[Petem95]

I can feel there is a bit of play in a suspension component on the front drivers side of my 330d - most obvious over a series of small bumps.

Are there any components like wishbone or some ball joints which are prone to wearing out on there models?

[E92Fan]

Is there any change to the handling? Might be hard to describe, but how does the play in the suspension 'feel' ?? Is it just a bit soft, or is there any noise? How old is your car?

There are many things that can go wrong which will lead to some play in the suspension. However there haven't been many cases of worn bushes yet, mainly because the oldest cars are around 5 years old only and probably haven't covered starship mileages yet.

Problems could range from a broken spring (unlikely as there'll be noise and harshness) to a worn bush in the lower wishbone arm. It could even be a worn top mount on the suspension turret, or perhaps the damper is on its way out.

[Dr Dave]

Is it a rapid rattle when going over small bumps etc?

Not quite so sure on the setup but front antiroll bar drop links are a big problem these days.

[Dr Dave]

Number 5 as seen here

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...28&hg=31&fg=10

[E92Fan]

Originally Posted by Dr Dave

Is it a rapid rattle when going over small bumps etc?

Not quite so sure on the setup but front antiroll bar drop links are a big problem these days.

Shouldn't be on our cars as the drop link mounts are pretty robust, and you'd need to do something REALLY stupid, like kerb hopping, to damage the link... Even with the amount of abuse I put my car through, and with stiffened roll bars, the drop links are still original and currently show no signs of wear (I last checked about 1000 miles ago)

[Dr Dave]

But generally, across the entire car parc Tony, they do give a lot of trouble and give rise to some horrible noises from the front. Speed control humps etc are a big part of their downfall.

[E92Fan]

Originally Posted by Dr Dave

But generally, across the entire car parc Tony, they do give a lot of trouble and give rise to some horrible noises from the front. Speed control humps etc are a big part of their downfall.

Oh I agree entirely, if you take a broad spectrum of cars it seems that the anti roll bar mounts end up giving a lot of noise. Doesn't appear to be such a problem on the E9x though, perhaps because they're RWD and the front axle is just for steering.

[Dr Dave]

Well I for one wouldn't expect such a failure on our cars!

[Petem95]

Cheers - sounds like it could be the 'swing support' then. You only hear/feel the rattly noise over a series of small bumps at low speeds. Nothing at higher speeds or over bigger bumps. Doesn't seem to be an effect - it's just annoying.

Looks like a cheapish components so might even attempt replacement myself

[F31-340i]

The bushes in the wishbone ball joints and drop links were common, almost wear items on the E46. I've not checked but assume the E9x is similar geometry. The passenger side usually went first on the e46 due to all the potholes on that side. Do a search on an e46 site, such as bmwland. I did mine on my E46 330d at 121k miles, but I know that was the second time the front 'rear' bushes had been done

[Petem95]

Ordered a swing-support from the local beemer dealer today - surprisingly only £17 inc vat! Going to replace it myself, and hopefully will sure the loose/clunky noise/feel a low speed over bumps.

[hmi1750]

It could also be some of the underside shielding which has come loose from debris hitting it.. happened to me twice, once was replaced after hitting a tyre on the M4 and second time it was a high speed bump loosened it and it started to rattle at low speed.

[Dr Dave]

Let us know how you get on please Pete!