Shaky braking...HELP

[ebonygod]

Hello there, I have a 1999 523i and I was racing my friends Z4 2.5 on saturday which went quite good but on braking there is a heavy shake on the car, Has this happened to anyone in here before and if so what was the cause. Also my alarm keeps on going mad and I have been told that it is a main dealer only fix is that the case and if so how much can I expect to spend?

 

[ebonygod]

Sorry I forgot to say that although the whole car was shaing it was worse on the sterring..and also the shaking only occurs at speeds that are not legal

 

[Big Daddy]

It sounds like ball joints or bushings. A slight pluse in the pedal when braking at speed can be warpped rotors, but yours sounds more like front end items.

 

[Tom]

I agree with Dan, sounds like it could be warped rotors. I brake job from the dealer is going to cost you anywhere from $500-$800 depending on what parts you need.

 

[ebonygod]

Are rotors the same as discs....I asked my mechanic and was told that I need new disc's and pads...the pads were changed last year and it was mentioned that on the next change I may have to change the discs...

 

[bm528]

I've had a terrible shake/vibration in the steering wheel around 60 miles an hour. After the Inspection 2(and $715 later), the dealership couldn't figure out what was wrong. He thinks, but is not sure, that its my front brake pads and rotors causing the shimmy. Is this possible? I really cant afford to replace the brakes already, i had them done just over a year ago. And the shake doesnt really occur during braking. But everything else was ruled out. Anyone know a good local independent mechanic in the central nj area?

 

[Chesty Bonds]

Yeah you can get steering-wheel shimmy at 100kmh from warped rotors. The speed of a warped disc rubbing on the pads (the pads touch the disc slightly, even when not braking) will cause the sterring to wobble a little. Have a look at your discs (rotors) and see if you can't spot some pitting on the disc surface itself. If there is and it's not too bad then i think it'll probably be cheaper for you to re-machine the discs as opposed to a new set but i'm not too sure.

Good luck

 

[Wadula]

at higher speeds it most likely a bad balanced tire. usually us dealers don´t have the tires balanced very precise and some don´t even check it for speeds higher 70 miles.
i had a focus that fine just up to about 65 mph. above it started the shacking.

if the rotors (same as discs by the way) are bad you feel the wobble all the time. of course not as bad as at higher speeds, but as the pads have a constant distance to the disc at all speeds, the shaking should be there all the time.

for the braking, if you are lucky it is just bad rotors. they start shacking when they get hot, so while racing they get hoit and you get the shaking. if not some ball joint or bush is gone.

 

[epj3]

If you get the shaking without putting your foot on the brake, you need a $80 alignment, a $30 tire blance, or possibly an expensive repair like the ball joints.

Why would you pay the dealer $500 - $800 to do something that you could do yourself in 2 hours without getting real dirty for $150? Buy the rotors from advance auto parts or bavauto (rotors are rotors, unless you buy slotted or crossdrilled) and buy yourself a set of pagid red pads from bavauto (~$60). Besides the fact that you'll save a ton of money over the dealer doing it - you'll also have much much better brakes now.

 

[Wadula]

however, if you do it yourself make sure you have

a) enough knowledge and skill to do it right
b) a book guiding you and giving you the best tricks and tips

brakes are what save your butt, at least occasionally. be safe when you do it.

 

[ebonygod]

Nah I will go to a place near me called Higham motors...they recken they'll do it for £200

 

[canada5]

check the front struts for leaks! had a terrible shimmy while braking and checked everything. finally found one strut nearly empty of oil.