Racer20's deep dive into the strut clunk.

[Alan l.]

FYI i had the steering clunk from day one of picking up my F80 brand new from the dealer. The steering bolt fix eliminated it for good after living with it for over a year.

[winnzor]

Thank you so much! 3 notches and the clunk is gone completely. More interessing is though, that steering wheel vibrations at highway speeds r gone too.

[winnzor]

Originally Posted by jzmundy

Probably closer to 4-5 notches.

Note that, by my count, there are 30 equally-spaced notches on the adjustment bolt assembly. So tightening 3-4 notches corresponds to about 1/8 turn (as has been quoted earlier in this thread and others). It's very difficult to get a good look at these notches while on your back, under the car, so I found it was easier to go by fractions of a full rotation (1/8, etc.). Pic below for reference.

Use a mirror and a marker.

[65fastback]

The "clunk" has been bugging me from the first day I bought it about 10 months ago I am the second owner... the original owner had eibach springs installed back in 2017 shortly after buy it ( M4 ).

I just gave this a shot it took about 4-5 notches worth of adjustment for me to make it go away. The side affect as other have mentioned is a tighter wheel feel, I am not crazy about it but its way way better than the alternative clunk! I may back it off a touch and see if that helps loosen the wheel up a bit.

Anyway huge thanks to racer20 for his passion for finding truth and passing it on to us. I would have just lived with it for the entire time I own my M4 if not for this thread.
Cheers! racer20

[NE_M3]

I have a clunk on both sides. This fix works for the drivers side, but it still does it on the passenger side. Hopefully there’s an adjustment there too. PS - the steering is too tight and I hate it! I honestly don’t know which is worse, the clunk or the tight steering!

[ats101]

I just read this thread for the phuck of it.

Big respect to Racer for investing all that time, money and effort and NOT giving up - there must have been a lot of heart breaking first drives.

Thanks to everyone who contributed too.

[Racer20]

Originally Posted by ats101

I just read this thread for the phuck of it.

Big respect to Racer for investing all that time, money and effort and NOT giving up - there must have been a lot of heart breaking first drives.

Thanks to everyone who contributed too.

Haha, yes there was. This issue consumed my life for a couple months and cost thousands of dollars, and in the end was just a simple turn of a bolt. Oh well, I made the journey so you guys don't have to. Glad to help the community.

Also want to point out that it was Encanto that brought the solution to the thread. I just verified it.

[Eric SS]

I ended up doing this over the weekend because I wasn't' sure where my clunk was coming from. It ended up being a different issue but I don't feel any negative effects from doing this. The steering still feels fine.

I watched a video of someone with an F30 doing this and the way he figured out the "clunk" was by moving the steering wheel back and forth at a relatively fast pace with the car off. I tried this and you can definitely feel and hear the play when you do this. I did the three notches in this thread and the play was decreased as was the noise from inside the steering box. So whether I needed to do this or not I'm not 100% sure because I did this at the same time as tightening the bolt that caused my other "clunk" issue. However I don't see any harm in doing it and the steering still feels fine (not too tight) so I'll take it!

Thanks to OP for going through all of this work. The fix (if this is your issue) is very straight forward.

[F80Speed77]

Originally Posted by Eric SS

I ended up doing this over the weekend because I wasn't' sure where my clunk was coming from. It ended up being a different issue but I don't feel any negative effects from doing this. The steering still feels fine.

What was your other issue? I tightened the rack bolt on mine but I still get the clunk.

[mattylmbr]

Originally Posted by F80Speed77

What was your other issue? I tightened the rack bolt on mine but I still get the clunk.

Same here. Tightened rack - still had a clunk.

Clunk ended up being a loose lock nut on the thrust bolt on my drivers side. Car is now like brand new with a new nut and properly torqued.

[Eric SS]

Originally Posted by F80Speed77

What was your other issue? I tightened the rack bolt on mine but I still get the clunk.

It ended up being a loose nut on the tension rod at the knuckle.

[F80Speed77]

Disconnected my front sway bar and clunk noise is gone... Guessing it's the endlinks.

[Ryepie1]

Originally Posted by Racer20

They say it takes a big man to admit when he's wrong . . . I should have known that as soon as I categorically ruled out the steering gear that it would turn out to be exactly that. The dealer was able to pinpoint the sound as coming from the gear. Since my car is out of warranty, they tried adjusting the preload before slapping me with a $5000 bill for a new gear, and so far, the noise is 100% gone and the front end feels as tight as ever.

Apparently this isn't a BMW sanctioned repair, but it worked for now, and at least we know for sure what's clunking. He said a 17mm socket is all that was needed. You can see the mark where it was originally lined up, he turned it 3 notches. He said 4 notches was too tight and two still clunked, so he settled on three. Note that the special tool for the F30 isn't needed for this gear.

Interesting thread.

What happens if you were to completely take off the nut and take out the little piston inside.... asking for a friend...

[ptper]

Update: Heard a slight rattle come back, so I went another 'click'...so that's four total...no noticeable tightness in steering for me.

[FISH22]

Stumbled upon this thread after a quick search… my nearly new (2800 miles) G80 M3 exhibits the same clunk. Wondering if it’s a steering rack issue like the F80. Unless it’s a complete redesign, I’m thinking it’s similar. Car will be at the dealer in a few weeks.

Great read here, btw.

[mcvaughan]

Tempted to do this "fix," however my car makes so much racket I doubt I'd notice a difference.

[pablom2c]

I have a similar rattle on my 2020 M2C that seems to come from the front left (LHD) only at low speed on cobblestone roads, recently did an oil change and asked the shop to check all suspension and chassis components for tightness and damage, and they found nothing wrong. I still have the rattle after tightening everything except the steering rack, I really suspect it is this steering rack adjustment that needs to be done. Is this safe to do? Anyone with an M2C that has done this and got the rattle fixed? Thanks.

[AM///X3M]

Originally Posted by pablom2c

I have a similar rattle on my 2020 M2C that seems to come from the front left (LHD) only at small speed on cobblestone roads, recently did an oil change and asked the shop to check all suspension and chassis components for tightness and damage, and they found nothing wrong. I still have the rattle after tightening everything except the steering rack, I really suspect it is this steering rack adjustment that needs to be done. Is this safe to do? Anyone with an M2C that has done this and got the rattle fixed? Thanks.

I have the same issue 2019 M2C. I was clunk free up until I fixed the creaking noise when turning the steering wheel under load. I was super happy to fix that noise, but the next day I noticed the clunk. I will be adjusting the steering rack 3 notches and I will let you know if it worked.

[icegrill]

Just to comment again on this thread I tightened the steering bolt 2 notches and still have the minor low speed clunks…..who knows, I've moved on.

[USSEnterprise]

I asked once before and no one responded. 7 pages in and no one can share a photo of where to access the steering rack? The close up photo of the rack itself is helpful, but I would like some guidance on how to get to it? Top side or from underneath? If underneath, what underbody panels need to come off first, and roughly where to look?

[AM///X3M]

Originally Posted by USSEnterprise

I asked once before and no one responded. 7 pages in and no one can share a photo of where to access the steering rack? The close up photo of the rack itself is helpful, but I would like some guidance on how to get to it? Top side or from underneath? If underneath, what underbody panels need to come off first, and roughly where to look?

From page 4

Alan l.'s Avatar Alan l. 07:54 PM 09-13-2019

Once you remove the silver metal pan under the car it’s pretty apparent where that nut is located.

[AM///X3M]

Originally Posted by USSEnterprise

I asked once before and no one responded. 7 pages in and no one can share a photo of where to access the steering rack? The close up photo of the rack itself is helpful, but I would like some guidance on how to get to it? Top side or from underneath? If underneath, what underbody panels need to come off first, and roughly where to look?

I will take a couple of pictures tomorrow. I will be underneath the car trying to solve this issue on my M2C.