I finally give up, I need help.

My car shakes violently under braking ONLY. It feels like the front end is coming apart. It was bad enough to break my tranny mounts at Mid-O last weekend; its bad.



Have been through 3 sets of rotors and 3 sets of pads (different compounds), multiple sets of wheels and tires.
Subframes and mounts are not cracked, motor mounts look good.
Wheel bearings or hubs are brand new (all 4).
Front camber plates have brand new bearings and retorqued top nuts.


I'm probably missing something but please post suggestions. We're stumped. This problem has existed since October and I'm getting frustrated braking like a girl everywhere while the car destroys itself.



Edit:
Added:

- FCABs are new Powerflex. Arms are a year old and look good.
- 2 laser alignments and probably 6 do-it-yourself alignments since problem began.

You didn't mention, FCAB's. Front control arm bushings. Check them if not done so already.

FCABs and control arms? Had an alignment?

FCABs and control arms? Had an alignment?
You posted 1 second later after I did, :stickoutt.
;)

As Matt said, check front lower control arms as well.

FCABs are new Powerflex. Arms are a year old and look good.

2 laser alignments and probably 6 do-it-yourself alignments since problem began.

I finally give up, I need help.

My car shakes violently under braking ONLY. It feels like the front end is coming apart. It was bad enough to break my tranny mounts at Mid-O last weekend; its bad.



Have been through 3 sets of rotors and 3 sets of pads (different compounds), multiple sets of wheels and tires.
Subframes and mounts are not cracked, motor mounts look good.
Wheel bearings or hubs are brand new (all 4).
Front camber plates have brand new bearings and retorqued top nuts.


I'm probably missing something but please post suggestions. We're stumped. This problem has existed since October and I'm getting frustrated braking like a girl everywhere while the car destroys itself.



Edit:
Added:

- FCABs are new Powerflex. Arms are a year old and look good.
- 2 laser alignments and probably 6 do-it-yourself alignments since problem began.

Jesse, Powerflex fca bushings at least a few years ago were known to fail prematurely.

Shaking like that to me points to your front suspension. Control arm or control arm bushings. Maybe front wheel bearings. That they're new doesn't mean you didn't get some bad parts.

Good luck,
Carlos.

Check those p-flex FLCABs. If bad replace with GC delrin.

If it's not the suspension, check caliper temps after a session to see if one's way hotter than the other. Maybe sticking caliper causing pad smear.

What is your front toe set to? What's your castor?

Jay

Do you drive the car to/from the track? ie. different street pads than track pads? If so, what brand/compounds of pads are you using?

Sounds like calipers are the missing link here - I'd guess you're getting some drag from them as mentioned earlier.

Does this shaking happen right away, or is it eliminated when you replace the pads/rotors for a while?

Carlos - True, could've gotten defective parts, but everything has been removed and checked or completely replaced since the problem showed up. :dunno

Jay - Front toe used to be 1/16, now zero. Caster max on the GC plates, forget the value.

Eric - I dont drive too and from the track anymore. Have used Hawk DTC (garbage) and HT-10s since the problem existed. Handful of rotor changed mixed in.

Chris - The shake happens immediately every time, regardless of new pads or not. It never goes away even with brand spankin new rotors or pads or both.

Carlos - True, could've gotten defective parts, but everything has been removed and checked or completely replaced since the problem showed up. :dunno

Jay - Front toe used to be 1/16, now zero. Caster max on the GC plates, forget the value.

Eric - I dont drive too and from the track anymore. Have used Hawk DTC (garbage) and HT-10s since the problem existed. Handful of rotor changed mixed in.

Chris - The shake happens immediately every time, regardless of new pads or not. It never goes away even with brand spankin new rotors or pads or both.

Check your PM and you are running GC ADs right?

Yep and PM back at ya.

So I guess my upper mount suggestion didn't work. Sorry man. I'm thinking. Um, all wheels were hub centric right?? Grasping at straws...

Phil - Actually, there was play in the camber plate bearings.... lots of it. They didnt fix the problem, but needed to be replaced anyway.

caliper carrier bolts tight and in good shape? guide pins?

Lollipops in good shape and those bolts tight?

Im 99.99% sure it is the large nut that holds the actual AD strut in the GC housing. Same thing happened with my fathers suspension in his JP car. Started to back out and the housing was bouncing inside the housing. Need to pull the spring to gain access to the large nut but is a simple fix.

Just put the front end up and fit a wrench through the springs to tighten down that gold nut that holds the shock in the housing. It wont budge any tighter and definitely wasnt loose. I'll pull the struts off again tomorrow and open it up to see whats going on inside.

Oh yeah, thanks to half of Bimmerforums that just called me and the crew of half drunk local BMW guys that just stopped by to help out.

Eric - I dont drive too and from the track anymore. Have used Hawk DTC (garbage) and HT-10s since the problem existed. Handful of rotor changed mixed in.
.

Darn. Was hoping it would be something as simple as pad incompatibility :(

So it feels like it is definitely from the front?

Yep, feels like all 10 front lug nuts and both tie-rods are REALLY loose, but I cant find anything out of the norm with a visual inspection or shaking it.

When did the problem start? What changed?

It started shortly after I picked up the ADs used. I changed a whole bunch of front end parts around the same time, but I cant pin-point it to one specific part replacement. It's gotten progressively worse. Dont worry, it's not your tires. :D

Possibly wicked stupid question... Are the springs the right ID?

Without measuring, they sit perfectly on both lower and upper perches. I'm gonna feel stoooopid if thats it.

Anything I should know or look for before disassembling the front struts tomorrow? Jared's idea of loose shock inside the sleeve made perfect sense, but the nut appears tight.

caliper carrier bolts tight and in good shape? guide pins?

Lollipops in good shape and those bolts tight?

Caliper guide pins and bracket bolts are all in and torqued.

Lollipops look healthy as do the bushings, bolts tight.

I don't know what type of rotor you have or the whole story, but have you thought about brake dust build up? An instructor was in the car at Laguna Seca when my car did the same thing and that is what he told me its most likely was.

Do you mean pad deposits? Been through several sets of rotors and a few set of pads too.

The ABS sensor thing behind the rotor?

dirty or faulty ?

fluid good in the system?

Even while the car is shaking, you can still feel ABS kicking on or off, especially during test drives tonight on the wet roads. Good idea tho, I thought of that one too. Fluid is good.


The shake is significant, way way more than an unbalanced wheel or something similar. Its bad enough where after 2 laps I hit the pits for fear of taking out myself or another car.

Some of the PowerFlex two piece FCAB's had way too much play as new in my opinion.

I purchased a set..and sold them immediately as I didn't like the design - looked to me that they would allow too much movement - This could be your issue.

Have you "nut and bolted" all components in front end?

Also - I think someone mentioned the caliper guide bushings could be worn.

Best of Luck!!

cracked strut tower??

It started shortly after I picked up the ADs used. I changed a whole bunch of front end parts around the same time, but I cant pin-point it to one specific part replacement. It's gotten progressively worse. Dont worry, it's not your tires. :D

If you have access, I would check the runout of the hub face - It sounds like maybe you got a defective replacement wheel bearing/hub in the front.

... Or at least that's my best guess so far!

I am no expert, so take this for what it is worth but a friend of mine had the same problem recently. Severe shaking upon hard braking at the track but it would only occur after heating up the brakes. When we put the car in the air the front drivers side wheel would not spin freely. It appeared that the caliper was sticking when heated. He has since rebuilt and cleaned the caliper and he thinks he has since solved the problem.
My 2 cents. Hope this helps.

jb

stuck caliper

Drive your car around on the street. Jack up the front wheels and give them a spin....less than 1 full rotation - sticking caliper.

I had the EXACT symptoms you are facing.
Everything else checks OK. Have you noticed a pronounced 1" blue band around the center of the rotor brake surface with a sor of "pulse" in it by chance?
Here is an exaggerated example:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v225/bennyfizzle/rotorpwnage.jpg

Now that ive rebuilt both front calipers, the wheels will finally "freewheel" after getting heat put into the caliper/rotor.

Im testing this solution on Friday at the track with Hawk HT10s on stock blank rotors. Will keep you posted.

Also, see this post....same thing....caliper rebuild solved it completely. http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=942099&highlight=pad+deposits

Are you sure the shocks are good? Do they need to be rebuilt?

Thanks for the help guys.

Some of the PowerFlex two piece FCAB's had way too much play as new in my opinion.

I purchased a set..and sold them immediately as I didn't like the design - looked to me that they would allow too much movement - This could be your issue.

Have you "nut and bolted" all components in front end?

Also - I think someone mentioned the caliper guide bushings could be worn.

Best of Luck!!

Bushings look ok, I'll take the lollipops off today and check them out.

cracked strut tower??

Checked that too.

If you have access, I would check the runout of the hub face - It sounds like maybe you got a defective replacement wheel bearing/hub in the front.

... Or at least that's my best guess so far!

Wheel hubs were replaced after the problem started. I thought wheel bearings were the cause but they didnt change anything.

I am no expert, so take this for what it is worth but a friend of mine had the same problem recently. Severe shaking upon hard braking at the track but it would only occur after heating up the brakes. When we put the car in the air the front drivers side wheel would not spin freely. It appeared that the caliper was sticking when heated. He has since rebuilt and cleaned the caliper and he thinks he has since solved the problem.
My 2 cents. Hope this helps.

jb

Calipers were also rebuilt during the middle of this process as I thought they were the cause. There wasnt a difference before or after.

stuck caliper

Drive your car around on the street. Jack up the front wheels and give them a spin....less than 1 full rotation - sticking caliper.

I had the EXACT symptoms you are facing.
Everything else checks OK. Have you noticed a pronounced 1" blue band around the center of the rotor brake surface with a sor of "pulse" in it by chance?
Here is an exaggerated example:


Now that ive rebuilt both front calipers, the wheels will finally "freewheel" after getting heat put into the caliper/rotor.

Im testing this solution on Friday at the track with Hawk HT10s on stock blank rotors. Will keep you posted.

Also, see this post....same thing....caliper rebuild solved it completely. http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=942099&highlight=pad+deposits

No weird surface patterns on the rotors. Calipers were rebuilt after the problem started with no change before or after.




Please keep it coming!

Are you sure the shocks are good? Do they need to be rebuilt?


This is one of the last few unknowns. I bought them used and the problem started shortly after.

How do I go about testing/checking them?

One thing you can do is check the N2 pressures. If you have the gauge.

If you don't want to disassemble the struts, you'll need valve stem extensions. The metal ones like used on big truck wheels. I believe they're about 4" long. My ADs, which are a little over a year old are supposed to have 180lbs in the fronts. Not sure if all are the same.

Inability to hold the N2 pressure would be a sign of needing to be rebuilt. I don't know for sure but I suspect a shock could hold N2 pressure and still need to be rebuilt for other reasons. Try calling GC. Bimmerworld also sells a lot of their stuff but I'm not sure if they do ADs.

Or, start a thread specific to ADs. There are several on Bf.c that run, or have run them.

Jay

This is one of the last few unknowns. I bought them used and the problem started shortly after.

How do I go about testing/checking them?


You could send them to RRT and have them dyno'd

Joe

stuck caliper

Drive your car around on the street. Jack up the front wheels and give them a spin....less than 1 full rotation - sticking caliper.

I had the EXACT symptoms you are facing.
Everything else checks OK. Have you noticed a pronounced 1" blue band around the center of the rotor brake surface with a sor of "pulse" in it by chance?
Here is an exaggerated example:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v225/bennyfizzle/rotorpwnage.jpg

Now that I've rebuilt both front calipers, the wheels will finally "freewheel" after getting heat put into the caliper/rotor.

I'm testing this solution on Friday at the track with Hawk HT10s on stock blank rotors. Will keep you posted.

Also, see this post....same thing....caliper rebuild solved it completely. http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=942099&highlight=pad+deposits
+1

I had a rust ridge on my right front caliper that had to be cleaned out. There is a ridge in between where the dust boot and the fluid seal sit. The rust would grab the piston and seize only when the caliper heated up - about 1-2 laps. Take a file or small die grinder and just clean the rust off. That's all it took and my brakes are fine again.

Otherwise a bad/loose/blown shock will also cause wicked shimmy.

Car goes up to R247 Motorsports on Mon/Tues to get some extra help.

My front shocks make a quiet groaning moaning noise on rebound. Normal?

JC....just read thru thread........I hope you find the cure........Im sure youre very frustrated....and a bit lighter in the wallet!

Thanks Joel.

Ok now I think I'm going crazy. I took the front struts apart and put my tire pressure gauge on it (60psi max) just to make sure there was SOME pressure in there. It maxed the gauge out instantly. I went to pick up a higher PSI gauge and see just how much is in them. I come back home and now theres 5-10 psi in it....:shifty So now they have to be rebuilt.... great.

Without measuring, they sit perfectly on both lower and upper perches. I'm gonna feel stoooopid if thats it.

Anything I should know or look for before disassembling the front struts tomorrow? Jared's idea of loose shock inside the sleeve made perfect sense, but the nut appears tight.

Missing/broken spacer in the bottom of the strut housing? Sure the strut housings are the right ones for your car? (There's a difference between E36 non M and E36 M housings).

FYI, the spacer slips onto the bottom of the strut inside the housing. Have you had GC look at the shocks? They were used when you got them?

On shock pressure...volume is small, so when you check them they have to be refilled. When you put your tire gauge on, you reduce the pressure. It's normal. W/ the proper gauge setup, I think I show ~120psi because the volume required to fill the gauge hose reduces the pressure that much. Problem is reduced w/ remote res but not eliminated (remotes just have more volume, so as a fraction of the shocks volume, that lost in checking is less).

Send them to GC. Mike is a good guy. He pulled my azz out of a sling twice in the last 10 days. Ask him for a before - dyno. He always does an after, even if he doesnt send the sheet. He'll send the sheets if you ask.

Thanks Joel.

Ok now I think I'm going crazy. I took the front struts apart and put my tire pressure gauge on it (60psi max) just to make sure there was SOME pressure in there. It maxed the gauge out instantly. I went to pick up a higher PSI gauge and see just how much is in them. I come back home and now theres 5-10 psi in it....:shifty So now they have to be rebuilt.... great.
Schrader valves can leak, but it will be easy to refill without having to rebuild it. Take them to a shock shop locally or ship them somewhere. We can dyno and check gas pressure and refill with gas if needed.

Thanks Joel.

Ok now I think I'm going crazy. I took the front struts apart and put my tire pressure gauge on it (60psi max) just to make sure there was SOME pressure in there. It maxed the gauge out instantly. I went to pick up a higher PSI gauge and see just how much is in them. I come back home and now theres 5-10 psi in it....:shifty So now they have to be rebuilt.... great.

Not to take business away from Mike/GC, but you need a special gauge to read the pressures without letting the N2 out. A regular tire type gauge isn't going to cut it. And, just because they're low doesn't mean they cannot be re-charged by you. It takes some equipment that isn't cheap but maybe someone local is set up to do it. Another racer or shop.

I'm now the proud owner of a N2 tank, a very spendy dual stage, high pressure regulator set and a Moton pressure gauge. I check and adjust before each event. Total cost was close to $600.

Longacre also sells the pressure gauges. I like the Moton style better. The smaller the volume of N2 in the gauge the less you loose when checking pressure.

Jay

Jay, you're taking business from N2 charged racing shocks, not just AD. It's a fact of life. Everyone likes to complain about AD's and N2, but there's a reason Moton sells a gauge.

Thanks for the advice guys.

I just had the dead front shock refilled at a sport bike place up the road. It appeared to hold pressure for the 1-2 minutes he left it with the gauge on it. :dunno

I just found a very small amount of play in one tie-rod that ONLY shows up when the other wheel is on the ground (not if both are up). It's minor and strange in that it wants to lift up and slightly to one side, not completely side to side. The nut on top is tight, the play is in the joint.

I dont know if the stuff I'm finding (camber plate bearings, pass tie rod) is the cause or just damage from the shaking. It's bad enough where I can believe it would destroy my tierods, camber plate bearings, etc.

Jay, you're taking business from N2 charged racing shocks, not just AD. It's a fact of life. Everyone likes to complain about AD's and N2, but there's a reason Moton sells a gauge.

I wasn't bad mouthing race shocks. I was referring to his statement saying that because the pressure was low they needed to be rebuilt. I was offering an alternative to sending them in for rebuild, therefore maybe taking some business away from Mike/GC. The fact that he tried to check pressure with the wrong kind of gauge would be one reason why the pressure was lower. As you've had more experience with ADs you know when you remove the gauge some pressure escapes.

Now that I have the ability to properly maintain mine... they're growin' on me. No wait... that's the pizza I just ate too much of :eek:

Jay

LOL who's rotor is that jesse? :rofl

That's strange that my rotor gets posted up in your thread

Guess I should check my calipers this week too while I'm at it :dunno...and I got the same braking judder...until I realized 2 of my lug bolts were cracked up front...and we remember that fiasco don't we :rofl :eyecrazy

I wasn't bad mouthing race shocks. I was referring to his statement saying that because the pressure was low they needed to be rebuilt. I was offering an alternative to sending them in for rebuild, therefore maybe taking some business away from Mike/GC. The fact that he tried to check pressure with the wrong kind of gauge would be one reason why the pressure was lower. As you've had more experience with ADs you know when you remove the gauge some pressure escapes.

Now that I have the ability to properly maintain mine... they're growin' on me. No wait... that's the pizza I just ate too much of :eek:

Jay

You got the wrong kind of gauge then, homeslice. The longacre I've got has a valve depressor on it. You close the valve before removing the hose and zero pressure is lost.

But yeah, I read your post the wrong way. Sorry. I still think he should send the fronts, including the strut housings, to Mike.

You got the wrong kind of gauge then, homeslice. The longacre I've got has a valve depressor on it. You close the valve before removing the hose and zero pressure is lost.

But yeah, I read your post the wrong way. Sorry. I still think he should send the fronts, including the strut housings, to Mike.

Geez.... I'm not doin' so well at cummunidacation. Again I was referring to the gauge he was using which was prolly some sort of tire gauge. The Moton gauge works like yours... I believe.

Jay

would having someone drive your car help? maybe that way you can pinpoint the shaking better. just a suggestion.

I just had this problem on my Spec E30. After checking everything else, I replaced what appeared to be perfectly good rotors and pads. And the problem came back after 1 track session. The shuddering was bad enough that it felt clearly unsafe in a hard braking zone. After checking every thing a dozen more times and fruitlessly talking to lots of smart people, I figured out what the problem was when I noticed that my rotors looked a little "blotchy". Just a little, mind you. It was fairly subtle. If you looked closely at the abrasion patterns on the rotors, you could see that they were not homogenous, for lack of a better word.

What was happening was pad compound build-up. The cause of this (I went back to my list of smart people) was me not braking hard enough. Somehow I'd gotten out of the habit of really standing on the brakes in a high speed braking zone. The next session was a race, and I intentionally hit the brakes much harder then usual. That caused all sorts of other chaos, but by god the shuddering was gone.

I just had this problem on my Spec E30. After checking everything else, I replaced what appeared to be perfectly good rotors and pads. And the problem came back after 1 track session. The shuddering was bad enough that it felt clearly unsafe in a hard braking zone. After checking every thing a dozen more times and fruitlessly talking to lots of smart people, I figured out what the problem was when I noticed that my rotors looked a little "blotchy". Just a little, mind you. It was fairly subtle. If you looked closely at the abrasion patterns on the rotors, you could see that they were not homogenous, for lack of a better word.

What was happening was pad compound build-up. The cause of this (I went back to my list of smart people) was me not braking hard enough. Somehow I'd gotten out of the habit of really standing on the brakes in a high speed braking zone. The next session was a race, and I intentionally hit the brakes much harder then usual. That caused all sorts of other chaos, but by god the shuddering was gone.

Ahh, the good ol' Italian Tune Up! :D

Ahh, the good ol' Italian Tune Up! :D

The Italian tune up is never complete until you rip out the rearview and throw it away... Its the last, most important phase.

New tie-rods and a boatload of other front end parts being replaced. I have a feeling we're never going to know what the cause was since I'm replacing so many things at once. I dont care what it is anymore, just want to run it hard again. Test day at Pocono on Friday, fingers crossed.

New tie-rods and a boatload of other front end parts being replaced. I have a feeling we're never going to know what the cause was since I'm replacing so many things at once. I dont care what it is anymore, just want to run it hard again. Test day at Pocono on Friday, fingers crossed.

Did you check runout on the rotors? You can have a problem with this even on a brand new rotor, if the installer didn't ensure it was mounted properly. I think runout is supposed to be less than .003 inches, but I could be wrong about that.

It's pretty easy to install a new rotor and introduce far more deviation than that. Don't ask me how I know. :D

Mike

New tie-rods and a boatload of other front end parts being replaced. I have a feeling we're never going to know what the cause was since I'm replacing so many things at once. I dont care what it is anymore, just want to run it hard again. Test day at Pocono on Friday, fingers crossed.

Had the same issues with my car last year. The whole front end was shaking violently at high speeds. Couldn't quite pinpoint the cause, but over the winter I replaced the front bearings, tie rods, control arms, and control arm bushings. Also, I rebalanced the wheels which turned out to be very much out of balance. Just ran Limerock last week and car is now smooth as silk at high speeds and under braking.

I'll be at Pocono this week also. My first time there. I've got a green and white E36

What about the Spindles, I have not heard any one mention them, I had an instructor mention to me he had a similar problem and went to a all new BBK setup and it still shook.
they then replaced the spindles and bingo problem solved??? his problem started after he had a minor off track but he said he thought it was so minor it shouldn't have caused any problems

just an idea... good luck

You're not braking hard enough Jesse. Ya damn pansy. Gotta get on that pedal with 2 feet. Brake DDEEEEPPP. I mean I wanna see corner workers tossing their flags and running for cover!!:devillook

Don

Did you check runout on the rotors? You can have a problem with this even on a brand new rotor, if the installer didn't ensure it was mounted properly. I think runout is supposed to be less than .003 inches, but I could be wrong about that.

It's pretty easy to install a new rotor and introduce far more deviation than that. Don't ask me how I know. :D

Mike

I did check the current set and they're good as is. I figured it would be pretty unlikely that the problem would persist through 2 sets of hubs and 3 sets of rotors.

Had the same issues with my car last year. The whole front end was shaking violently at high speeds. Couldn't quite pinpoint the cause, but over the winter I replaced the front bearings, tie rods, control arms, and control arm bushings. Also, I rebalanced the wheels which turned out to be very much out of balance. Just ran Limerock last week and car is now smooth as silk at high speeds and under braking.

I'll be at Pocono this week also. My first time there. I've got a green and white E36

That's what the current plan is. Got sick of trouble shooting and now I'm just throwing parts at it.

I'll be the white E36 with yellow foglights up in the coordinators garages assuming I can get this running right. If I cant, I'll still go but I'll be car-less. I'll be doing tech on Fri morning, stop by and say hi.

What about the Spindles, I have not heard any one mention them, I had an instructor mention to me he had a similar problem and went to a all new BBK setup and it still shook.
they then replaced the spindles and bingo problem solved??? his problem started after he had a minor off track but he said he thought it was so minor it shouldn't have caused any problems

just an idea... good luck

I wasnt around for the wheel bearing replacement but I asked him to check out everything in there. :dunno Good idea, I'll put it on the list.

You're not braking hard enough Jesse. Ya damn pansy. Gotta get on that pedal with 2 feet. Brake DDEEEEPPP. I mean I wanna see corner workers tossing their flags and running for cover!!:devillook

Don

The corner workers are throwing flags but its because I'm all over the place. :D

Shoot me a PM when you know your track sched for this year.

I had the exact problem described, and in my case, it was rusted/pitted pistons in both of my front calipers, caused by torn dust seals.

Replaced both calipers (did not rebuild--it was cheaper to replace than to rebuild, because of needing new pistons), and the problem disappeared.

I had the exact problem described, and in my case, it was rusted/pitted pistons in both of my front calipers, caused by torn dust seals.

Replaced both calipers (did not rebuild--it was cheaper to replace than to rebuild, because of needing new pistons), and the problem disappeared.

Daaaaammmmnnn, that would make sense.

Pistons were good when the calipers were rebuilt a few months ago.

I found a handful more things that need to be replaced. Should know tomorrow afternoon if they are good.

Shoot me a PM when you know your track sched for this year.

Soon. Hopefully the engine will be installed on Sunday. Then it's just hook up the intercooler piping, electronics, fuel and pray:D

Keep us posted on your shaking problem....

Please just replace the calipers

with a new pair or look very close to the rust/corrosion ring where the piston gose into the caliper. I have been fighting this for a year now and That is what fixed it. The car is perfectly drivable on the street or on the first lap, but after that you are trying to figure out how long your car will hold together. I put two sets of pads 3 sets of rotors includeing euro floatig rotors which lasted the longest becasue they were better with the heat. Fixed the calipers and no more problems. I too rebuilt my calipers at the track and did not see the corosion. Looked closer after we got the calipers off of the car. and got a closer look there was indeed a rust ring. I was able to take a pick and emory cloth and remove it. Now all is good. Let us know what comes of it. please

Thanks, but this problem existed before and after the caliper rebuild. The pistons and calipers were in great shape (no rust). If I'm wrong you can all laugh at me, but I'm betting their fine.

There is evidence elsewhere on bf.com that this car made laps today...

What's the verdict? 100%?

It definitely made laps w/ two drivers. The shake is 95% gone. Its completely drivable now. There is a small amount of play in the steering rack that probably cause everything else to eventually go back. The front subframe is getting removed in a week or so anyway so I'll check everything then.

I can guess its the rack but I wont know until I check it out. 95% of it was fixed by putting new tie-rods and a host of other joints.

Will keep you posted. Now I have to go find that evidence of yesterday happening...

Proof that it lives!
http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m17/vlad-e30m3/pocono-04-08/pocono460.jpg


And everyone meet Jeff/BMW4LIFE! :D
http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m17/vlad-e30m3/pocono-04-08/pocono312.jpg


Thanks to Vlad for the pics.

Glad you got a handle on it Jesse!!

Don

Proof that it lives!
http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m17/vlad-e30m3/pocono-04-08/pocono460.jpg


And everyone meet Jeff/BMW4LIFE! :D
http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m17/vlad-e30m3/pocono-04-08/pocono312.jpg


Thanks to Vlad for the pics.

Nice pic! You got my good side. I was posing as a beached whale.