F30 - "knocking" sound from steering/absorber

[alantiong]

Guys, just wanted to clarify if my understanding is correct...does the mere changing of the shock absorbers to (eg Titans) the irritating knocking noise and loose steering feel can be eliminated entirely? If it does, I'll go down that route once my 2-year warranty period expires, which will be pretty soon.

C-square... evidently that has solved many knocking sound related to F30... i have even shown what other issue they (BMW) have in term on the sound. there is a video link somewhere.. its on this thread..

 

[ngiing]

I just sent my car checking for the knocking sound. They found out is the absorber and now waiting for the replacement parts claim under warranty. I just afraid that after not long then the sound comes back again. Its a nightmare oh pls

 

[JoeKenzoM]

ngiing which SC did you send it to?

 

[ngiing]

ngiing which SC did you send it to?

Bro its Regas premium auto at s'wak.

 

[seancorr]

Bro its Regas premium auto at s'wak.

How old is your car now and did this happened recently?

 

[ngiing]

How old is your car now and did this happened recently?

Around 15 months bro. Yes just the sound comes significant recently so I sent in for checking. I dont really know what caused this problem. Or maybe Im very frequent travelling on bumpy road? As most of my usage is not on highway driving for my case.

 

[seancorr]

Around 15 months bro. Yes just the sound comes significant recently so I sent in for checking. I dont really know what caused this problem. Or maybe Im very frequent travelling on bumpy road? As most of my usage is not on highway driving for my case.

Hmm yeah warranty is almost up, best make haste to claim any parts that needs replacement and repairs. My ride is also going through bumpy roads most of the time but so far no knocking sound but the interior noise is on the rise instead.

 

[alantiong]

Around 15 months bro. Yes just the sound comes significant recently so I sent in for checking. I dont really know what caused this problem. Or maybe Im very frequent travelling on bumpy road? As most of my usage is not on highway driving for my case.

yah kuching road will do that to ur F30.. btw. am kuching lang also... same as u..hock chiew kia

 

[JoeKenzoM]

I own a 328i M Sport. Whenever I drive over uneven road or going on hump, I can hear my absorber sound moving. I complained to a SC the other day and was told its "normal". Surely its not normal to hear the suspension on a luxury car. If this is normal, the adaptive m suspension in my opinion is flawed.
Drove a 320d with m suspension and it was quite and firm.

 

[din66]

Hi JoeKenzoM,

I hv the same problem with my car. I did post my case in this forum a few months back. My car is 320i delivered to me at the end ofJan 2014. As I hv mentioned in my earlier post the SC initially said it is normal fow BMW... WHAT ??? When I insisted the second time they inspected my car the whole day... not sure if they really did .... they came back to me and said the shock is the one which give the sound and they will replace it... the moment they said that I knew it not going to solve the issue as that were the solution offerred to many people and did not solve it.. they called me when the new shock arrived, got it change... when I asked the SC he confidently said the knocking sound was gone...but the moment I hit the road and went over a hump the knocking sound is all the same... until today... very bad impression given by my 1st BMW... now waiting for Merc W205 to arrive in Msia... I am going back to C Class early next year... sad... I luv my 320i beside the irritating "wornout lowerarm like" knocking sound, steering rack knocking sound and squeking side mirror when folding/unfolding it. They seem to be commom issues around the globe as I found out from various BMWclub forums.. really can not understand how come BMW could not fixed them..

 

[Mafulat]

fyi, i too had the knocking sound. i recently changed mine to an aftermarket sports shocks and the knocking sound is now gone.

 

[seancorr]

Hi JoeKenzoM,

I hv the same problem with my car. I did post my case in this forum a few months back. My car is 320i delivered to me at the end ofJan 2014. As I hv mentioned in my earlier post the SC initially said it is normal fow BMW... WHAT ??? When I insisted the second time they inspected my car the whole day... not sure if they really did .... they came back to me and said the shock is the one which give the sound and they will replace it... the moment they said that I knew it not going to solve the issue as that were the solution offerred to many people and did not solve it.. they called me when the new shock arrived, got it change... when I asked the SC he confidently said the knocking sound was gone...but the moment I hit the road and went over a hump the knocking sound is all the same... until today... very bad impression given by my 1st BMW... now waiting for Merc W205 to arrive in Msia... I am going back to C Class early next year... sad... I luv my 320i beside the irritating "wornout lowerarm like" knocking sound, steering rack knocking sound and squeking side mirror when folding/unfolding it. They seem to be commom issues around the globe as I found out from various BMWclub forums.. really can not understand how come BMW could not fixed them..

Ur not alone on going to the W205 haha but my complaints on the squeaking mirrors, interior noise and steering rack vibration sound have been solved by the dealer so I think will stick to the F30 a bit more longer and see how it fares the test of time before I consider a brand switch.

 

[Whyohwhybmw]

First of all , I would like to thank our brothers who shared all their experiences in encountering the steering/absorber problems and the ultimate solution to this problem. I have too personally endured all the horrible experiences you guys faced with the highly glorified so called Bmw service centre.

It all started when the knock sound started appearing and the countless times of wait times I faced , days and days just to diagnose and replace the steering rack to no avail. The final result was just reduced noise but the whole Bmw experience has been ruined because of that knocking sound especially going over bumps and rough roads. Again I complained but the service centre just told me that all f30 has the same issue pertaining to 'free play' and all they can do is to tighten it and reduce the noise.

I took the reason like a bitter pill, BMW why oh why can't you solve this small but killing the experience problem? Luckily thanks to bro alantiong and Titan, my F30 328i is meant to be appreciated more.

Titan Luxury Absorbers will solve this that no other BMW service centers can. I met Wai loong and his dad Richard that day, I told Wai loong about my problem and we went for a test drive , instantly the problem was heard and it's similar with the other F30 he worked on. He briefed me on the benefits of the Titan luxury absorber and the miracle it did eliminating the sound. At fist I wondered, how can this absorber solve the problem while a well known quill service centre can't solve? That was my main reason to be there I told him , to solve the knock sound while going over bumps.

After the pre test drive , he started working on installing the absorbers, when he removed the stock BMW absorbers and put it next to the Titan absorbers..... It then hit me, the difference of the Titan shaft compared to the original is enough to give you confidence that there is going to be hope.

Once all installed, Wai loong brought me for a test drive, and as promised, the knocking sound was eliminated, all gone after going through road bumps. Moreover, the handling , taking cornering, control, the feel and new experience of driving without the noise has been elevated to a new level. Money well spent although I would have preferred BMW to cover the cost for me thanks to their failed absorbers.

After driving through the highways and rough roads , I believe that the new absorbers really helped.

I have also located a rattling sound coming from the steering rack, it was changed and claimed once but somehow there's rattling sound at the steering wheel every time when the car starts up. In conclusion, yes both the steering AND the absorbers are big issues for BMW. I will bring in for a check after raya at the service centre for this last noise issue and I hope like you guys to solve this once and forever.

Thanks again to this forum and Titan shocks to help solve the major issue I faced to achieve the BMW experience.

 

[seancorr]

First of all , I would like to thank our brothers who shared all their experiences in encountering the steering/absorber problems and the ultimate solution to this problem. I have too personally endured all the horrible experiences you guys faced with the highly glorified so called Bmw service centre.

It all started when the knock sound started appearing and the countless times of wait times I faced , days and days just to diagnose and replace the steering rack to no avail. The final result was just reduced noise but the whole Bmw experience has been ruined because of that knocking sound especially going over bumps and rough roads. Again I complained but the service centre just told me that all f30 has the same issue pertaining to 'free play' and all they can do is to tighten it and reduce the noise.

I took the reason like a bitter pill, BMW why oh why can't you solve this small but killing the experience problem? Luckily thanks to bro alantiong and Titan, my F30 328i is meant to be appreciated more.

Titan Luxury Absorbers will solve this that no other BMW service centers can. I met Wai loong and his dad Richard that day, I told Wai loong about my problem and we went for a test drive , instantly the problem was heard and it's similar with the other F30 he worked on. He briefed me on the benefits of the Titan luxury absorber and the miracle it did eliminating the sound. At fist I wondered, how can this absorber solve the problem while a well known quill service centre can't solve? That was my main reason to be there I told him , to solve the knock sound while going over bumps.

After the pre test drive , he started working on installing the absorbers, when he removed the stock BMW absorbers and put it next to the Titan absorbers..... It then hit me, the difference of the Titan shaft compared to the original is enough to give you confidence that there is going to be hope.

Once all installed, Wai loong brought me for a test drive, and as promised, the knocking sound was eliminated, all gone after going through road bumps. Moreover, the handling , taking cornering, control, the feel and new experience of driving without the noise has been elevated to a new level. Money well spent although I would have preferred BMW to cover the cost for me thanks to their failed absorbers.

After driving through the highways and rough roads , I believe that the new absorbers really helped.

I have also located a rattling sound coming from the steering rack, it was changed and claimed once but somehow there's rattling sound at the steering wheel every time when the car starts up. In conclusion, yes both the steering AND the absorbers are big issues for BMW. I will bring in for a check after raya at the service centre for this last noise issue and I hope like you guys to solve this once and forever.

Thanks again to this forum and Titan shocks to help solve the major issue I faced to achieve the BMW experience.

How old is your car bro?

Touch wood but my car hasn't gotten that annoying knocking noise that some people have and mine is manufactured mid 2013 so maybe they have rectified the issue in the factory?

My only major issue apart from some other minor issues was some vibration noise coming from the steering column but it isn't a knocking noise but after Quill replaced the part and rectified the other minor issues, the noise is gone and my car drives like how a BMW should - noise free and i seriously hope it stays that way for the time I own this car until the next. Now Quill has to work on not damaging the customer car's interior while troubleshooting it!

 

[Whyohwhybmw]

How old is your car bro?

Touch wood but my car hasn't gotten that annoying knocking noise that some people have and mine is manufactured mid 2013 so maybe they have rectified the issue in the factory?

My only major issue apart from some other minor issues was some vibration noise coming from the steering column but it isn't a knocking noise but after Quill replaced the part and rectified the other minor issues, the noise is gone and my car drives like how a BMW should - noise free and i seriously hope it stays that way for the time I own this car until the next. Now Quill has to work on not damaging the customer car's interior while troubleshooting it!

My car is 2 and a half years old, the absorber noise as I have found out noise came after a year, was driving with it since then.
I guess I am facing the same vibration rattle like a screw loose with the steering wheel now although it was replaced a year ago. Every time i fire the ignition button, and once a bit over rough surface I can hear the rattle coming from the steering column.
It is rather sad that I have to take the initiative to slowly eliminate the sound and problems part by part rather than the service centre doing it for me.
I was actually having both problems at the same time then and my service centre cant even solve one and conveniently said it's the F30 unique 'free play' and kindly accept the noise. At least now the major knocking sound is solved with the new absorbers plus additional benefits.

 

[Whyohwhybmw]

My car is 2 and a half years old, the absorber noise as I have found out noise came after a year, was driving with it since then.
I guess I am facing the same vibration rattle like a screw loose with the steering wheel now although it was replaced a year ago. Every time i fire the ignition button, and once a bit over rough surface I can hear the rattle coming from the steering column.
It is rather sad that I have to take the initiative to slowly eliminate the sound and problems part by part rather than the service centre doing it for me.

Old vs new absorbers

 

[tigger]

Old vs new absorbers

image.jpg

How much did it cost you to change the absorbers to Titan?

 

[seancorr]

My car is 2 and a half years old, the absorber noise as I have found out noise came after a year, was driving with it since then.
I guess I am facing the same vibration rattle like a screw loose with the steering wheel now although it was replaced a year ago. Every time i fire the ignition button, and once a bit over rough surface I can hear the rattle coming from the steering column.
It is rather sad that I have to take the initiative to slowly eliminate the sound and problems part by part rather than the service centre doing it for me.
I was actually having both problems at the same time then and my service centre cant even solve one and conveniently said it's the F30 unique 'free play' and kindly accept the noise. At least now the major knocking sound is solved with the new absorbers plus additional benefits.

I see so your car is more or less the first few batches of F30 back in 2012 and as I recall the cars had a lot of issues back then.

You can actually talk to the dealer and press them to solve it and they have the responsibility to do it within the warranty period. For my case I called BMW Voice and raised the issue and soon Quill contacted me to offer to solve my car issues and since then my car is working fine apart from some damage done during troubleshooting which I'm waiting to have it fixed by them after Raya. I know it does take up a lot of time and as customers we aren't supposed to go through this ordeal but BMW cars made here in Bolehland has that famous reputation for substandard QC.

Don't get me wrong despite the issues I still like my F30 but my final judgement of the BMW brand will come after the warranty expires.

 

[Whyohwhybmw]

.

I see so your car is more or less the first few batches of F30 back in 2012 and as I recall the cars had a lot of issues back then.

You can actually talk to the dealer and press them to solve it and they have the responsibility to do it within the warranty period. For my case I called BMW Voice and raised the issue and soon Quill contacted me to offer to solve my car issues and since then my car is working fine apart from some damage done during troubleshooting which I'm waiting to have it fixed by them after Raya. I know it does take up a lot of time and as customers we aren't supposed to go through this ordeal but BMW cars made here in Bolehland has that famous reputation for substandard QC.

Don't get me wrong despite the issues I still like my F30 but my final judgement of the BMW brand will come after the warranty expires.

I love my BMW 328i too, but the service and time wasted will make me think twice in future whether to get a BMW again. I hope they can still change my perception when I visit them again soon. I am taking the new absorbers as a performance upgrade and at the same time solving the major bump noise, I hope the service centre can solve the steering rattle noise now.
Tigger,sungami, Please contact Titan directly , they are pretty easy to find over the internet, only 1 main shop in kl.

 

[fj.sham]

last month was my 4rd time I have changed 'latest batch of steering rack'.. after driving a few days, the sound is there again. OMG.. the same thing I was thinking that is the BMW really stupid to resolved the issues or our dealer/SC in Malaysia no experience enough to understand where the sounds come from.. I do happy to hear that absorber is the issues and not the steering rack. I will consult AB SC by this Friday (for another checking request by AB) but I still believed they will stand with steering rack. will keep all of you updated.