You know, just a new problem with my car

[RossBMWZseries]

Last night I was running errands and the car felt just fine. When I got home, I passed my driveway to reverse into my garage to park the car. At that moment when I put it on reverse and steered right to back up, I heard and felt a loud knock underneath. It felt as if the car “dropped”. I get out of the car to check it and to my surprise, my passenger tire was punctured by the fender. Apparently the tire was more than rubbing against the fender and side skirt. It looked as if the entire wheel and tire was pushed up towards the fender and outwards. It bent my fender a bit. Keep in mind that at this moment, my car is in the middle of the street because it can’t move. The tire is literally stuck with the fender. With the help of my brothers, we jacked the car up using the front right jack pad to inspect the wheel and suspension components. I jerked and wiggled the wheel around, there was a LOT of play. I couldn’t see much in there so we decided to remove the wheel. We were directing traffic to go a different route. Only Smaller vehicles were able to squeeze right by. Once the wheel was off, I noticed that the control arm was where the play was coming from. Wiggling the rotor, it was clear to see the control arm moving. There’s a bolt that connects the control arm to the subframe. Couldn’t tell if that bolt snapped in half or it just came off the subframe. Again, couldn’t tell if it’s a bolt, that’s what it looked like. The only way to get the car out the way was to “kick” the tire in, to place it straight as the driver’s side. This process took about 1.5 hours to get the car to a safer spot, and by safer spot I mean on the side of the road sticking out at an angle from my driveway. We had to kick the tire, reverse the car a few inches and the tire would slip out again. Jack the car up, kick the tire, reverse, tire slips out again, repeat the same process over and over, gaining a few inches every time. I had my rod bearings done a couple of weeks ago. They dropped the subframe to do the job. Could this issue be the cause of a bolt that was overtightened and snapped in half? Or does this happen “just because” it’s an old car? I can’t jack up the car where it’s at now because 1) it’s not safe to do it on the street with traffic flow and 2) it’s sitting at a weird angle, I just wouldn’t feel safe going underneath to inspect the car and remove the parts. Is this something I can DIY or would I need special tools to maybe lift the subframe or could the control arm just be adjusted from the bottom with a new bolt if needed? I go back to work tomorrow and I’d hate to leave the car out there like that. I tried different spare tires with same bolt pattern but they don’t clear the rotor and caliper. I need a solution asap to drive the car to a shop or at least inside my garage. I doubt a tow truck would do anything that could avoid damaging the body when they pull it up the ramp. Here are some pics.

[Huz-Z]

So sorry to hear of this but happily this didn’t happen at speed so no one was hurt. Which is paramount .

It seems to me that lots of folks have first year E85s from 2003 and likely with darn high mileage. I’ve been here a while and never heard of this before. The fact that you recently had work done in this area of the car definitely needs to be looked into to see if it contributed to or caused this.

Shouldn’t towing companies have a dolly that can be placed under the car so it can be pulled up on a truck and towed without further damage?

[racerbruce]

This is NOT good....so sorry.
Agree with Huz's post - a flatbed tow truck and a dolly under the RF is a great option to move the car to a place for repair; knowing the subframe was just removed is either related as a terrible coincidence, or as you said - a snapped fastener, perhaps.

[RossBMWZseries]

Thank you for the response gentlemen. As Huz-Z stated, I'm glad it didn't happen while driving or away from home. I sent pictures to the shop that night, and they replied to me this morning. They said that they don't disconnect the ball joint from the subframe assembly. The only place they disconnect it from is the bushing mount at the body. They said the ball joint appears broken from what they can see in the pictures. They sent me a link in case I'm going to DIY it. Has anyone swapped out the ball joint before? Would I need any other parts for this replacement?

It's still mind boggling why this part just broke if I didn't hit a pothole or crashed. I mean I did crash years ago but that was YEARS ago.

[tiltmode43]

Oh man, sorry to hear! That's the worst, right after buttoning up one area (rod bearings), to run into a problem elsewhere. Horrible timing with this all! Was the prior accident on the pass front?

I haven't touched the ball joint but hopefully others can contribute. Best of luck!

[RossBMWZseries]

Originally Posted by tiltmode43

Oh man, sorry to hear! That's the worst, right after buttoning up one area (rod bearings), to run into a problem elsewhere. Horrible timing with this all! Was the prior accident on the pass front?

I haven't touched the ball joint but hopefully others can contribute. Best of luck!

The prior accident was in fact on the passenger side, both front and back. The wheels cracked and most of my suspension components were replaced. I can try and understand that the rack and pinion needs replacement now as there's play but it wasn't noticeable to the naked eye years back when this happened. As far as the ball joint, I suppose the impact made it fragile and finally snapped after a few years. Perhaps when they lowered the subframe for the rod bearings job was the last thing it needed to finally snap, I don't know.

I'm going to DIY it, doesn't seem too hard of a job to do. I just can't jack up the car where it stands at this point; at an angle in the street and with the rear wheel almost hanging down on the curb. I wouldn't feel safe even with 8 jack stands and 2 jacks.

I need to order the ball joint but can't seem to find it on realoem. Seems to be attached to the control arm but if I remember correctly, the control arm is sold individually with no bushings or ball joint. Anyone know the part number?

[rockstar93]

That's a shame - I feel for you, seems you're not having much luck with your car. On the bright side, you're one step closer to an as-new, refreshed car.

If you wanted to DIY, I'd use a couple dollies like this to move it around until you get it fixed, but idk how easily that would make it to roll it (onto and up) your driveway.

Also maybe check the driver's side - because if it was from dropping the subframe, or torquing them down I'd imagine the shop (either the rod bearing shop or the post-accident shop) treated both sides the same.

[RossBMWZseries]

Originally Posted by rockstar93

That's a shame - I feel for you, seems you're not having much luck with your car. On the bright side, you're one step closer to an as-new, refreshed car.

If you wanted to DIY, I'd use a couple dollies like this to move it around until you get it fixed, but idk how easily that would make it to roll it (onto and up) your driveway.

Also maybe check the driver's side - because if it was from dropping the subframe, or torquing them down I'd imagine the shop (either the rod bearing shop or the post-accident shop) treated both sides the same.

Thanks, that's definitely one way to see it! I'll try and get dollies like those. I was going to order both front control arms but they were replaced after the accident about 4 years ago, honestly, they still look new and in working condition. I do NOT recall the control arms having new ball joints attached when I bought them, so my guess is that they were not replaced back then after the accident. I'm just gonna order the ball joints for both front/right, get a set of dollies at my local harbor freight, and take it from there.

Actually, I just noticed that the ball joints on ECS Tuning are for Z3M and other chassis, except the E85 M. Looks like I'm going to have to purchase the control arms

[Vanne]

Ross, man sooo lucky that didn't happen at speed mate.. holy cows, I could only imagine what wold have happened then, to you AND the car...

glad your okay man, and new control arms are always a good idea, makes things tighter

(gotta look at it with a positive spin

[RossBMWZseries]

Very true Vanne, thanks for the positive vibes!

I found these 2 control arms on bavauto. One of them is listed as Lemfoerder ZHP control arm for $165
https://www.bavauto.com/bmw-control-arm-2536801

And the other one is also a Lemfoerder but isn't listed as ZHP, goes for $140. Looks just like the ZHP. Is there really a difference or can I save $25 here?
https://www.bavauto.com/bmw-control-arm-1791901

[racerbruce]

Originally Posted by RossBMWZseries

Very true Vanne, thanks for the positive vibes!

I found these 2 control arms on bavauto. One of them is listed as Lemfoerder ZHP control arm for $165
https://www.bavauto.com/bmw-control-arm-2536801

And the other one is also a Lemfoerder but isn't listed as ZHP, goes for $140. Looks just like the ZHP. Is there really a difference or can I save $25 here?
https://www.bavauto.com/bmw-control-arm-1791901

https://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-1...e-left-e46-z4/

The ZHP have all metal ball joints instead of plastic or rubber

[RossBMWZseries]

Originally Posted by racerbruce

https://www.turnermotorsport.com/p-1...e-left-e46-z4/

The ZHP have all metal ball joints instead of plastic or rubber

Thanks racerbruce. I ordered the Meyle control arm which has the metal ball joints.

[elerner61]

I love how Turner recommends replacing the ball joints "every 4 years" for a street driven car. Nothing about mileage.

[RossBMWZseries]

Elerner, I read your post from last year and you pointed out that bolting up the bushing is the biggest challenge, not being able to sit it flush. How exactly did you do this? So far, I’ve taken 10 hours today to replace the control arm. I sweeeeaaaaar i thought it’d take me no more than 3 hours, given the fact that I’ve never swapped control arms. Well, it was much easier to remove the ball joints using a pickle fork. The bushing was already out of the control arm so I didn’t need a special tool for that one.

Putting on the new control arm:
I put the bushing on the control arm, gave it a few hits with the mallet and it sat just fine.

The problem I can’t seem to figure out:
I’m following the guide provided by Pelican Parts. The guide below indicates that I first need to tighten the ball joint to the subframe using my fingers, then the ball joint to the steering knuckle. At last, install the two 16mm bolts that hook the bushing to the car. THAT right there is what I can’t do. The bushing doesn’t sit flush with the body, not even close. I tightened the ball joints as much as I could, but it looks like I can still tighten them a little more. Unfortunately I don’t have much access to teach in there. Any suggestions? I don’t really wanna have to leave my car on jack stands on the side of the road outside my house.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by RossBMWZseries

Elerner, I read your post from last year and you pointed out that bolting up the bushing is the biggest challenge, not being able to sit it flush. How exactly did you do this? So far, I’ve taken 10 hours today to replace the control arm. I sweeeeaaaaar i thought it’d take me no more than 3 hours, given the fact that I’ve never swapped control arms. Well, it was much easier to remove the ball joints using a pickle fork. The bushing was already out of the control arm so I didn’t need a special tool for that one.

Putting on the new control arm:
I put the bushing on the control arm, gave it a few hits with the mallet and it sat just fine.

The problem I can’t seem to figure out:
I’m following the guide provided by Pelican Parts. The guide below indicates that I first need to tighten the ball joint to the subframe using my fingers, then the ball joint to the steering knuckle. At last, install the two 16mm bolts that hook the bushing to the car. THAT right there is what I can’t do. The bushing doesn’t sit flush with the body, not even close. I tightened the ball joints as much as I could, but it looks like I can still tighten them a little more. Unfortunately I don’t have much access to teach in there. Any suggestions? I don’t really wanna have to leave my car on jack stands on the side of the road outside my house.

Try loading the wheel carrier with a floor jack (i.e. put a jack under the brake rotor) and slowly jack up the suspension to its ride height. Also, is the ball joint all the way fitted into the subframe? You can jack underneath the ball joint to fully seat it.

[RossBMWZseries]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

Try loading the wheel carrier with a floor jack (i.e. put a jack under the brake rotor) and slowly jack up the suspension to its ride height. Also, is the ball joint all the way fitted into the subframe? You can jack underneath the ball joint to fully seat it.

Thanks for the response. I put the jack under the ball joint connecting to the steering knuckle, not the actual rotor. Also put it under the ball joint connecting to the subframe. I’m thinking the problem is the ball joint not being fully seated into place because of the lack of space to tighten the nut. I’m doing it with a socket, gonna go buy a ratcheting wrench, hopefully that does the trick.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by RossBMWZseries

Thanks for the response. I put the jack under the ball joint connecting to the steering knuckle, not the actual rotor. Also put it under the ball joint connecting to the subframe. I’m thinking the problem is the ball joint not being fully seated into place because of the lack of space to tighten the nut. I’m doing it with a socket, gonna go buy a ratcheting wrench, hopefully that does the trick.

I've not done a Z4 wishbone, but I have on the Z3, which is basically the same exact design. I had the same issue and found the center ball joint shaft needs to be pressed into the subframe to seat correctly, which should bring the bushing mount closer to the frame. Dumb question... are you sure you have the right-side bushing on the end of the wishbone?

[RossBMWZseries]

I see. Lol yea I triple checked it’s facing the correct way. There’s only one way it can face as the bushing bracket sits on the dowel where the bolts go.

[RossBMWZseries]

So I lifted each ball joint individually with the jack, one after the other. I was able to tighten the nuts all the way. This brought the bushing bracket with the two bolts closer to the frame, allowing me to insert the bolts and tighten them. However, as a perfectionist, this is not OK with me. The rear bolt of the bushing bracket seems to be sitting on the dowel just fine, but the front bolt of the bracket clearly is not. I couldn’t tighten it anymore though, meaning it’s not sitting on the dowel. Here are some pics of the front and rear of the bushing bracket. Also, check the picture where it shows the center ball joint’s nut. It doesn’t seem to be seating all the way but I CANNOT tighten it anymore. I can’t tell if there’s gunk from an oil leak stuck between the top of the subframe and the nut on the ball joint. Perhaps that’s why the bushing bracket won’t sit properly.

[RossBMWZseries]

Here’s some thread closure: I tightened the bolts on the lollipop just enough to drive to my mechanic’s shop where he was able to put the car on the lift, undo the bolts, lifted the suspension, and the bushing bracket sat correctly this time. Got my belts replaced and the boot cover for the tie rod ends. Car is running now and with the rod bearings replaced, I can’t wait to put my foot deep in the pedal. Here are a few pictures of the ball joint where it snapped in half. How? We don’t know. Didn’t crash, didn’t hit a pothole, didn’t hit anything. Did this happen just because on a new control arm that was replaced 2 years ago? Maybe. You can also see how it bent my fender a bit when the joint snapped.

[StickMon]

Damn!
Looks like it was sawed off.
Must have been a defect in the metal.