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Car Forum / BMW Cars / June 2006question about front end parts for E34
My 95 525i is approaching 100,000 miles and the shimmy is here. Ebay carries ads for thrust arms, bushings, etc. by a company called FCP Groton. The prices are unusually low compared to dealer and OEM numbers. Anybody tried any of these kits? I guess I'm worried that the bushings are cheap and will have to be replaced quickly. They're supposed to come with M5 or 750il bushings to offer tighter feel for the front end. On Mon, 19 Jun 2006 13:33:52 -0500, mothboy wrote: > My 95 525i is approaching 100,000 miles and the shimmy > is here. Ebay carries ads for thrust arms, bushings, etc. [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > and will have to be replaced quickly. They're supposed to come > with M5 or 750il bushings to offer tighter feel for the front end. FCP Groton is just a distributor. You kind of have to know who the manufacturer of the part is to figure out if it will hold up. If they sell a good part for a decent price, then they should be fine. I've read other folks have come out ok with that distributor. I personally use bmaparts.com or bavauto.com and use the bmw CCA discount. I have not had a chance to order from FCP Groton as of yet. > On Mon, 19 Jun 2006 13:33:52 -0500, mothboy wrote: > [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > bmaparts.com or bavauto.com and use the bmw CCA discount. I have not had > a chance to order from FCP Groton as of yet. I bought some E36 control arms from bavauto that were garbage. 15k miles and the outer joints were toast. They generally don't tell you who makes their suspension parts, but I suspect they are all Meyle.  Signature-Fred W > My 95 525i is approaching 100,000 miles and the shimmy > is here. Ebay carries ads for thrust arms, bushings, etc. [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > and will have to be replaced quickly. They're supposed to come > with M5 or 750il bushings to offer tighter feel for the front end. I'd try a new centre tie rod before the bushings. SignatureWho needs a life when you've got Unix? :-) Email: john@unixnerd.demon.co.uk, John G.Burns B.Eng, Bonny Scotland Web : http://www.unixnerd.demon.co.uk - The Ultimate BMW Homepage! Need Sun or HP Unix kit? http://www.unixnerd.demon.co.uk/unix.html www.Strathspey.co.uk - Quality Binoculars at a Sensible price > I'd try a new centre tie rod before the bushings. John, do you *have* an E34? I only ask because: 1) I just recommended you as a UK BMW knowledge source to a guy with a '91 520i and 2) IME, the control arm bushings in the E24/E28/E34 are the most likely source of this shimmy. Of course, it's a good idea to check the steering joints while you're in there (since the vibration from failed control arm bushings can take them out), but these seem more robust than the big rubber bushings we both know about on the control arms. -- C.R. Krieger (Been there; done that) fcp has a bad rep for parts that last 1/4 as long as Lemforder. Ebay sets of fcp and the like look nice and affordable, but you'll need them every 20k miles. "bmaparts.com or bavauto.com and use the bmw CCA discount" that is good advice. go to this site (the ultimate e34 site) and search FCP, you will find many, many dissatisfied users of the ebay kits. My advice after owning an e34 540 that had a shimmy, Spend the $ up front, get Lemforder or other top notch parts, and do it ONCE, it will save you a lot of $$ in the long run! > fcp has a bad rep for parts that last 1/4 as long as Lemforder. > Ebay sets of fcp and the like look nice and affordable, but you'll need them [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > get Lemforder or other top notch parts, and do it ONCE, it will save you a > lot of $$ in the long run! what site? I searched before I bough the FCP Groton parts and could nopt find one bad word about them. Then I bought them and they were fine. As I already mentioned in a different post, buying suspension parts from bavauto is NOT a good idea. And unless the part says the manufacturer I would not buy them from BMW either. Signature-Fred W > My 95 525i is approaching 100,000 miles and the shimmy > is here. Ebay carries ads for thrust arms, bushings, etc. [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > and will have to be replaced quickly. They're supposed to come > with M5 or 750il bushings to offer tighter feel for the front end. I used them on my E34 540. They were high quality compared to Meyle, probably not quite as good as Lempforder, but those are much more than twice the cost. If you are doing the labor yourself you can save a ton buying the FCP parts (they are made by Hamburg Technic). YMMV Signature-Fred W I guess I misread your post. You're saying the Hamburg Tecnic (FCP) kits are better than the parts from Bavarian Auto? OK. I'm trying to avoid doing this job again and again. I got this car 7 years ago with 23,000 miles and there wasn't any noticeable deterioration until about 70,000...now at 99,000 the shimmy is usually there at certain speeds. If I can get something solid that will give me to 30k-40k, or more, I'll be ecstatic John > I used them on my E34 540. They were high quality compared to Meyle, > probably not quite as good as Lempforder, but those are much more than [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > YMMV > I guess I misread your post. > [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > > John Yes, exactly. Refer to: http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=HD63&mospid=47404&btnr=31_0250&hg= 31&fg=05 The most likely component that you need to replace for the shimmies is the upper thrust rod bushing (item #8). But the real pain is to get that bushing off and on, so considering the balljoints have a lot of miles on them, most people just replace the whole arm. Then, while you are at it you might as well swap out the lower arms too. That way all the balljoints and bushings are renewed at the same time. I would advise paying the extra for the thrust arms with the E32 bushings retrofitted as they are a bit beefier and will last longer for you. This is what I would buy and install: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/BMW-E34-10-Piece-Control-Arm-Kit-525i-530i-535i-5 40i-M5_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ33583QQitemZ8076016834QQtcZphoto Signature-Fred W |
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