BMW 520D F10 - steering wheel judder

jesus_thats_gre

Hi Guys,

Not been driving the motor much in recent weeks so I haven't really acted with any urgency in getting the issue addressed. Drove her over the weekend though and I really do need to get the matter resolved at this stage.

Anyway, I experience quite a strong judder in the front wheels when breaking at speed, e.g. exiting a motorway and slowing down from 120kph. it isn't affecting the fundamental effectiveness of the brakes but it doesn't feel right. It isn't noticeable

I have been very good with caring for her over the years and even went as far as changing the front disks pro-actively circa a year ago. There is also a relatively set of new tyres all round (9 months old and barely 6,000km on them) and they were checked for balance and alignment a few weeks ago.

Anyway, having read many threads online about this issue, I really do dread the prospect of bringing it to a BMW dealer and it requiring multiple visits to eventually get it resolved. I am hoping that someone here can recommend a really good indy mechanic that you would recommend going to in order to get the cause diagnosed and issue permanently resolved? Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

challengemaster

Not driving much + wet weather + slowing from speed.

First thing to check is that there isn't just a slight layer of rust on the discs.

jesus_thats_gre

challengemaster wrote: »

Not driving much + wet weather + slowing from speed.

First thing to check is that there isn't just a slight layer of rust on the discs.

Hmm, to quality a little somewhat further. Been mostly driving short distances in urban areas. Issue only becomes an issue when breaking at speed.

bazz26

Have your front brake discs checked for warping, it's the first thing I'd think of when you say there is a judder under braking. F10s are notorious for going through discs quickly.

Leonard Hofstadter

Judder through the wheel only under braking is highly likely to be warped discs, had the exact same symptoms with my E46 a few months ago.

Stallingrad

What brand of disc did you install OP?

t1mm

It could also be caused by uneven break pad wear.

jesus_thats_gre

Stallingrad wrote: »

What brand of disc did you install OP?

I don't actually know if I was honest. Done it via the dealer so assumed a standard brand that BMW use.

jesus_thats_gre

captainspeed wrote: »

Judder through the wheel only under braking is highly likely to be warped discs, had the exact same symptoms with my E46 a few months ago.

t1mm wrote: »

It could also be caused by uneven break pad wear.

bazz26 wrote: »

Have your front brake discs checked for warping, it's the first thing I'd think of when you say there is a judder under braking. F10s are notorious for going through discs quickly.

Any suggestions on a mechanic to go to? Wouldn't mind avoiding the BMW dealer if I can.

bazz26

Motor Confidence just off the Naas road would be a well regarded BMW indy.

jesus_thats_gre

Feel a bit stupid but this has been resolved. Took it into the local Fast Fit for a quick check of the breaks etc. Feedback from them was that everything was bang on.

So asked him to check that the front wheels were balanced. Turns out that a minor buckle that I had fixed on the front passenger side is where the issue was originating. There was over 100g of weights on that wheel and despite the wheel being balanced, he recommended that he cleared them all off and balance the wheel from scratch again.

Figured I would let him give it a go given I was there already. Anyway, the issue is now completely resolved.