d SE that I bought at 3 months old.
nearly 6 years ago...
it drove fine for the first 20 mins or so, so the test drive went ok.

Then when I picked up the car, by the time I got it home.
I was getting a very strange knocking vibration through the clutch pedal,
and the engine was noticeably rougher and very noisy.

The dealer had the car for 3 weeks and never found out what was causing it.
In the end the BMW 'master tech' denied there was anything wrong with it.
Even though the head of sales had the car for a day and said he wouldn't want it either, and said it was "an absolute pig to drive".

The upshot was I rejected the car, took it back to the dealer and swapped it out for my current 320i...and never looked back.

I was told much later by the sales guy who sold me both cars, that it went to auction, and they lost over 7k on it...

[teaston]

The problem is the two missing cylinders!

[Sasquartch]

If there was a drivetrain error there should be a fault code stored, I'd get ISTA/D on it and see what comes up (a generic fault reader may not see anything)

Not sure if the symptoms would match yours but a lot of BMW engines have a crank damper, this is the bottom belt pulley which has a rubber part to it which can fail at higher mileages

Very difficult to diagnose over t'internet though

If you're anywhere near Herts I can run ISTA/D for you but that would only be one line of enquiry, it could be a simple mechanical failure.

[DRad]

Originally Posted by Sasquartch

If there was a drivetrain error there should be a fault code stored, I'd get ISTA/D on it and see what comes up (a generic fault reader may not see anything)

Not sure if the symptoms would match yours but a lot of BMW engines have a crank damper, this is the bottom belt pulley which has a rubber part to it which can fail at higher mileages

Very difficult to diagnose over t'internet though

If you're anywhere near Herts I can run ISTA/D for you but that would only be one line of enquiry, it could be a simple mechanical failure.

Thanks very much. I'm going to check this out asap. (Unfortunately I'm not close to Herts but thanks for the offer).

[un1eash]

I had an E92 320d that had similar symptoms at 80k miles. You could feel vibration through the clutch pedal and gear stick. It was the clutch and dmf which were replaced under auc warranty.

[330XDave]

I've got to say it does have all the tell tale signs of a DMF/clutch issue. Had the same symptoms on a much newer Peugeot 308 (don't laugh!), Peugeot replaced both under warranty and it drove very nicely after.

[Pobsey]

Having had a DMF failure on my e87 at 118k I would say the symptoms sound similar, I had mine up on a lift and you could see the back of the gear box moving about on it mount.

Also had a diff bearing failure on another e87 that only happened under hard acceleration and at high road speeds. So doubt that’s your problem.

Is the crank pulley in good condition? They have a habit of failing and can cause the odd vibration.

[DRad]

Originally Posted by Pobsey

Having had a DMF failure on my e87 at 118k I would say the symptoms sound similar, I had mine up on a lift and you could see the back of the gear box moving about on it mount.

Also had a diff bearing failure on another e87 that only happened under hard acceleration and at high road speeds. So doubt that’s your problem.

Is the crank pulley in good condition? They have a habit of failing and can cause the odd vibration.

Thanks very much. Seems like the DMF may well be the cause. I was hoping it wasn't that as I understand that it costs £1k at least.

[un1eash]

Bmw labour rates the bill when I had mine done was £1500 but it was covered under auc warranty as I'd only had the car a week.

[Hooded]

Is there any noise if you depress the clutch halfway down? That's often a sign the DMF is on its way out

[DRad]

Originally Posted by Hooded

Is there any noise if you depress the clutch halfway down? That's often a sign the DMF is on its way out

No noises at all when I depress the clutch halfway down. Does this rule it out?

[Hooded]

Originally Posted by DRad

No noises at all when I depress the clutch halfway down. Does this rule it out?

Not necessarily, you would need to get a good Indy mechanic to do a visual inspection of it to rule it out completely if you can't find another cause of the vibration.

If there had of been a noise it would have backed up your suspicions that the DMF could be the fault though, as that usually means it's knackered or on its way at least.

[Mr NSB]

I had this on my 2012 F30 Sport. It would come and go from 120k miles and the dealer said they could not find a fault every time I went in. When it got to 130k ish it did it pretty much all the time. The diagnosis was the DMF, this made us trade it.

The dealer send it straight off to auction and said they don't report faults so some poor punter bought a nice looking high mileage car and probably had a £2 grand bill in the first week.

[DRad]

Finally got it all checked out....DMF failed and needs replacing. Ouch.
Thanks for the help everyone.