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Originally Posted by silversled  well, I gotta tell ya that I don't it's faulty components...sounds like faulty installation to me...whaddya think? You said you did yourself right? I don't think that that many parts could be faulty at once. The only thing common to your description is the installer....hmmm... that would be you right? |
No, I did not install the suspension. I do not have all the tools or space to do it myself. Two defective struts are not a lot of parts, and being that they were produced at the same time, why is it not foreseeable that they could both be problems.
To clarify, all of the parts I replaced were replaced for performance reasons. Not because they were broken. When the struts were installed last year (June 2008) I made sure I replaced the strut bearings with them (because that's what you're supposed to do). Other items like tie rods and control arms were original with the car. They had over 80,000 miles on them at the time and needed replacing. With that said I replaced them last month to tighten the steering and bring back control and handling to the car.
If the installation was faulty, do you honestly think I could have driven 13 months and 9,000+ miles before there was a problem? No, if there was a problem with the installation it would have been apparent from the beginning. Also, the components only install one way. It's damn near impossible to botch it but I'll get to that later.
On the other hand, if there was a defect in the struts (produced at the same time during a production run) like the seal that isolates the piston rod from the compression tube. Is it not reasonable that they would have had problems from the start but I wouldn't have noticed until they finally failed?
I purchased the suspension from Turner Motorsport in Amesbury, Mass. They are a BMW specialist and the struts, shocks and springs were a package deal. It took them three business days to reimburse me for my struts because they were able to see that there was an inherit defect in their construction. Do you think they would give me my money back if they thought I screwed them up? I can guarantee you they wouldn't.
Finally, I'm going to address the installation matter of this. My mechanic, sorry, my ASE master certified technician, a man who owns a heavily modified E34 BTW, who also happens to be a suspension specialist is by no means at fault for this. Not only did he make sure everything was set at the proper torque setting when I picked up the car, but he also had me drop it off a few days later after driving the car to make sure everything was still properly set. How did he do all of this? With a torque wrench on the ground and not on a lift. Once again, I can't emphasize enough that nothing on my car has been ghetto rigged and for some reason you still think to have this idea "I did something wrong" without any real evidence to back it up.
My car is not the only BMW with a modified suspension and it by far not the most modified nor will it ever be.
I did NOT install it, I did NOT break it, and it was proven beyond a reasonable doubt that the struts had a manufacturers defect both by Turner Motorsport and Bilstein of North America.
I take care of my car and I do not abuse it. I avoid potholes like the plague and this car rarely sees a rainy day. This situation was not a big deal and it's been over for quite some time now. No problems since, no worries, and the car handles great. Even better than it originally did when the struts were replaced last year.
I freaking wrote a novel and now I'm done.
PS, what did my problems have to do with the problems of the original poster? Nothing because I never had wheel shimmy/wobble.
I try to keep it real from time to time. 
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