E34 Thrust arms - Lemforder in Sydney Aust?

[Trevor]

Hi folks.
The shimmy has become unbearable and I have a week off in the siszzling Sydney summer (okay so it's raining today - good for mec hanical work).
BMW Sydney are charging $266 (+gst) each for Thrust arms, and $94 each for the bushings.
Are any of you Sydney siders (Phil/Geoff/et al) aware of alternate OEM or performance parts that are less likley to break the bank?

Pls email me.

[Paul in NZ]

actually trevor thats not too bad....check out some other marque prices!!!I was in at my tre/suspension shop the other day and there was a toyota echo in there that had had an encounter with a traffic island.The lower control arms were 750!!!!my lower control arms were 250 ish(dont ask)Check out the freight from the US or canada...wont be today tho huh.

[Trevor]

Good point Paul.
I guess that I'm suffering from BMA envy........
Heading down to BMW Sydney right now to place the order. Some parts are in melb. Hopefully a less expensive performance option will surface by the time the the parts get to Sydney.

[Paul in NZ]

what about getting new bushes pressed into the existing arms?I am pretty sure this has no downside.......unless your arms are bent.

[pundit]

Hi folks.
The shimmy has become unbearable and I have a week off in the siszzling Sydney summer (okay so it's raining today - good for mec hanical work).
BMW Sydney are charging $266 (+gst) each for Thrust arms, and $94 each for the bushings.
Are any of you Sydney siders (Phil/Geoff/et al) aware of alternate OEM or performance parts that are less likley to break the bank?

Pls email me.
Hi Trevor,

I have just been through this same dilema.

WHAT?!!
BMW 750 thrust arm bushes. (These are the 'standard' heavy duty replacements for E34's) Make sure your arms are in okay condition before you purchase the bushes. (You will need access to a hydraulic bearing press)

HOW MUCH?!!
$129.00 (AUD) per pair $64.50 each inc. GST
For all you Yankee's (;)) this equates to about $48.00 US each. (inc. tax)

WHERE?!!
BM SPARES (http://www.bmspares.com.au/)
209 Princes Highway
Dandenong
Vic. 3175
Phone: 1300 735 740

Ask for Marty.

They will take credit card over the phone and I'm sure they will ship interstate.

While you're at it check out their prices for anything else you may be thinking of buying. Their prices on ATE OEM front disc rotors were 50% less than the cheapest dealer price I could get.
Aussie prices inc. GST - (Cheapest Dealer price - $163.90) versus (BM SPARES - $104.50) . The rears were around $65.00 each.
I'm not saying BM SPARES are the cheapest, but they have been thus far.

Good luck!! ;)

[drum2430]

Hey Trevor,

Another option is the M5 bushings. A little stiffer yet than the 750's. And yes, They will fit.

G.

[Bill R.]

204,00 km on the car... I wouldn't even consider replacing only the bushings at this point.. I would just buy the new thrust arms with ball joints and be happy..













what about getting new bushes pressed into the existing arms?I am pretty sure this has no downside.......unless your arms are bent.

[mamilapon]

Have you guys tried Sydney Wide European in Condell Park?

[Trevor]

Thanks for all the responses guys.
You'll be pleased to know that I have eradicated the shimmy and the feeling that the car was falling apart under heavy braking. It was shaking like you would not beleive.
I got under the car and checked out all the ball joints and bushes - bad news.
Drivers side (that's the right side in OZ) ball joints on Thrust and control arms were shot as were the boots on the sway links on both sides. I'm keeping the car so went for the long term option of replacing everything.

So, with a few days of holiday left and only 2 weeks to get the car fixed for the rego check, I bit the bullet and had to go with the d(st)ealer for the parts. They are getting to know me at Sydney BMW and after producing my NSW BMW Drivers club card and having a few good chats, I ended up getting $80 off the trade price for the lot. Darren at Sydney BMW even got the service guys to press the (750il) bushings in to the Thrust arms for me while I waited.

Armed with the Bentleys and the suspension troubleshooting procedures from BMWE34.net I attacked the car.
I had a few issues freeing up the Thrust and Control arms from the suspension mounting plate. The tie rod puller that I had bought from Repco ($30) was just a little too short to manage the job, and they didn't have a "pickle fork".
After about 1/2 hour of frustration I used a little lateral thinking and came up with the solution:
I removed the sway bar link (which I was replacing anyway) and used the tie rod puller to pull the tie rod, thus freeing up the mounting plate with thrust and control arms for removal (Having already removed the bolts at the bushing ends of the Thrust and Control arms).
It was then a simple procedure to take the mounting plate to my workbench and gently knock out the thrust and control arms with a pound hammer.
Reassembly was a straightforward and relatively painless.

With my modified procedure for removing the Thrust and Control arms, the total time from jacking the car up to driving it out of the garage was three hours. I have a trolley jack and used 4 axle stands, one under each front jacking point and two uner the front crossmember under/behind the engine.
(Having been pinned under a car as a teenager, I always ensure that at no time is my body in a position to be pinned shoudl the woirst happen and the car slip off its stands).

The end result is that the shimmy is gone, the "clunk" from the ball joint that I had been ignoring is gone, and the handling on the car is dramatically improved.
I suspect that my front rotors may be mildly warped which probably exascerbated the already existing problems, so once I've replaced the tyres (needed for rego inspection) I'll be replacing them as well.

For future reference, Stacey Anton advises me that buying parts from BMA in CA-USA and having them shipped to Sydney is about 1/2 the price of local parts (even after shipping cocts, duty and taxes). I will certainly be going this option for future planned upgrades.

Thanks for all the advice guys.

[John B.]

I recently replaced the thrust arms on my 535i. Finally cured the clunking noise that had been driving me nuts on the drivers side for months. BMA charged $98. U.S. for each Lemforder arm w/750 bushing pressed in. The car now rides better then it has since I bought it 2 years ago.

[Paul in NZ]

No downside? Paul, how long do you think ball joints last? He has

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

204,00 km on the car

tanks Bill will note for my eventual repair

[Trevor]

Just a quick note to say that the 535iA is now handling like you would not believe. The ride is smoother, and the the clunk and shimmy have gone.

Will be pre-ordering from BMA in future as Sydney prices are astronomical!