yendor
Well-Known Member
Guys and fellow drivers of E46's
I would like to share a little about a recent issue with the above mentioned part.
About 2 months ago, my car developed a knocking sound whenever the car moved over uneven roads. It was only after i saw the reflection my car stopping beside a black car that i saw the front tyre move backwards when i applied the brakes on a slight downhill slope. When i went home, i grabbed the tire and yanked the whole tire forward and a backwards. To my surprise, the whole tire could move.
So, being the "ka poh" that i am, jacked up the car and removed the front tire. To my horror, the entire lower suspension arm could be rocked forwards and backwards with just human force. The lower arm looks like a "L" shape piece of aluminium with a ball joint at the apex and a bushing at 1 end and the axle upright at the other. So when the bushing goes, the entire upright could move.
To solve the problem, I did some research and found that the original bushings are larger than the M3 ones. In addition Power Flex also carried some bushings for the E46 too. With that in mind, the best point of contact was to call the "Great White".... Wilson happily replied that he had some M3 bushing in stock and that these were even better than the power flex ones.
In short, i bought the bushings and changed them. The car drives like a dream now and steering is now very sharp. Suspension noise has been eliminated. To use the M3 bushings, a little mounting needs to be cut off as the M3 has another reinforcement brace under the suspension subframe.
Bottom line, if your E46 is ~3yrs old and lowered, you should get the bushings inspected and changed. I highly recommend it.
Cheers
I would like to share a little about a recent issue with the above mentioned part.
About 2 months ago, my car developed a knocking sound whenever the car moved over uneven roads. It was only after i saw the reflection my car stopping beside a black car that i saw the front tyre move backwards when i applied the brakes on a slight downhill slope. When i went home, i grabbed the tire and yanked the whole tire forward and a backwards. To my surprise, the whole tire could move.
So, being the "ka poh" that i am, jacked up the car and removed the front tire. To my horror, the entire lower suspension arm could be rocked forwards and backwards with just human force. The lower arm looks like a "L" shape piece of aluminium with a ball joint at the apex and a bushing at 1 end and the axle upright at the other. So when the bushing goes, the entire upright could move.
To solve the problem, I did some research and found that the original bushings are larger than the M3 ones. In addition Power Flex also carried some bushings for the E46 too. With that in mind, the best point of contact was to call the "Great White".... Wilson happily replied that he had some M3 bushing in stock and that these were even better than the power flex ones.
In short, i bought the bushings and changed them. The car drives like a dream now and steering is now very sharp. Suspension noise has been eliminated. To use the M3 bushings, a little mounting needs to be cut off as the M3 has another reinforcement brace under the suspension subframe.
Bottom line, if your E46 is ~3yrs old and lowered, you should get the bushings inspected and changed. I highly recommend it.
Cheers
