BMW F31 wheel alignment :/

[AlpineF30]

Would they not be staggered wheels?

IIIRC on my old F30 they were the same size all round

 

[BBSBOY]

If they are 19’s then they will be staggered. Couldn’t see even Bavarian making that mistake.

 

[Michael M]

Would they not be staggered wheels?

Depends really, M Sport model will be staggered so no option to rotate back to front. Looking at the KDS looks like it is an M Sport.

@jinjur my input would be faulty rack has caused uneven wear on tyres so now it has been replaced and Alignment done, they are source of the issue. As said above can you run your hand on inner and outer edges to check for uneven wear or twists in tyre?

Difficult to tell but might be worthwhile booking in to get the alignment checked. Most places will check it for free. Just for peace of mind really then go to tyres for next step

 

[BBSBOY]

Depends really, M Sport model will be staggered so no option to rotate back to front. Looking at the KDS looks like it is an M Sport.

@jinjur my input would be faulty rack has caused uneven wear on tyres so now it has been replaced and Alignment done, they are source of the issue. As said above can you run your hand on inner and outer edges to check for uneven wear or twists in tyre?

Difficult to tell but might be worthwhile booking in to get the alignment checked. Most places will check it for free. Just for peace of mind really then go to tyres for next step

Have you ever seen a non m sport with 19” wheels though?

 

[Lyons]

Quite a few in Luxury trim with 19’s.

 

[Michael M]

Not that I can remember no.

Majority of non M Sports I would see would be running 17’s

 

[BBSBOY]

The only 19” wheels on the f30 are m sports and are staggered. That’s not to say some one has spec’d them or added them but with this one being under warranty I’d guess it’s factory.

Luxuary models come with 18’s on the f30. Your prob thinking of the e9X

 

[NotKG]

M sport here on 18's and same all round .

 

[BBSBOY]

M sport here on 18's and same all round .

It states 19” on the alignment report and my point is you can’t get non staggered 19” wheels for the f30 unless it’s aftermarket.

 

[jinjur]

Sorry for the slow reply guys.....dying of the cold here....full on man flu.

You are quite right....255 35 19 on the rear and 225 40 19 up front.

Standard bmw wheels but refurbished to ditch the nasty stock diamond cut that fails so hard.

Yep. MSport and under BMW warranty so if a rack replacement has left it in a state with regards to alignment then now is the time to sort it. You know?

So they have not been swapped :/

J

 

[jinjur]

Depends really, M Sport model will be staggered so no option to rotate back to front. Looking at the KDS looks like it is an M Sport.

@jinjur my input would be faulty rack has caused uneven wear on tyres so now it has been replaced and Alignment done, they are source of the issue. As said above can you run your hand on inner and outer edges to check for uneven wear or twists in tyre?

Difficult to tell but might be worthwhile booking in to get the alignment checked. Most places will check it for free. Just for peace of mind really then go to tyres for next step

Hi mate....sounds sensible enough. Will give the tyres an eyeball.

Was considering seeing if JKC might eyeball it with regards to alignment as will be up that way soon.

That might be overkill though and might be frowned upon from BMW warranty perspective.

 

[Marc]

Give Ivan at Ivan Kerr tyres a shout, John who works there is fantastic, have had a few alignments done with them and no complaints at all.

 

[jinjur]

Thanks bud

 

[Apis]

And there's def nothing else wrong, like some wear in a bushing or a balljoint. Aligns ok in the shop but moves when drives on the road. Feels vague at speed on straight ahead.

 

[jinjur]

There was nothing wrong till the rack was replaced.

47k miles.

:/

 

[NotKG]

where is the palmface gif?

you were used to driving it with a fault, now its fixed you have to allow the tyres to 'wear in' to the road and your driving.
imagine it the other way round.
it was fine up to i bashed it off a kerb. How on earth can it be like this? it's mind boggling!!

 

[jinjur]

Jaysus man ..................there were no kerbs................car was bought from BMW with a knocking rack a month ago.............car still drove laser beam perfect............BMW then replaced the rack because they deemed it dangerous and this is a well known issue with the F30/1 rack........alignment does not fix the issue as the alignment is not out when it is knocking..................generally a straight replacement approved form BMW, no issues............but now it drives worse

In nearly 30 years driving............I have NEVER had a car drive worse after it has been aligned properly New tyres, old tyres, scrubbed tyres, 60 profile, 40 profile.......never

EVER.

I hear what you are saying and I am not dismissing it..........but if it isn't right still...........and BMW have not chosen to say "let the tyres scrub in, it will be ropey for a fewe hundred miles" (in fact, could you imagine Bavarian EVER saying that?)...........i still find it hard to accept as a complete package.............if that is the case, then new tyres should be on the warranty list if indeed defective steering has caused them to wear in a manner that leaves the car uneasy now.

p.s. around 400 miles on the car since this work was done

No change and I haven't been giving it an easy time.

 

[Marc]

Jaysus man ..................there were no kerbs................car was bought from BMW with a knocking rack a month ago.............car still drove laser beam perfect............BMW then replaced the rack because they deemed it dangerous and this is a well known issue with the F30/1 rack........alignment does not fix the issue as the alignment is not out when it is knocking..................generally a straight replacement approved form BMW, no issues............but now it drives worse

In nearly 30 years driving............I have NEVER had a car drive worse after it has been aligned properly New tyres, old tyres, scrubbed tyres, 60 profile, 40 profile.......never

EVER.

I hear what you are saying and I am not dismissing it..........but if it isn't right still...........and BMW have not chosen to say "let the tyres scrub in, it will be ropey for a fewe hundred miles" (in fact, could you imagine Bavarian EVER saying that?)...........i still find it hard to accept as a complete package.............if that is the case, then new tyres should be on the warranty list if indeed defective steering has caused them to wear in a manner that leaves the car uneasy now.

p.s. around 400 miles on the car since this work was done

No change and I haven't been giving it an easy time.

Honestly get it checked, @RubberLover is a great guy to chat with, and he can correct me if I’m wrong, but when I took my wife’s car in for alignment it was booked in for 4 wheel alignment, but with a static rear he could do no adjustment on I was charged half price for 2 wheel alignment, So if your car is totally in spec I’m sure they will look after you.

You can also stand in his warm waiting room watching the screen connected up to his hunter alignment system to see what the car is set to, and he changes they make in real time.

For the small charge I definitely don’t think you will regret it, my track car has never felt better and I have had it at a few other “alignment” places.

 

[jinjur]

Will give them a wee shout tomorrow............at least if its out I will be going back to Bavarian cap in hand to cover it

Cheers @Marc

 

[Neil Kirkpatrick]

Here my guess on what could be the causes, but it is hard to gauge without seeing the car or driving it. Take it to someone who can check your tyres and alignment properly, and it will narrow this list down

The alignment is out due to a BMW KDS machine being out of calibration

The Servotronic steering needs reprogramming

The tyres have wore excessively uneven causing the car to fight for the straight ahead position

Or there is fault with the rack or the way it has been fitted

 

[NotKG]

and assuminga bmw mechanic fitted it, and the machine is calibrated, and the tracking is set correct, as these are all professionals , that leaves 1 thing lol

 

[jinjur]

and assuminga bmw mechanic fitted it, and the machine is calibrated, and the tracking is set correct, as these are all professionals , that leaves 1 thing lol

The very same professionals who fitted the rack initially and sent it out with the alignment seemingly and self admittedly incorrect?

I get my Clio aligned fully if I wash the wheels too hard never mind dropping a subframe.

And don't forget.....this is one of those funky servotronic racks that has to coded to work. I think you are simplifying things too much friend.

Last big refresh of the Clio front end saw the alignment hugely out.....and this didn't involve any subframe work. Magowans aligned that thing so hard it made a ruler look bent.

No bedding in required.

 

[jinjur]

Right-o

Called up to Ivan at the weekend and he kindly threw the car on the Hunter machine and checked it for me.

Nothing massively out of alignment, slight toe and camber issues flagged but obviously not shown as an issue on the BMW KDS sheet. I appreciate that there are going to be slight differences between systems etc. Certainly nothing shown as alarming.

Given that we now have around 1000 miles on the tyres post KDS alignment and I can still feel this slight vagueness......would it be fair ( or indeed, am i being a **** ) to throw this back to BMW?

Not exactly sure where I stand as this is all of course subjectively based on how i feel the car behaving and I am sure many would see it as being acceptable

Wifey doesn't notice anything (loves the car too much I think) but I still feel this ever so slight difference to how it was.

J

 

[NotKG]

have you run flats or regular tyres?
just saying, caus i drive a van FWD 99% of the time then jump in the car and it feels a bit twitchy, then 5 mile down the road i'm getting the swing again, but RWD and no load on steering as such, i sort of blame the runflats for a little vagueness ot twitching, and the sports suspension. and i only feel it up at motorway speed, i'v only 400 mls on the car since purchase, nearly 3 months ago, maybe the same oddness is the previous owners driving style cut into the tyre.! i'm not sure, it's no biggie (maybe in my head, havent drive a car of my own as RWD since owning a MKII escort in early 80's)
son has a BMW with regular tyres fitted and its totally normal feeling compared tto mine.
when i'm changing, i will source a spare or a kit and change to regular hoops i think.

 

[Michael M]

Bit of a long shot but would it be worthwhile trying to find someone with the same car and taking it for a drive to see how they compare? Maybe even suggest it to the dealer?