[tj_g]

I’ve been quoted £120+VAT (parts and labour) from the Indy I use

[rlesko]

Originally Posted by tj_g

I’ve been quoted £120+VAT (parts and labour) from the Indy I use

Does he have the special tool?

[tj_g]

Originally Posted by rlesko

Does he have the special tool?

Yes, only does BMW’s and has it 😊

[tj_g]

Picked mine up today after having this done, along with service.

Wow!

You forget how tight a new bushing feels. It feels like a new car. Ok probably exaggerating, but the steering is so much tighter.

I didn’t realise, as it will have happened gradually, that in addition to the knock when the car was stationary & engine off, that there was also a vagueness or dead zone when driving. Feels much more direct and tight now.

Glad I had it done.

Mine is 2013 @ 120k mikes for info.

[TurboWeasel]

Encouraging news for when I do mine, thank you!

[TurboWeasel]

Fitted the repair kit today. Dead easy. The steering is vastly better now, so I would encourage anyone thinking of doing it, to just go ahead get it done

I set the retaining cap about 1mm proud of the rack, which appeared to be enough to stop the knocking. The supplied blue spring is stiffer than the original green one, so there's tolerance there if you don't quite get it 100%.

[Watsey]

Originally Posted by TurboWeasel

Fitted the repair kit today. Dead easy. The steering is vastly better now, so I would encourage anyone thinking of doing it, to just go ahead get it done

I set the retaining cap about 1mm proud of the rack, which appeared to be enough to stop the knocking. The supplied blue spring is stiffer than the original green one, so there's tolerance there if you don't quite get it 100%.

I wrote a review after I did my rack. The instructions supplied with the (genuine BMW) kit state that the retaining cap has to be torqued to 70NM, which seemed quite a lot to me (bearing in mind that wheel bolts have a torque setting (dry) of 140Nm).

To anyone installing this kit as DIY, be aware that ‘just’ as the cap gets to 70NM the spring compressed to a block and the rack was effectively clamped in a fixed position.

I had to back the cap off just enough to allow the rack to move freely, and it still feels SO much better than before I replaced the thrust block (and the knock/clunk when the engine was off has also gone).

[rlesko]

Originally Posted by Watsey

I wrote a review after I did my rack. The instructions supplied with the (genuine BMW) kit state that the retaining cap has to be torqued to 70NM, which seemed quite a lot to me (bearing in mind that wheel bolts have a torque setting (dry) of 140Nm).

To anyone installing this kit as DIY, be aware that ‘just’ as the cap gets to 70NM the spring compressed to a block and the rack was effectively clamped in a fixed position.

I had to back the cap off just enough to allow the rack to move freely, and it still feels SO much better than before I replaced the thrust block (and the knock/clunk when the engine was off has also gone).

I want to echo this. I torqued to 70 Nm and I couldn't even move the steering wheel. While I backed it off a little bit, it still felt kind of uneven in terms of how difficult it was to move the wheel in certain positions. I'm going for alignment tomorrow and may tinker with sensitivity afterwards.

[Ennoch]

How difficult was it to remove the original block for everyone on here? Even with clamping pliers mine won't budge but it's the newer design with the blue spring so I'm wondering if it's intentionally tighter to reduce the knocking?

[Watsey]

Originally Posted by Ennoch

How difficult was it to remove the original block for everyone on here? Even with clamping pliers mine won't budge but it's the newer design with the blue spring so I'm wondering if it's intentionally tighter to reduce the knocking?

Do you mean the thrust block specifically ?

The old design bock needed a bit of wiggling to get it out of my rack but it wasn’t too difficult.

If your rack already has the newer design why are you replacing it ? Is the rack knocking ?

[TurboWeasel]

The old yellow block has no O rings and lifts out super easy with some right angle thin nose pliers.

The new block is O ringed and will be trickier to wiggle out.

As for 70nm, hmmmmm. BMW can keep that arbitrary procedure.

The proper procedure from ThyssenKrupp is to remove the tie rod bellows (hence why you get a pair of new clamps in the kit) and grab the end of the rack and with long grips and twist it fore and aft - whilst screwing in the preload tension - until the slack is removed. It needs checking/adjusting across the rack's entire travel to account for wear spots. You will hear & feel the rack clacking onto the pad when twisting it, if it's too loose.....which is the noise you hear in the cabin.

I've read all sorts about lasers and special equipment costing £1000s, but I can't see why or where that would be required.

Racks wear the most in the middle, due to cornering not being as common as driving in a straight line, so that tensioning pad is there to both prevent the rack from twisting too much (a reactionary force to turning the pinion) and to adjust for high and low spots in the rack, so the spring needs to allow a certain amount movement, but not too much. I can't see that happening if BMW say to ram it in so tight, it almost locks the rack solid!

Anyway, the cliff notes being - if you guesstimate the tension and it feels right to you and the knocking has stopped, then it is right, simple as, even if it's not as BMW prescribed. But it wouldn't be the first time BMW have contradicted the actual maker of the component

[rlesko]

Originally Posted by TurboWeasel

As for 70nm, hmmmmm. BMW can keep that arbitrary procedure.

The proper procedure from ThyssenKrupp is to remove the tie rod bellows (hence why you get a pair of new clamps in the kit) and grab the end of the rack and with long grips and twist it fore and aft - whilst screwing in the preload tension - until the slack is removed. It needs checking/adjusting across the rack's entire travel to account for wear spots. You will hear & feel the rack clacking onto the pad when twisting it, if it's too loose.....which is the noise you hear in the cabin.

I've read all sorts about lasers and special equipment costing £1000s, but I can't see why or where that would be required.

Its not arbitrary, 70 Nm was obviously chosen for a reason. Its probably a point where the spring is compressed a specific amount, but also will give a good starting point. What most people leave out about torquing it to 70 Nm is that the procedure immediately backs off by about 60 degrees after. So you are most assuredly never supposed to leave it at 70 Nm.

[TurboWeasel]

Originally Posted by rlesko

Its not arbitrary, 70 Nm was obviously chosen for a reason. Its probably a point where the spring is compressed a specific amount, but also will give a good starting point. What most people leave out about torquing it to 70 Nm is that the procedure immediately backs off by about 60 degrees after. So you are most assuredly never supposed to leave it at 70 Nm.

Yes, but is it 70nm on a brand new rack, a part worn rack, or a very worn rack?

Backing it off 60 degrees puts a different slant on things then, and makes more sense.

[rlesko]

Originally Posted by TurboWeasel

Yes, but is it 70nm on a brand new rack, a part worn rack, or a very worn rack?

Backing it off 60 degrees puts a different slant on things then, and makes more sense.

I think we are in agreement, as the adjustments after the fact will depend on individual steering racks as you have pointed out.

The important part of torquing to 70 Nm is starting from a known point. If you don't torque to 70 Nm, then what are you supposed to do, just guess at tightness? I assure you, the 70 Nm is significantly tighter than what I would have estimated when I was swapping my bushing out.

[HighlandPete]

Originally Posted by TurboWeasel

The proper procedure from ThyssenKrupp is to remove the tie rod bellows (hence why you get a pair of new clamps in the kit) and grab the end of the rack and with long grips and twist it fore and aft - whilst screwing in the preload tension - until the slack is removed. It needs checking/adjusting across the rack's entire travel to account for wear spots. You will hear & feel the rack clacking onto the pad when twisting it, if it's too loose.....which is the noise you hear in the cabin.

I've read all sorts about lasers and special equipment costing £1000s, but I can't see why or where that would be required.

The backing off, approximately 60°, is the first part of calibrating the rack clearance.

To set it precisely, you do need the extra kit to get the 20Nm reading (BMW's figure) before calibrating the rack twist tolerance along the rack.

You may be setting "good enough" with the 'start point' back off at 60°, but that isn't setting the tolerance to specification. The final calibration sequence with measuring equipment does that.

[TurboWeasel]

Sorry guys, I was being obstinate and somewhat deluding myself it's DIYable. Well, technically it is in terms of parts fitment, but I agree, a measured and standard approach is better in the long run.

I attempted the procedure this morning (minus the backlash checks with digital dial gauges) and I now fully concede there is a very fine line between getting it wrong and ruining the self centering, and getting it too loose!

My initial adjustment last weekend was a good 3 turns or so off the 70nm pre-torque, so I was wildly out. It's quite a hefty torque figure. I thought the 3 pins were going to shear off the tool, but just before you hit 70nm, you can feel the block bottoming out, so you know you're close at that point.

In the end I had to back it out 120ish degrees from the initial 70nm. 60 degrees was way too tight and the steering was sluggish to self centre. It's spot on now, as far as I can tell.

The car is due in for service soon, so I'll ask them to check/adjust it in the prescribed manner whilst it's there.

I did discover a quick and easy way to torque up the cap without jacking the car up though. I'm not sure you would be able to achieve 70nm down there anyway as there's no room for a torque wrench.

So with the car on the ground, I removed the turbo intake pipe, and as you can see in the pics, you then have a clear shot onto the tensioning cap with some extensions.





Whilst you're in there, it's a good opportunity to check the compressor wheel's condition and shaft play.

[rlesko]

On N55 LHD cars I can reach it with a wrench just by loosening up the undercarriage shield. Of course this is not sufficient for installation, but it helped with micro adjustments post-install.

[TurboWeasel]

Ah OK, that's good then. The above is more pertinent to RHD 330d owners, which I should have mentioned.

The steering got stiff again after a few days, so I backed it out a further 180 degrees and it's much better. This is the part where the 25 +/-5 µm twisting force on the rack comes into play.

After doing that, I popped into my local dealer to book an 18K service and whilst there, I had a chat with the master tech about this steering business. He said he'd prefer to start over with a fresh repair kit and would need to be a separate appointment, so I'll get that booked in at some point. He's fitted approx 30 of these kits and after a quick test drive, he said it feels about right and I got lucky with the trial and error.

I'll get it redone anyway as knowing it's not exactly as prescribed is boggling my OCD.

[rlesko]

I would have preferred BMW to do it with the special tool, but there are simply no reasonable dealerships near me - so I understand what you say about your OCD. That being said, I’m sure your steering is fine the way it is. How much are they going to charge you for a fresh kit + calibration?

[Jindrich]

Originally Posted by SonicJ

Better steering you say? my Sept. 2018 GC has a really annoying way of steering on higher speeds(say 40 to 60 mph/ 60-100 kmh). i feel like i have to pull the steering over a ridge/notch before the steering assist is engaging(only a few degrees from center, so on gentle curvy roads)) it feels very loose but its steering sharp and corresponding to my non-effort inputs tho.

Also its not comming back to full center, like it is catching after a few degrees of steering and with a little more force it kind of snaps back to straight when turning from gently cornering to straight. it is steering really sharp tho and drivers straight but on small corrections it does not drive ''linear'' and feels a like way less steering force with the xtra notch i feel. its not clunking whatsoever but maybe this new part could elimate what i experience?
how did it feel for you?

greetings J.

I had exactly same issue with my car (now 370k km so roughly 230k) and it was sometimes quite scary how the power steering made sharp inputs. I thought that the solution will be difficult, but it prooved me wrong.

I found out that current EPS racks are actually pretty solid in design for lifetime. On passenger side is huge ball bearing and recirculating ball thread making actual power steering function. No big wear or play could be expected there, even after high mileage. The drivers side has of course bearings at pinion and the thrust bearing similar to ThyssenKrupp rack, BUT this has aluminum piston with plastic wear pad in cotrary to THK originaly made completely out of plastic. This area must run almost without clearance, otherwise it mess completely the electronic feedback to steering ECU. Problem is, that there is torsion bar with strain gauge, measuring torque through input shaft, until you get free play in rack, all works fine. BUT then with free play, ECU don´t knows on straights if the spikes comming from road inperfections(knocking through rack in pinion = in the torque sensor) are drivers inputs or not. Same applies to situation, you are mid corner - so assume steering wheel needs to hold certain force to act on steered wheels and then there is bump or sudden change in inclination of road (still mid corner), when the contact between rack and pinion is lost and tooth from other side hammers due to backlash from the oposite side. ECU thinks that you want to go in next corner and makes input - in this case false and very abrupt...that´s it, so simple.

At my F31 I just need 17mm hexagon socket and a bit of penetrating oil to eliminate this tiny but existing free play. I need just about 20 degrees to make it completely without clearance, you feel then unusual friction when steering at speed, so you back up couple of degrees just to get back free feeling again and it´s gone. Then you steer to left or right stop and check if it is still free or the friction appears again, just to exclude, that the rack is worn just in middle.

Hopefully it helps also others.

P.S: The light clunking noise and delay between stering input and movement of wheels when standing with engine off and making let/right steering inputs is normal. This is safety feature in case of EPS malfunction. Torsion bar must be flexible in order to measure something but it would twist way too much without assistance of DC motor. So there is allowed twist range build in which allows to drive safely back home.

[Ennoch]

Originally Posted by Watsey

Do you mean the thrust block specifically ?

The old design bock needed a bit of wiggling to get it out of my rack but it wasn’t too difficult.

If your rack already has the newer design why are you replacing it ? Is the rack knocking ?

Yep, it's been knocking worse and worse since it was last replaced coming up on two years ago. I'm actually suspecting that it's not the thrust block that's knocking as even tightening it up to the point you could feel it beginning to bind it was still knocking, and it sounds like it's not actually the wear plates that are knocking so much as the block itself in the rack. My local BMW dealer have washed their hands of it and said it's not a problem but it's made me hate this car more than any other I've ever owned in 20 years and I've had some right knackered old shit in that time. The thing is, replacing the rack did have an impact last time but I also wonder if something else was disturbed which has gradually moved back. I've tried padding out the washer bottle too in case it was that but it wasn't moving at all so that's another potential clunk discounted. And it had two front adaptive dampers before the rack as they initially mis-diagnosed it as the solenoids clunking.

[TurboWeasel]

Originally Posted by rlesko

I would have preferred BMW to do it with the special tool, but there are simply no reasonable dealerships near me - so I understand what you say about your OCD. That being said, I’m sure your steering is fine the way it is. How much are they going to charge you for a fresh kit + calibration?

It was 90 mins labour in the end. They opted to reuse the existing kit as it was so new and wasn't damaged in any way during my attempts.

The position they set the cap to was about the same as where I put it on my first attempt - approx 1mm proud of the rack.

It felt great initially but the weighting has since gone back to feeling inconsistent from day to day, and there is still a slight clunk over speed ramps, but the left to right knocking when stationery is massively reduced.

Oh well, I tried. I'll just live with it as I think it's one those 'nature of the beast' things that might not ever go away until the whole rack is replaced.

One more thing I can try next time it's in the air is to nip up the steering rack bolts that attach it to the subframe. On the E90 they were known to work loose over time. Could be the same situation on the Fxx.