I did this entire job while doing the oil pan and mounts. Thank you Mike your videos have helped me a lot along my journey and definitely brings in the sales while saving us money. Much appreciated Mike and FCP!
I don't know how much I can thank you guys for saving me money at the dealership. Absolutely love it. The detailed instructions in these videos help me more than the Bentley Publishers E90 Repair manual. Thank you!!!
Did that job a week ago... with the car on jack stands in the driveway. I don't know what kind of air hammer did you use, mine is scfm2.7@90psi and it didn't do the job with the ball joints, i had to massage the old ball joints with the hammer 🔨 with the jack under the hub. For the driveway diy-ers - put some time to remove the brake disc and the brake disc dust shield before, that opens a lot of space, don't forget to "turn the wheel" to the left or right side to have even more space, and finally, if you're replacing the inner tie rod as showed in the video, just cut it with a grinder, in my case the propane torch was complete waste of time in the battle against the canadian salt corrosion...if you're replacing only the outer tie rod, cut the old outer rod gently to free up the threads without cutting the thread of the inner rod. Good luck
That is exactly what I did with my tie rods lol. Hit em with pb blaster the night before, nothing. Hit em with the torch the next day, nothing. Then realized if I just bust out the grinder and cut it right in the middle I could slip the tie rod extension right over the remainder of the rod. Had them off in 10 min.
For anybody struggling with the ball joint blocked by the axle, I was able to remove it by squeezing a 24mm socket and ratchet onto the nut. If your socket and ratchet is small enough, you have JUST enough room to wedge it under the axle boot if you move the rubber a little. And if the ball joint spins, use a jack and put some pressure on the bottom of the joint. The friction stops it from spinning
FCP Euro do you not need to have the car at ride height when torquing down the sway bar end links? Keep hearing a lot of different opinions and would like to know before I throw my end links on this week. Thank ya.
I was just told my X1's front end can't be aligned as the outer tie rod end adjustment is too corroded. I've done this job on an '06 X3 I had. The air hammer is genius! I ended up taking the entire hub off and clamping it to a work bench to use a pinch and a mallet. Putting the hubs back on the half axel splines was miserable. Miserable. I guess if I'm going to do tie rod ends I should go ahead and to ball joints and control/thrust arms, too. Car has 66k miles. About time. Thanks for the video!
I just changed the windshield washer pump on my E91 and was short on space. I can't imagine doing this control arm/tie rod job without a lift and getting clear access under the car with room to work. I'd still buy the parts from FCP because I trust you guys, but man, it's a ball breaker working on the floor for this type of stuff. At least for an old guy like me.
Thank you for trusting us! The main reason we do our DIY's on a lift is so that our camera man can get under there and show you guys exactly what is going on. Working on the floor is tough, we've been there!
Control arm bushings connected to the subframe have to be torqued with the car in normal height position (i.e. tires on the ground) or the bushings will fail prematurely.
You are absolutely right, you can also jack/compress each corner of the suspension that you are tightening to simulate it being on the ground with it on the lift or on jack stands.
Baby counter... Hilarious! great content and put the fun back in control arm diagnosis for the E9X platform. Just don't get [nearly] hit in the face by a control arm like Mike; brace, tape, tie wrap or just restrain the arm from swinging on it's own when you're removing it. Or look for a good (available) dentist first.
Thanks Steve! If you aren't having fun while working on your car then you're doing it wrong! That control arm swing was a few inches away from Mike needing a new front tooth and a pair of glasses ^.^
Very nice step by step tutorial ! 22:15 - Can we tighten this bolt while the wheel is hanging down ? Isn't it better the lock it while the car is on the ground so the internal bushing isn't twisted ? 26:08 - I would have use a normal ratchet and not a torque wrench for the +90°. I've been told to not force on a torque wrench over the clic. Thank you Edit : I found the answer in the comments. OK.
@@ThunderbirdRocket Waow That was 2 years ago and by now I made myself my E92 suspension refresh. The rule is simple, every join with a solid rubber bushing must me tighten and torqued when under load. Either with the car on his wheel if you have a lift and can go under or by lifting the knuckle with a floor jack until the car body slightly loose contact with the nearest support stand.
You guys at FCP Euro make the best videos, and always a few laughs too, thanks again! Can you use a crowfoot instead of that very special inner tie rod tool, to torque down the inner tie rod?
Didnt mean to convince you of that scanspeak00! Really aside from the bushing, its not that bad, but that one portion can become quite frustrating. Thanks for watching, and let us know if you have any questions!
@7:34 He is really in there lol.... His trying hard not to stip that T50 Bolt. Great Job brother, you can work on my n54 e90xi anytime. Awesome video 👍
9:00 How did you get enough clearance under the cv axle to use the air hammer?? I'm doing the same exact process and can't get into the small space between the head of the ball joint and the damn axle boot, even with the caliper off and the entire assembly rotated! (I'm also using an astro pneumatic, the 4010. It's just smashing in the head of the ball joint at this point)
11:37 how do you get the wrench to stay on the bolt. The OE bolt surface is super thing, less than half the thickness of a box wrench. It keeps slipping off.
@@fcpeuro yea I had box wrenches with a bit of a bevel in the inner face if the closed part which wasn't working. Bought a single wrench with less of that feature and it worked.
@@elurb7231 hey - I have the Duralast box wrenches. This damn thing keeps slipping off. I’m assuming for the same reasons as you. What wrench did you end up buying just so I could have a reference
Feels like a good Saturdays work. I am just curious about that Tie Rod Tool. Can this be done without that special tool? Do you have access with a reglar extended wrench? My 330Xi pulls to the right when braking and vibrates at around 70mph. New Rotors and wheels balanced. So i have decided to change out everything for the front suspension..
It should be doable without, this just makes it really easy to properly torque it down and reach from afar. Like you said nothing that can't be accomplished on a nice long saturday in the driveway!
Random question but why did you need to remove the reinforcement plate from the subframe? I’m about to embark on this job and it seems like you can get away without doing all that.
Hi Austin, having the reinforcement plate out of the way allows you more room to work with when installing the tie rod boot on and the clamp. If you are not servicing the tie rods, then no need to remove it!
Please double check your 60 Nm torque spec on the bolt for the thrust arm to the steering knuckle. Bentley says “Tension strut to steering knuckle 165 Nm”. Thanks!
I've spent the last four hours beating my 2009 328 XI to death. It's dripping in Kroil Oil, on fire and I'm deaf now from the air hammer. The ball joints didn't budge. Ordered the CRUNCHYSANN’s BALL JOINT PRESS like was mention in the comments overnight. I'll review it tomorrow if it works. I hope it works because I'm sure the car will be noisy driving around without the front wheels.
Great as always FCP Euro! Thank you! However I'm confused about something. I've seen other videos showing the replacing of the Control Arms and the ball joint for it wasn't part of the control arm (They claim to be doing the X drive version just like you guys). It's actually attached from the top on the wheel assembly. It still looks like it fits in the same way but is a separate unit or part all it's own. What's the scoop on that??
On some vehicles you can use a thin wrench, however oftentimes with an Xdrive vehicle like this one, the drivetrain or subframe can get in the way of spinning a wrench in there.
Great video... QUESTION: my '10 e91 xdrive feels like the frame is going to slam apart when I hit a change in road surface like a 3/4" pavement change or a bump.. is this front end links, strut mounts, or do I need to do the whole front end? it is so bad it cocked one of my headlights down.
What is the accurate number of estimated labor hours an Independent shop should charge to do this entire job? I would like to buy the kit but I will have a technician do the job. Don’t have the tools or setup for this. Thanks!!
When doing front end work on jack stands. Especially on this 328xi. Is there any jack point to lift both front tires in air? I’m looking at the area near the stiffening plate.
Absolutely agree, luckily, we have access to a life on the regular. For the E9X cars, there is a center jack point - should be a bit of rubber or an exposed section under the skidplate in the front middle of the car. From there you can get the front end in the air and up on 2 jack stands at the same time.
When torquing the lower control arm bolts to 100Nm + 90 Degrees, do you need to replace the bolt each time you take it off and re-torque it? Usually degree values mean it's TTY, but I've seen conflicting information about it. I definitely don't want to snap it next time I remove/reinstall it.
@@fcpeuro I'm tuned, subscribed with notifications on baby 😜😜😜 P.s. really looking forward to see what kind of bushing removal tool are you using ( for the control arms and for the subframe bushings)
Nice video. You should post a link for that Lisle 45750 tie rod tool. Also... shouldn't you have tightened BOTH inner link bushings at right height >? Why only the rear bushing and not the forward one ?
question. I did all that in my car by myself and when I drove the car for alignment the guy there told me that supposedly he can't align it because I need cambers in the front and back and the second reason is because supposedly the car is to low. I I never lowered my car and I have the same rims that came with the car which means its not low at all but he is the professional according to what he said. Is there any suggestion about that or is it even true that I need cambers to be able to do that ? the kit I used is exactly the same as the one you used in this video. Please let me know. I will greatly appreciate any help.
22:48 @FCPEURO what???? How did he just torque that down with a torque wrench while tightening it with a crescent wrench??? Huh???? Am I missing something here😂😅😂😅😂
kingpin we were dreading it going into shooting this DIY bc we feared how bad itd be to get out. We had planned to make our own slide hammer setup to try to avoid using an air hammer as not everyone has access to one... but we didn't have the time (nor patience ^.^) unfortunately.
80 000 miles, lol. I'm at 180 000 miles and start to think about doing this :D By the way, I live in something like the rust belt, does soaking everything in penetrant really work?
I'm going to tackle this on my F25 X3 and the parts look very similar. The ball joint is the part troubling me the most. Is it not possible to leave the control arm bolted to the ball joint and use the arm to pry the ball joint out?
@FCP Euro the other idea that popped into my head was screwing the bolts in from the top down and prying a chisel in between the knuckle and the tabs. Screwing the bolts down against the chisel to push down on the ball joint. Can't picture in my head if it would work or if it would just bend the tabs down. And then I thought - what would happen if you bent the tabs down and then hammered them to spin the ball joint around to free it?
Also, www.newtis.info/tisv2/a/en/e90-335xi-lim/repair-manuals/31-front-axle-front-suspension/31-12-wishbones-struts-including-rubber-mounts/5bUExgU lists different torques for E90 AWD: “Compression strut to front axle support” (I believe this is thrust arm to chassis): 68 Nm + 90 deg “Compression strut to guide joint” (I believe this is thrust arm to ball joint”): 80 Nm These are quite different than what the video says!
This is great! I don't have the opportunity to do much diy on my car so this is nice to see what s under there. My e90 makes a slight ticking noise that *sounds* like its coming from the trans area but I can't really tell. It's only under acceleration though, plus no error codes. Any ideas? It’s a rwd. Also: 'Baby counter' haha! So good!
Thanks Temi, it can be helpful sometimes to just see whats actually going on behind the scenes of your car! With no error codes that would tend to lean towards something mechanical such as some of the things discussed in this video and our E9X Suspension Diagnostics video (check it out if you havent as it may help). It can be sort of hard to tell whats wrong with just a sound though, sometimes its easier to inspect all the usual suspects visually. Under hard acceleration it could be caused my an engine or trans mount that is shot as well.
Hey Shawn, the driver and passenger side each have their own part numbers as they are slightly different. For the most part, they are all similar across the models, the only difference being sports models vs non-sport.
Hi Mike, my 2011 E91 is reported to have a Front Suspension arm pin or bush worn. Would you advise replacing just the bush (part # 31126763719) or the whole radius rod, left (part # 31122405861)? Is it worth buying genuine bmw or would Lemforder be good enough? If bush replacement is sufficient, is that a cold press job to take old out and new in? Thank you in advance.
You should be fine just pressing that bushing out and replacing it with www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw-tension-strut-bushing-lemforder-31126763719 . We highly suggest saving the money by going with the Lemforder as its the exact same quality as the Genuine at a fraction of the price. If you don't have a press (or the patience) you cant go wrong with just replacing the entire arm for a little bit more $.
Dangit Alexander stop launching your car and itll stop making that noise ;) All kidding aside it could be something mechanical such as some of the things discussed in this video and our E9X Suspension Diagnostics video. It can be hard to tell whats wrong with just a sound though, sometimes its easier to inspect all the usual suspects visually. If its only caused "if you were to launch it", it could be caused my a failed engine or trans mount as well.
8:57 obviously you had a hard time taking out the ball joint with that crowd reaction. it would be more helpful for DIYers if that part’s NOT edited, showing frustrations and interventions you’ve experienced. otherwise, this is helpful. thanks
Exactly why Mike went over what he did with the pneumatic air gun afterwards! While we want to go over what finally worked, sometimes ther are so many attempt in between it would make for a really long DIY
Interesting to see this. My G31 is clunking / rattling a bit going over speed bumps. BMW says it's the tie rods bushings with some "oilbearings" that are cracked / worn. They also say troubleshooting, new tie rods, installation and wheel alignment is a 1700 USD job. Seems unreal watching this video that made changing ALL "rods" seem pretty easy. Lucky me this is a warranty job. But knowing this in the future I'll buy any parts myself and let some non-BMW shop do the work. Also watching this I'll be sure to ask them if any other bushings are worn too, thinking control arms most likely would be.
Yall are so clutch. You are saving me thousands of dollars...legit. Great videos. F*ck every BMW dealership and all these mechanics charging $900 dollars labor for literally any job, no matter how tedious.
See I have the same car & I don't have the tools to do this & with all the torque spec's I scared to take it to any shop & then the dealership cost to much so do y'all have any shop here in Michigan that u would recommend going to?
Where in Michigan are you Brian? Aside from the ball joint situation most of this DIY can realistically be done with a normal set of hand tools, just takes a bit longer.
Buy this kit for your E90 Here! www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw-10-piece-control-arm-kit-e90-e91-e92-e90caxdrive2?
I did this entire job while doing the oil pan and mounts. Thank you Mike your videos have helped me a lot along my journey and definitely brings in the sales while saving us money. Much appreciated Mike and FCP!
This guy talks about car parts like hes talking about drinking a glass of water. Amazingly passionate about his job.
All passion here at FCP Euro! Thanks, Ankur!
@@fcpeuro You guys thinking of opening in the UK?
I don't know how much I can thank you guys for saving me money at the dealership. Absolutely love it. The detailed instructions in these videos help me more than the Bentley Publishers E90 Repair manual. Thank you!!!
Did that job a week ago... with the car on jack stands in the driveway. I don't know what kind of air hammer did you use, mine is scfm2.7@90psi and it didn't do the job with the ball joints, i had to massage the old ball joints with the hammer 🔨 with the jack under the hub. For the driveway diy-ers - put some time to remove the brake disc and the brake disc dust shield before, that opens a lot of space, don't forget to "turn the wheel" to the left or right side to have even more space, and finally, if you're replacing the inner tie rod as showed in the video, just cut it with a grinder, in my case the propane torch was complete waste of time in the battle against the canadian salt corrosion...if you're replacing only the outer tie rod, cut the old outer rod gently to free up the threads without cutting the thread of the inner rod.
Good luck
That is exactly what I did with my tie rods lol. Hit em with pb blaster the night before, nothing. Hit em with the torch the next day, nothing. Then realized if I just bust out the grinder and cut it right in the middle I could slip the tie rod extension right over the remainder of the rod. Had them off in 10 min.
Straight to the point 100% ended up doing the same but before reading this comment lol
“N52 problems am I right?” That one hit me deep
😂
what makes these problems specific to the n52?
@@issaczheng5067 Known to have leaky oil pan gaskets. Mine leaks aswell
For anybody struggling with the ball joint blocked by the axle, I was able to remove it by squeezing a 24mm socket and ratchet onto the nut. If your socket and ratchet is small enough, you have JUST enough room to wedge it under the axle boot if you move the rubber a little. And if the ball joint spins, use a jack and put some pressure on the bottom of the joint. The friction stops it from spinning
If you put the ball joints in the freezer they slip right in. We use to do that on aircraft parts. I didn't have to do any tapping.
That's an interesting tip David... we are going to have to try that out!
FYI, the wishbone needs to be torqued to the subframe at "normal position" also. great video other than that!
Yes, you are absolutely right, Chris! Glad you like the video!
FCP Euro do you not need to have the car at ride height when torquing down the sway bar end links? Keep hearing a lot of different opinions and would like to know before I throw my end links on this week. Thank ya.
@@sofuknossum1 no
I was just told my X1's front end can't be aligned as the outer tie rod end adjustment is too corroded. I've done this job on an '06 X3 I had. The air hammer is genius! I ended up taking the entire hub off and clamping it to a work bench to use a pinch and a mallet. Putting the hubs back on the half axel splines was miserable. Miserable. I guess if I'm going to do tie rod ends I should go ahead and to ball joints and control/thrust arms, too. Car has 66k miles. About time. Thanks for the video!
Fcp sells a tool that pulls the axle shafts into the hub. Makes life 10 times easier
I just changed the windshield washer pump on my E91 and was short on space. I can't imagine doing this control arm/tie rod job without a lift and getting clear access under the car with room to work. I'd still buy the parts from FCP because I trust you guys, but man, it's a ball breaker working on the floor for this type of stuff. At least for an old guy like me.
Thank you for trusting us! The main reason we do our DIY's on a lift is so that our camera man can get under there and show you guys exactly what is going on. Working on the floor is tough, we've been there!
Control arm bushings connected to the subframe have to be torqued with the car in normal height position (i.e. tires on the ground) or the bushings will fail prematurely.
You are absolutely right, you can also jack/compress each corner of the suspension that you are tightening to simulate it being on the ground with it on the lift or on jack stands.
I did a refresh with oem m3 parts on my 335i e92 rwd n54. Wow what a diff!
Your 335i must feel better than new!!
Baby counter... Hilarious! great content and put the fun back in control arm diagnosis for the E9X platform. Just don't get [nearly] hit in the face by a control arm like Mike; brace, tape, tie wrap or just restrain the arm from swinging on it's own when you're removing it. Or look for a good (available) dentist first.
Thanks Steve! If you aren't having fun while working on your car then you're doing it wrong! That control arm swing was a few inches away from Mike needing a new front tooth and a pair of glasses ^.^
“Big Nasty”... sounds like South Main Auto lol.
Thanks for this video. I have to do my front arms and will be ordering Lemforders from you guys soon.
😁 No problem, hope it helps when the time comes to do your install! Appreciate the support Shane.
Very nice step by step tutorial !
22:15 - Can we tighten this bolt while the wheel is hanging down ?
Isn't it better the lock it while the car is on the ground so the internal bushing isn't twisted ?
26:08 - I would have use a normal ratchet and not a torque wrench for the +90°. I've been told to not force on a torque wrench over the clic.
Thank you
Edit : I found the answer in the comments. OK.
Do you mind if I ask you what was the answer / correct procedure for this step ?
@@ThunderbirdRocket Waow
That was 2 years ago and by now I made myself my E92 suspension refresh.
The rule is simple, every join with a solid rubber bushing must me tighten and torqued when under load. Either with the car on his wheel if you have a lift and can go under or by lifting the knuckle with a floor jack until the car body slightly loose contact with the nearest support stand.
@@stephanelouvet1113
Right on ! Super helpful of ‘ya mate !! I appreciate your taking the time to help me out ! 👊🏼🕊
You are perfection hidalgo my friend! Well done really good video!
You don’t have that we don’t have that no one has that! Well said.
😂
You guys at FCP Euro make the best videos, and always a few laughs too, thanks again! Can you use a crowfoot instead of that very special inner tie rod tool, to torque down the inner tie rod?
Great video, thanks. One tip... I thought that the bushing bolts should be tightened up at ride height.
Great video and the main thing I learned is that this repair is probably out of my league.
Didnt mean to convince you of that scanspeak00! Really aside from the bushing, its not that bad, but that one portion can become quite frustrating. Thanks for watching, and let us know if you have any questions!
Wild!! Snapped. Made it seem nice and easy... but I bet that sh*** is hard to do
One of the best repair videos I have seen !!!
I pulled me ball joints with the slide hammer vice grips from Vegas tool.
Thank you for making these videos, you guys are a life saver, excellent mechanics doing the work.
I mistakenly watched this in the morning instead of the evening. Taking a shot every time he says baby, now I’m worthless for the rest of the daay.
🤣😂🤣 What a way to roll the dice and start your day minermarcus!
@7:34 He is really in there lol.... His trying hard not to stip that T50 Bolt. Great Job brother, you can work on my n54 e90xi anytime. Awesome video 👍
You have the best video out there for this Job 👍
Happy to be of help, Ralph!
9:00 How did you get enough clearance under the cv axle to use the air hammer?? I'm doing the same exact process and can't get into the small space between the head of the ball joint and the damn axle boot, even with the caliper off and the entire assembly rotated! (I'm also using an astro pneumatic, the 4010. It's just smashing in the head of the ball joint at this point)
Could you a video for a suspension replacement like this on a 328i?
Can you do rear complete suspension as well
Zak Khan we will have one for the rear kit coming on horizon, just stay tuned!
@@fcpeuro is it out yet?
🤣🤣🤣 he got me at the “n52 problems am I right ??? “ 🤨😭
How TF did you get the 24mm wrench on that lower control arm nut???
Absolutely nothing fits: wrench, socket, etc...
11:37 how do you get the wrench to stay on the bolt. The OE bolt surface is super thing, less than half the thickness of a box wrench. It keeps slipping off.
Hi El, for this we used a box end wrench that has an offset head to help with leverage. I would suggest using something similar to that!
@@fcpeuro yea I had box wrenches with a bit of a bevel in the inner face if the closed part which wasn't working. Bought a single wrench with less of that feature and it worked.
@@elurb7231 hey - I have the Duralast box wrenches. This damn thing keeps slipping off. I’m assuming for the same reasons as you. What wrench did you end up buying just so I could have a reference
@@CREAOOfficial just sanded the face a bit with a cut wheel/ heated and PB blaster to help the effort.
Suggestion... use a grinder to flatten the box wrench so it isn't tapered. I've done that with sockets as well.
Feels like a good Saturdays work.
I am just curious about that Tie Rod Tool. Can this be done without that special tool? Do you have access with a reglar extended wrench?
My 330Xi pulls to the right when braking and vibrates at around 70mph. New Rotors and wheels balanced. So i have decided to change out everything for the front suspension..
It should be doable without, this just makes it really easy to properly torque it down and reach from afar. Like you said nothing that can't be accomplished on a nice long saturday in the driveway!
Big Nasty! My other favorite car repair channel..
Digging the Big Nasty reference!
Random question but why did you need to remove the reinforcement plate from the subframe? I’m about to embark on this job and it seems like you can get away without doing all that.
Hi Austin, having the reinforcement plate out of the way allows you more room to work with when installing the tie rod boot on and the clamp. If you are not servicing the tie rods, then no need to remove it!
Thank you! You guys are the best.
Please double check your 60 Nm torque spec on the bolt for the thrust arm to the steering knuckle. Bentley says “Tension strut to steering knuckle 165 Nm”. Thanks!
is that astro 4980 must-have? or should .401 hammers be able to get the ball joints out?
I've spent the last four hours beating my 2009 328 XI to death. It's dripping in Kroil Oil, on fire and I'm deaf now from the air hammer. The ball joints didn't budge. Ordered the CRUNCHYSANN’s BALL JOINT PRESS like was mention in the comments overnight. I'll review it tomorrow if it works. I hope it works because I'm sure the car will be noisy driving around without the front wheels.
Sorry, you're going through it right now! Did crack us up a bit imagining you driving the car with no front wheels on though haha
Great as always FCP Euro! Thank you! However I'm confused about something. I've seen other videos showing the replacing of the Control Arms and the ball joint for it wasn't part of the control arm (They claim to be doing the X drive version just like you guys). It's actually attached from the top on the wheel assembly. It still looks like it fits in the same way but is a separate unit or part all it's own. What's the scoop on that??
Just tackled this. CRUNCHYSANN’s BALL JOINT PRESS IS A MUST!!! $130.
A stuck ball joint can 100% make or quite literally break this job. Glad you got it done though creao!
Thanks for the video! Do you know if the process for the tie rod will be similar on an F30 xDrive?
Hi Rabih El-Hendi, the idea will be very similar!
Excellent instructions.
Thanks Alofzico glad you approve!
can you just replace the bushings and nuts if the actual strut is still in good condition?
Would a front wheel alignment be needed in this case, or just recommended?
All I can say is Great video, best I have seen in a long time. THANKS
Thanks so much for the kind words David!
I really need to get this kit. My front end looks like the titanic
Just did the control arms on my e92 today and didn’t tq at ride height. Is that really a problem? I don’t want to take it all apart again lol
For the E91, non x-drive, am I better off going with the M3 components?
Its a common upgrade we often see done, and don't necessarily say you should do one over the other. Buttttt the M3 stuff is pretty sweet...
I'm wondering why you didn't opt for the ball joint removal tool that you sell.
How many new nuts and bolts did you need for installing the new kit?
Good Job Big Nasty... Very informative and entertaining.
glad you enjoyed it albert427!
Dont use your torquewrench to angle tight (ttgus torqueing more than the set torque) as you will mess up your wrench.
I was looking at the comments hoping someone else caught it
Extremely informative
Do you need that tie rod tool to get the inner out to put new one in?
On some vehicles you can use a thin wrench, however oftentimes with an Xdrive vehicle like this one, the drivetrain or subframe can get in the way of spinning a wrench in there.
Great video... QUESTION: my '10 e91 xdrive feels like the frame is going to slam apart when I hit a change in road surface like a 3/4" pavement change or a bump.. is this front end links, strut mounts, or do I need to do the whole front end? it is so bad it cocked one of my headlights down.
Same q
Loved this
We love that you loved it MischeifMakerz
What is the accurate number of estimated labor hours an Independent shop should charge to do this entire job? I would like to buy the kit but I will have a technician do the job. Don’t have the tools or setup for this. Thanks!!
This is probably around a 2-2.5 hour job.
Could you guys do one for f30 gen?? Would love to DIY refresh my set up.. ty!
We plan on it!
Are torque specs the same for RWD?
Thank's in advance.
BimmerN53
god I love FCP
💙
When doing front end work on jack stands. Especially on this 328xi. Is there any jack point to lift both front tires in air? I’m looking at the area near the stiffening plate.
Absolutely agree, luckily, we have access to a life on the regular. For the E9X cars, there is a center jack point - should be a bit of rubber or an exposed section under the skidplate in the front middle of the car. From there you can get the front end in the air and up on 2 jack stands at the same time.
When torquing the lower control arm bolts to 100Nm + 90 Degrees, do you need to replace the bolt each time you take it off and re-torque it? Usually degree values mean it's TTY, but I've seen conflicting information about it. I definitely don't want to snap it next time I remove/reinstall it.
You can always replace the bolt to be on the safe side!
22:50 How did he torque the bolt? Is there an adapter on the wrench?
Excellent!!! Thank you for the video!
Can you do the rear suspension as well?
bate goiko we will have one for the rear kit coming out sooner rather than later, just stay tuned!
@@fcpeuro I'm tuned, subscribed with notifications on baby 😜😜😜
P.s. really looking forward to see what kind of bushing removal tool are you using ( for the control arms and for the subframe bushings)
Thoughts on useing a .22 ramset instead of an air hammer? Am I crazy?
Nice video. You should post a link for that Lisle 45750 tie rod tool. Also... shouldn't you have tightened BOTH inner link bushings at right height >? Why only the rear bushing and not the forward one ?
The self locking nut in the description says it doesn’t work for my 2010 bmw 335xi is that true ?
ISTA+ shows 68 Nm + 90° for the bushing bolts. The video shows 100 Nm. Which one is correct?
Great video! Definitely earned my purchase of this kit.
Thank you Peter, glad you liked the video and we appreciate the support! Good luck on the install, let us know how it goes.
question. I did all that in my car by myself and when I drove the car for alignment the guy there told me that supposedly he can't align it because I need cambers in the front and back
and the second reason is because supposedly the car is to low. I I never lowered my car and I have the same rims that came with the car which means its not low at all but he is the professional according to what he said. Is there any suggestion about that or is it even true that I need cambers to be able to do that ? the kit I used is exactly the same as the one you used in this video. Please let me know. I will greatly appreciate any help.
We would suggest going to another shop, non of that really makes sense given your circumstances.
22:48 @FCPEURO what???? How did he just torque that down with a torque wrench while tightening it with a crescent wrench??? Huh???? Am I missing something here😂😅😂😅😂
I’ve been fighting that ball joint for 5 years. Everything has been replaced except that... YOU WILL NEED AN AIR HAMMER PEOPLE lol
kingpin we were dreading it going into shooting this DIY bc we feared how bad itd be to get out. We had planned to make our own slide hammer setup to try to avoid using an air hammer as not everyone has access to one... but we didn't have the time (nor patience ^.^) unfortunately.
I used a$150 press tool from Harbor Freight to get that ball joint out.
Were you able to do it with the cv axle still in place? I can't seem to get enough clearance under the axle
How much this job cost in labor at a shop?
80 000 miles, lol. I'm at 180 000 miles and start to think about doing this :D By the way, I live in something like the rust belt, does soaking everything in penetrant really work?
We get quite a bit of corrosion here as well, and penetrant can certainly help depending on how bad it is.
I'm not sure this is correct. My 2008 e90 six cylinder version is different underneath to the car used in the video
Is it RWD or XDrive?
@@fcpeuro it's RWD. I think the car in the video is a weedy 4 cylinder model
@@vp5 yepp there are differences in the RWD models vs the xdrive models. Thats why it didnt appear the same as yours under there
Where did the clutch video go?????? I just watched it now it’s gone. I’m ready to do the work n no video to recap
Anyone know where I can find torque specs for e92? I have the repair manual and it only shows torque codes like 31 21 1az….
I'm going to tackle this on my F25 X3 and the parts look very similar. The ball joint is the part troubling me the most.
Is it not possible to leave the control arm bolted to the ball joint and use the arm to pry the ball joint out?
Hi Matthew, due to the tight press fit of the ball joints, it is nearly impossible to get them out using the arms as a pry tool in our experience.
@FCP Euro the other idea that popped into my head was screwing the bolts in from the top down and prying a chisel in between the knuckle and the tabs. Screwing the bolts down against the chisel to push down on the ball joint.
Can't picture in my head if it would work or if it would just bend the tabs down.
And then I thought - what would happen if you bent the tabs down and then hammered them to spin the ball joint around to free it?
What is the total prize of this? Thanks!
About $600 for the entire kit ! www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw-10-piece-control-arm-kit-e90-e91-e92-e90caxdrive2?
Also, www.newtis.info/tisv2/a/en/e90-335xi-lim/repair-manuals/31-front-axle-front-suspension/31-12-wishbones-struts-including-rubber-mounts/5bUExgU lists different torques for E90 AWD:
“Compression strut to front axle support” (I believe this is thrust arm to chassis): 68 Nm + 90 deg
“Compression strut to guide joint” (I believe this is thrust arm to ball joint”): 80 Nm
These are quite different than what the video says!
This is great! I don't have the opportunity to do much diy on my car so this is nice to see what s under there.
My e90 makes a slight ticking noise that *sounds* like its coming from the trans area but I can't really tell. It's only under acceleration though, plus no error codes. Any ideas?
It’s a rwd.
Also: 'Baby counter' haha! So good!
Thanks Temi, it can be helpful sometimes to just see whats actually going on behind the scenes of your car! With no error codes that would tend to lean towards something mechanical such as some of the things discussed in this video and our E9X Suspension Diagnostics video (check it out if you havent as it may help). It can be sort of hard to tell whats wrong with just a sound though, sometimes its easier to inspect all the usual suspects visually. Under hard acceleration it could be caused my an engine or trans mount that is shot as well.
Are the struts the same
Hey Shawn, the driver and passenger side each have their own part numbers as they are slightly different. For the most part, they are all similar across the models, the only difference being sports models vs non-sport.
Can you make one for dampers also please?
Its on the list Leon!
Can I still drive it while I have everything soaking in pb blaster
Yes
Hi Mike, my 2011 E91 is reported to have a Front Suspension arm pin or bush worn. Would you advise replacing just the bush (part # 31126763719) or the whole radius rod, left (part # 31122405861)? Is it worth buying genuine bmw or would Lemforder be good enough? If bush replacement is sufficient, is that a cold press job to take old out and new in? Thank you in advance.
You should be fine just pressing that bushing out and replacing it with www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw-tension-strut-bushing-lemforder-31126763719 . We highly suggest saving the money by going with the Lemforder as its the exact same quality as the Genuine at a fraction of the price. If you don't have a press (or the patience) you cant go wrong with just replacing the entire arm for a little bit more $.
Do you need to align after ?
You don't have to, but it would be a good idea!
How many miles did this BMW have on clock?
76k I do believe. So right about the 80k mark we expect to see these things start to all fail together.
Clunk when accelerating, if I was to launch I would hear it from the passenger side . What could it be ? Edit: sometimes transmission tunnel
Dangit Alexander stop launching your car and itll stop making that noise ;) All kidding aside it could be something mechanical such as some of the things discussed in this video and our E9X Suspension Diagnostics video. It can be hard to tell whats wrong with just a sound though, sometimes its easier to inspect all the usual suspects visually. If its only caused "if you were to launch it", it could be caused my a failed engine or trans mount as well.
FCP Euro thank you .
B B to have fun?!?
FCP Euro do you have a video on changing motor/ transmission mounts?
FCP Euro also on rare occasions on start up
8:57 obviously you had a hard time taking out the ball joint with that crowd reaction.
it would be more helpful for DIYers if that part’s NOT edited, showing frustrations and interventions you’ve experienced.
otherwise, this is helpful. thanks
Exactly why Mike went over what he did with the pneumatic air gun afterwards! While we want to go over what finally worked, sometimes ther are so many attempt in between it would make for a really long DIY
@@fcpeuro he is funny 😄 anyway
@@fcpeuro theres a product out there by this company crunchysann. it fits over the ball joint and pulls it out of the hub.
I just wanna do the control arms, my car has a bad lca
watching this before buying anything !
Interesting to see this. My G31 is clunking / rattling a bit going over speed bumps. BMW says it's the tie rods bushings with some "oilbearings" that are cracked / worn. They also say troubleshooting, new tie rods, installation and wheel alignment is a 1700 USD job. Seems unreal watching this video that made changing ALL "rods" seem pretty easy.
Lucky me this is a warranty job. But knowing this in the future I'll buy any parts myself and let some non-BMW shop do the work.
Also watching this I'll be sure to ask them if any other bushings are worn too, thinking control arms most likely would be.
definintely ask! tie rods are steering and control arms are suspension, but they typically wear out at the same rate!
Yall are so clutch. You are saving me thousands of dollars...legit. Great videos. F*ck every BMW dealership and all these mechanics charging $900 dollars labor for literally any job, no matter how tedious.
See I have the same car & I don't have the tools to do this & with all the torque spec's I scared to take it to any shop & then the dealership cost to much so do y'all have any shop here in Michigan that u would recommend going to?
Where in Michigan are you Brian? Aside from the ball joint situation most of this DIY can realistically be done with a normal set of hand tools, just takes a bit longer.
Don't hit your E90 hubs too much, they are milled aluminium, you can easily bend some tabs without noticing
for rwd yes, for xdrive they’re all steal . at least that’s what i just heard him say
excellent !