hunter 402 Report post Posted June 10, 2012 hey guys hoping for some advice or someone else's previous experience and solution. I have an 2001 e46 sedan, had recently replaced the following due to required maintenance; front control arms and bushings, new steering rack, lower steering coupling (guibo joint) however, my steering wheel still makes a donk, donk, donk, noise when turing it with the ignition on or off, somethnig is loose in there and not sure what. mechanic checked top universal joint and says its tight. the car glides really nicely with all the new bits up front but over harsh bumps the wheel or column seems to move and make noises, very annoying and not the quality driving experience i have become accustomed to with the BMW last weekend i removed the steering column surround, behind the wheel, and could move the inner coulmn, around quite freely I had my hand on the outer steering shaft while doing this so i know its not the whole shaft / coulmn moving about. has anyone else experienced this? and how was it resolved? i've read various posts on other forums but nothing conclusive, nor on you tube. any help would be appreciated as its really annoying! maybe replacing the steering shaft would be the solution? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zeemax 0 Report post Posted June 10, 2012 Does the adjuster lever work ok, sometimes moving the column up/down and resetting can reduce noises. Sounds like your upper column has a problem from your description if your steering gear has been replaced. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunter 402 Report post Posted June 10, 2012 Does the adjuster lever work ok, sometimes moving the column up/down and resetting can reduce noises. Sounds like your upper column has a problem from your description if your steering gear has been replaced. Yep adjust works fine, noise occurs at all angles and lengths of adjustment. Dealer i took it to described symptoms of issue as 'normal' which I do not agree with, no car should have a noisey wobbley steering mechanism. Might be good idea to visit a wreckers yard to suss out an upper column section with no play. Ben intersted to hear if any other E46 owners have experienced this. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
