[Billwnh]

Hi everyone, so I have a 2013 328XI with 17' wheels. Ever since I picked up my CPO 328XI I noticed that when I get to high way speeds(65 mph or so) up to around 70-75 I get a pronounced vibration in the steering wheel. It kind of smooths out or goes away above 70 or so.

I have had it into the dealership 3 times now for this issue.
The 1st visit they did a tire rotation which they recommended because they could see some feathering on the front tires.
The 2nd visit they did a 54 wheel alignment, which I paid for. This made no difference either.

At this point they were blaming the tires because they were feathered and stated that they didn't replace them when they CPO's the car because they were at 70% tread wear. This pissed me off and I pushed them to replace the tires for free, but they wouldn't.

So, I purchased 4 new Driveguards from Tire Rack and had them installed hoping that would fix the problem. Nope.... A mile down the road the vibration was still there.

I went back to the dealer this morning and asked them to Road Force balance the wheels/tires and they said everything looked good/checked out on the Road Force.

So, the CA brings me into the repair bay and they have my car up on the lift running and in gear, so the tires are spinning and he shows me that all 4 wheels appear to have a small dent which is visible(slightly uneven spin) on the inside.

They gave me a loaner and are planning to put 4 new wheels/tires on my car from another car and test drive it. If the vibration is gone then that was the problem.

They can have the wheels repaired at $200 each or I can buy new wheels for a hell of alot more.

Should I bother going to another dealer for a 2nd opinion. Is it worth it to have the wheels fixed or should I just suck it up and ignore the vibration ?

Am I doing damage to the tires running them like this ?

Sorry for the rambling...

I appreciate any feedback you all may have.

Thanks
Bill

 

[JayR04]

You can probably get them repaired cheaper at a tire shop, or buy aftermarket wheels. Tirerack has a few sets for less than $800. Your tires will be fine.

 

[John MS]

I'm surprised that vibration from bent wheels didn't show up when you test drove the car. However the wheel swap should show whether they are the cause. Another possibility would be something with the driveshaft. Either out of balance or a cv joint.

 

[Billwnh]

It was my 1st time driving a BMW when I did the test drive and honestly didn't really get a chance to open it up, so no, I didn't notice it at that time.

If I choose another BMW the next time around I will go through it with a magnifying glass.

 

[Michael Schott]

Bent rims can be repaired for far less than they quoted. You can also buy OEM wheels on auction sites for a fraction of retail.

 

[deise17311]

I had a similar problem but it was the belt on the tire was damaged - they fixed it and it rides perfect now - balanced all 4 tires - one BMW dealer told me bent rim - the other no the damaged belt -

 

[Billwnh]

I wish it was as simple as the belt on a tire.... This was happening with the P7's that were on the car when I got it and it is still happening now with brand new Drive Guards.... I will find out this morning sometime if the other tires had a vibration too

 

[like2ace]

It was my 1st time driving a BMW when I did the test drive and honestly didn't really get a chance to open it up, so no, I didn't notice it at that time.

If I choose another BMW the next time around I will go through it with a magnifying glass.

Buying your first BMW is no excuse for not thoroughly testing the car, as you would with any other car, duh.

Pre-purchase inspection by a BMW mechanic is a must !
Half the issues reported here could have been caught, buyers just need to be more vigilant !!!

 

[Mr. J3030]

Hi everyone, so I have a 2013 328XI with 17' wheels. Ever since I picked up my CPO 328XI I noticed that when I get to high way speeds(65 mph or so) up to around 70-75 I get a pronounced vibration in the steering wheel. It kind of smooths out or goes away above 70 or so.

I have had it into the dealership 3 times now for this issue.
The 1st visit they did a tire rotation which they recommended because they could see some feathering on the front tires.
The 2nd visit they did a 54 wheel alignment, which I paid for. This made no difference either.

At this point they were blaming the tires because they were feathered and stated that they didn't replace them when they CPO's the car because they were at 70% tread wear. This pissed me off and I pushed them to replace the tires for free, but they wouldn't.

So, I purchased 4 new Driveguards from Tire Rack and had them installed hoping that would fix the problem. Nope.... A mile down the road the vibration was still there.

I went back to the dealer this morning and asked them to Road Force balance the wheels/tires and they said everything looked good/checked out on the Road Force.

So, the CA brings me into the repair bay and they have my car up on the lift running and in gear, so the tires are spinning and he shows me that all 4 wheels appear to have a small dent which is visible(slightly uneven spin) on the inside.

They gave me a loaner and are planning to put 4 new wheels/tires on my car from another car and test drive it. If the vibration is gone then that was the problem.

They can have the wheels repaired at $200 each or I can buy new wheels for a hell of alot more.

Should I bother going to another dealer for a 2nd opinion. Is it worth it to have the wheels fixed or should I just suck it up and ignore the vibration ?

Am I doing damage to the tires running them like this ?

Sorry for the rambling...

I appreciate any feedback you all may have.

Thanks
Bill

How long have you had this vehicle?
If I had just taken ownership there is no way I would be paying for alignment and wheel repair. This should have been caught on the initial CPO inspection.

Now if you have had the vehicle for an extended time and then returned months later with the vibration issue I can see why they would balk at fixing it for free.

 

[Billwnh]

Update:

They put 4 new wheels/tires on the car and the vibration went away, so the rims appear to be the culprit.

Good news is they told me that they are going to order two new rims and they are going to cover the cost. They said they are going to replace the two that are the worst and then test drive the car to see how it feels. Fingers crossed

 

[jlukja]

Update:

They put 4 new wheels/tires on the car and the vibration went away, so the rims appear to be the culprit.

Good news is they told me that they are going to order two new rims and they are going to cover the cost. They said they are going to replace the two that are the worst and then test drive the car to see how it feels. Fingers crossed

Congrats on finding a solution. I recall that 2012 and early 2013 models were reported to have a similar vibration that could not be fixed so easily.

 

[Mr. J3030]

If they are only replacing 2 defective rims insist they test drive the vehicle with the two original suspect rims up front. Otherwise any vibration may not be noticeable until your next tire rotation. If the remaining rims are out of true you should immediately feel the vibration in the steering wheel at highway speed. They should get this sorted prior to ordering the replacements. You don't want to be dealing with this same problem again next year when you rotate the tires.

If they sold you a vehicle with damaged rims, they should refund you the cost of alignment and also prorate the value of those tires you replaced. That was all money out of your pocket to diagnose a problem that should have been covered under warranty since it was missed in the CPO inspection. If I were in your position I would be pretty pissed off.

 

[adhrp]

Ever since I picked up my CPO 328XI I noticed that when I get to high way speeds(65 mph or so) up to around 70-75 I get a pronounced vibration in the steering wheel. It kind of smooths out or goes away above 70 or so.

I have had it into the dealership 3 times now for this issue.
The 1st visit they did a tire rotation which they recommended because they could see some feathering on the front tires.
The 2nd visit they did a 54 wheel alignment, which I paid for. This made no difference either.
...............
................ So, the CA brings me into the repair bay and they have my car up on the lift running and in gear, so the tires are spinning and he shows me that all 4 wheels appear to have a small dent which is visible(slightly uneven spin) on the inside.

I have an identical problem, except that the wobble is the worst between 50-60 mph and is almost non-existent below 50 or above 60. I got the exact same series of responses as you. I initially got an alignment done (which was due anyway) at a reputable independent shop and they said the front two tires are feathered which is causing the issue. Then I went to a BMW dealership and they said the front two rims are slightly bent. Now I am going to have those wheels repaired (when I find some time) and hopefully the steering wobble will go away.

 

[uptcv1]

Unfortunately bent wheels are a common occurence.. Main reason is we dont really drive on the autobahn but rather on roads with many potholes.. now add the harsh run flat tires BMW started using years ago with low sidewall tires and it is almost a certainty they will bent.
Had a 2006 X3 with 235/55/17 non run flat tires for close to 90k miles and were always smooth bent free.
After that got a 2011 328xi with 225/45/17 run flats, all 4 were bent (paid stealer to fix, waste of money though cause even after their wheel repair -which is prob a mobile van guy they use- they were still little off)
Then got a 2013 328xi with 225/50/17 run flats again, and again all 4 were bent, didnt fix but recently got a 2016 X3 with 245/50/18 although also run flats at least they have more side wall (245x50%=122.5mm tire sidewall) so hopefully this will be enough to absorb road without damaging wheels..
Keep that in mind as even after fix wheels can bent again.. my old x3 was the best at 235x55%=129.25mm tire sidewall plus they were not run flats)
Good thing dealer coming through and replacing as these should have been fix as part of the CPO

Sent from my VS986 using Tapatalk