Upper control arm bolt fell off!!!
09-28-2009, 10:40 AM
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Hey guys,
I got the infamous flat tire warning yesterday while I was driving. I pulled over and checked all four tires for nails and low air. To my surprise all 4 tires pressures were okay but my right rear wheel was off center.
I didn?t take a picture, but it looked like the upper part of the wheel was bent in and bottom part of the wheel bowed way out. I drove the car home as I was close by my house SLOWLY.
I took it this morning to my local body shop (the owner is friend) who has a mechanic on staff; they jacked up the car and took the wheel off. Low and behold the upper control arm bolt was nowhere to be found!!!! I was very surprised. I did have coilovers installed about 2 months ago and am wondering when they installed the coilovers they didn?t tighten up the bolt enough during the installation. I called the shop that did the install and they said they don?t touch the upper control bolt but loosen the bottom control bolt and slide the coilover in.
My buddy was able to install a new bolt but know I?m kind of perplexed to how this could have happened. Needless to say if I was going fast or going thru the canyons as I often do what the outcome would have been.
Any thoughts?
I got the infamous flat tire warning yesterday while I was driving. I pulled over and checked all four tires for nails and low air. To my surprise all 4 tires pressures were okay but my right rear wheel was off center.
I didn?t take a picture, but it looked like the upper part of the wheel was bent in and bottom part of the wheel bowed way out. I drove the car home as I was close by my house SLOWLY.
I took it this morning to my local body shop (the owner is friend) who has a mechanic on staff; they jacked up the car and took the wheel off. Low and behold the upper control arm bolt was nowhere to be found!!!! I was very surprised. I did have coilovers installed about 2 months ago and am wondering when they installed the coilovers they didn?t tighten up the bolt enough during the installation. I called the shop that did the install and they said they don?t touch the upper control bolt but loosen the bottom control bolt and slide the coilover in.
My buddy was able to install a new bolt but know I?m kind of perplexed to how this could have happened. Needless to say if I was going fast or going thru the canyons as I often do what the outcome would have been.
Any thoughts?
09-28-2009, 11:03 AM
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My Ride: 2007 530i. Purchased 6/28/07. Titanium Silver Metallic, Black Dakota Leather, Dark Poplar Trim, Steptronic, Premium Package, Cold Weather Package, Bluetooth, Adaptive Control Xenons. 10/30/07 Added OEM 124s with 245/40/18 & 275/35/18 Michelin Pilot Sport A/S tires. Installed red Cal Covers� from BavAuto. 11/21/07 Added OEM all-weather floor mats (for winter, carpet in summer) and coat rack. 6/26/08 installed M5-style rear spoiler. 6/30/08 put on red reflectors. 8/22/08 Euro turn signal stickers applied. 3/20/09 Installed Shadowline Trim. 3/27/09 Added Matte Black Kidney Grilles from Trinity. 4/03/09 Installed Bimmian Shadow Matte Black 530i Badges. 4/04/09 Installed LED license plate lights from Trinity. 5/01/09 Installed Brabus Interior LED Kit and White Angel Eyes. 5/02/09 Put in Brabus 6K Fogs. 5/14/09 Removed charcoal filter. 5/15/09 Installed light smoke LED side marker lamps from Trinity. 5/21/09 Sprint Booster. 6/12/09 Painted exhaust tips flat black. 6/13/09 Pulled red Cal Covers and painted calipers low gloss black. 6/27/09 RPI Ram Air Scoop from Trinity. 8/15/09 Installed Brabus's silver invisibulbs front and rear. 9/24/09 Installed R-Dash license plate LEDs from Brabaus (John).
Woah. Glad everything worked out--that could have been a disaster. It seems a bit coincidental that you just had work done and then the bolt came off. I guess stranger things have happened, though.
09-28-2009, 11:06 AM
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Nolan - 4 months ago, I broke my left, front lower control arm. I was driving along and kept hearing this "clanking" sound. I pulled over immediately, as I thought my wheel or undercarriage was about to fall of the car. Like you, I took my car to my local mechanic and he discovered the same thing that yours did. I too, have a different suspension than stock, but my mechanic said that some of the bolts over time, especially under aggressive driving conditions can become loose. I believe this is what happened with me. I took it to my dealer and they replaced it immediately. I haven't had a problem since, but I do have my car checked pretty often now, when I go in for oil changes (Approx. every 3,000 miles). They check all the bolts, front and rear and make sure nothing is loose or missing. Also, ever since I added the Dinan Sway bars and had them installed on the stiffest settings, the car definitely absorbs a lot more bumps and I can see bolts over time, becoming loose. It's kind of scary, actually...
09-28-2009, 11:07 AM
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Originally Posted by Nolan222' post='1019300' date='Sep 28 2009, 02:40 PM
Hey guys,
I got the infamous flat tire warning yesterday while I was driving. I pulled over and checked all four tires for nails and low air. To my surprise all 4 tires pressures were okay but my right rear wheel was off center.
I didn?t take a picture, but it looked like the upper part of the wheel was bent in and bottom part of the wheel bowed way out. I drove the car home as I was close by my house SLOWLY.
I took it this morning to my local body shop (the owner is friend) who has a mechanic on staff; they jacked up the car and took the wheel off. Low and behold the upper control arm bolt was nowhere to be found!!!! I was very surprised. I did have coilovers installed about 2 months ago and am wondering when they installed the coilovers they didn?t tighten up the bolt enough during the installation. I called the shop that did the install and they said they don?t touch the upper control bolt but loosen the bottom control bolt and slide the coilover in.
My buddy was able to install a new bolt but know I?m kind of perplexed to how this could have happened. Needless to say if I was going fast or going thru the canyons as I often do what the outcome would have been.
Any thoughts?
I got the infamous flat tire warning yesterday while I was driving. I pulled over and checked all four tires for nails and low air. To my surprise all 4 tires pressures were okay but my right rear wheel was off center.
I didn?t take a picture, but it looked like the upper part of the wheel was bent in and bottom part of the wheel bowed way out. I drove the car home as I was close by my house SLOWLY.
I took it this morning to my local body shop (the owner is friend) who has a mechanic on staff; they jacked up the car and took the wheel off. Low and behold the upper control arm bolt was nowhere to be found!!!! I was very surprised. I did have coilovers installed about 2 months ago and am wondering when they installed the coilovers they didn?t tighten up the bolt enough during the installation. I called the shop that did the install and they said they don?t touch the upper control bolt but loosen the bottom control bolt and slide the coilover in.
My buddy was able to install a new bolt but know I?m kind of perplexed to how this could have happened. Needless to say if I was going fast or going thru the canyons as I often do what the outcome would have been.
Any thoughts?
09-28-2009, 11:13 AM
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Originally Posted by C's Bimmer' post='1019326' date='Sep 28 2009, 12:06 PM
Nolan - 4 months ago, I broke my left, front lower control arm. I was driving along and kept hearing this "clanking" sound. I pulled over immediately, as I thought my wheel or undercarriage was about to fall of the car. Like you, I took my car to my local mechanic and he discovered the same thing that yours did. I too, have a different suspension than stock, but my mechanic said that some of the bolts over time, especially under aggressive driving conditions can become loose. I believe this is what happened with me. I took it to my dealer and they replaced it immediately. I haven't had a problem since, but I do have my car checked pretty often now, when I go in for oil changes (Approx. every 3,000 miles). They check all the bolts, front and rear and make sure nothing is loose or missing. Also, ever since I added the Dinan Sway bars and had them installed on the stiffest settings, the car definitely absorbs a lot more bumps and I can see bolts over time, becoming loose. It's kind of scary, actually...
09-28-2009, 11:16 AM
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Originally Posted by pjinca' post='1019337' date='Sep 28 2009, 03:13 PM
Are you saying that we need to treat these cars like Harley-Davidsons? We need to tighten the bolts on everything whenever we do any "spirited driving"? That is pretty sad and worrisome, even Chevy's have Castle Nuts for this kind of thing.
09-28-2009, 11:19 AM
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Originally Posted by C's Bimmer' post='1019343' date='Sep 28 2009, 12:16 PM
I think it was my mechanics way of saying, "You swapped for an aftermarket option and certain bolts had to be loosened/removed in order to make way for the new part. No, I am not at fault for this, but poop does happen". Hahahahaha! It's not ideal, but I think it's inevitable when you make a lot of modifications to your car, especially performance modifications.
I guess when/if I get coilovers I am installing myself so that I can make sure EVERY bolt gets Loktite to make sure it goes nowhere while driving. Can you imagine this type of thing happening at freeway speeds with the family in the car? Man, Nolan, glad you're ok, that is a freaky idea.
09-28-2009, 11:26 AM
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Originally Posted by MacFly?' post='1019338' date='Sep 28 2009, 12:13 PM
too much KBBQ from O Damn Son!