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      11-10-2010, 03:44 PM   #23
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Call me a dummy but I still don't understand the "right" way and "wrong" way.

The plastic H beam arm attaches to the upper arm to the lower arm. How is it possible to attach/install the arm improperly?

I installed the suspension myself too. (scary )
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      11-10-2010, 07:43 PM   #24
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Originally Posted by Eurotrash8 View Post
Call me a dummy but I still don't understand the "right" way and "wrong" way.

The plastic H beam arm attaches to the upper arm to the lower arm. How is it possible to attach/install the arm improperly?

I installed the suspension myself too. (scary )
I just got clearer explaination from JAJ and understand now.

Gotta buy him a beer next time im in Van!
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      08-21-2011, 07:16 PM   #25
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Bumping an old thread.

Does anyone have pics of the wrong way? Mine looks like the pics in hhlou's post and my headlights are still fixed pretty far down. The sensor level (with the cross hatch) is almost parallel with the floor with the wheel off the ground.

I checked the fronts and it's attached too.

Maybe I just need to adjust the lights up? I never drove the new car with the stock suspension since I had the dealer drop the car off at the shop to swap things over.
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      08-22-2011, 11:27 PM   #26
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If you can, unhook both sensor arms from their linkage at both the front and the rear axle.

Switch the car's electronics on (or just start the engine) and turn on the headlights. You should be able to move the headlight aim point up and down by moving the sensor arms up and down at the front and rear. If there's no motion, then something's broken. If the headlights move then the sensors are working correctly and you just have to readjust the lights once it's all reconnected.

Quote:
Originally Posted by aus View Post
Bumping an old thread.

Does anyone have pics of the wrong way? Mine looks like the pics in hhlou's post and my headlights are still fixed pretty far down. The sensor level (with the cross hatch) is almost parallel with the floor with the wheel off the ground.

I checked the fronts and it's attached too.

Maybe I just need to adjust the lights up? I never drove the new car with the stock suspension since I had the dealer drop the car off at the shop to swap things over.
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      08-23-2011, 12:35 AM   #27
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JAJ View Post
If you can, unhook both sensor arms from their linkage at both the front and the rear axle.

Switch the car's electronics on (or just start the engine) and turn on the headlights. You should be able to move the headlight aim point up and down by moving the sensor arms up and down at the front and rear. If there's no motion, then something's broken. If the headlights move then the sensors are working correctly and you just have to readjust the lights once it's all reconnected.
Thanks. That's what I figured. I think I'm going to adjust them up first. After thinking about it, I've had to adjust the lights on ALL my BMW's after I first get them. If the lights don't move up and down over bumps, then something is probably broken.
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Let me get this straight... You are swapping out parts designed by some of the top engineers in the world because some guys sponsored by a company told you it's "better??" But when you ask the same guy about tracking, "oh no, I have a kid now" or "I just detailed my car." or "i just got new tires."
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      08-23-2011, 11:13 AM   #28
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Almost every M3 that I work on that has a modified suspension from another "shop" either has the rear sensor attached incorrectly or they have broken the sensor.

For you DIY guys, please pay attention to how something was installed and put together before actually dismantling things. It might be a good idea to take pictures of certain things before they are apart too.

Good luck guys.

JAJ good looking out!
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      12-19-2011, 03:34 AM   #29
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just wanted to say thanks to the OP for this, my rear was off and after the fix my headlights finally aim correctly
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      05-29-2012, 02:07 AM   #30
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Very good topic
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      05-29-2012, 05:18 AM   #31
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I'm about to get some KW Sleeves. So I guess this is something I need to take care with. Having not done springs before I have to ask the question: Do these things have to be removed / re-fitted in all cases?
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      05-29-2012, 05:56 PM   #32
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Quote:
Originally Posted by markjord View Post
I'm about to get some KW Sleeves. So I guess this is something I need to take care with. Having not done springs before I have to ask the question: Do these things have to be removed / re-fitted in all cases?
Yes, they have to be disconnected or you'll break the arm off the sensor. You don't have to remove them though, just undo one of the nuts that hooks the rod to the control arm. The front's pretty much idiot-proof, but the rear was designed to fool even the most advanced idiots.
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      06-03-2012, 06:04 PM   #33
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Hope this will be helpful for someone who wonder what is one of the ways to correct the sensor arms position by yourself in your garage and without taking the wheel off the car.

I had the same problem with the headlight aiming very high after installing Eibach pro springs. I checked the front sensor that seems to be hooked up properly. I didn't know there's a sensor in the rear also. after reading this post, I checked the rear sensor and "BAM" it's hooked up incorrectly. I was trying to figure it out how I can correct it myself without going back to the shop where they installed my springs.

The easiest way to do so is to lift up the driver side rear wheel with a jack (I used my other car's jack as the e92 M3 doesn't come with one (I can't find it). Then I thought I need to remove the wheel in order to get to it. BUT then after I lifted the car with the car jack, I noticed that the rear end is high enough for me to stick my head under it and my hand can reach the sensor that way. By the way, that sensor is next to the spring (inner side of the spring so it's a bit more difficult to get to it by passing my hand/arm under the wheelwell even after I remove the wheel--I think). So anyway, after making sure the jack has securely lifted up my car, I laid down on my back and stick my head under the car and try to remove the screw that connect the 2 plastic arms together. That wasn't successful as there seems to be a ball joint at the end of that screw and that just keep turning thus the nut wasn't going anywhere at all. So I used a mirror to help me to look at the sensor unit that attach to the upper arm and the car body and "BAM", I figured out what to do. There's 1 screw that fix the senor unit to the car body, all I had to do was to take out that screw (there's a small metal part stick out from the sensor unit which goes into a hole on the car body/part that helps to align/fix the unit at only 1 position so when you put that screw back on it will be fool proof to have the unit installed back to the correct position. Just make sure that metal part stick back to that hole before you put that screw back in). So I unscrew the screw and rotate the arms carefully so now the upper plastic arm (which is attached to the sensor unit) is lying horizontally instead of vertically down. There's enough room to do that and I didn't have to disconnect the wire/harness to that sensor unit.

That's it. Not too difficult to do. You just need to have the gut to stick your head under the car to do that. No need to remove the wheel and put it back on. Just make sure you put something on the floor to lay your back on so you will be more comfortable. For me, I used my kid's pack-and-play pad.

I think the auto level is working now but unfortunately since I had manually adjusted the level before now I have to readjust it (I think). I will do that tonight.

Quote:
Originally Posted by JAJ View Post
When I installed my KW ClubSport suspension, I was very careful to make sure my headlight aim sensors remained undamaged and were reconnected every time I had it apart. At the rear, you have to drop the rear lower control arm to adjust the ride height, so it was apart four or five times by the time I was happy with it.

I have to admit that I've always been baffled by the posts about "my headlights are out of alignment after a suspension change". The whole point of the aim sensors is to keep the headlights at exactly the right angle, regardless of the front or rear ride heights. The system uses two sensors, a computer and a servomotor in each headlight to make sure that if either end is unusually high or low, the headlight aim is correct. It just didn't make sense to me how, if the sensors were undamaged, it could go wrong.

That was before MY headlight aim went wrong after I installed my Clubsport suspension. I did it all perfectly, and yet there the headlights were, fixed in one position, refusing to adjust. Luckily, the ride height was so close to normal that it was ok, at least for a few days.

When I had the next chance to dig into it, I jacked the car up and messed with the sensors a bit. Now, when I had an aim problem on my E39 M5, I learned a lot about the sensor system. For instance, it's fast. You can unscrew the sensor rod, move the arm with your fingers and the headlights will respond immediately, moving up and down as you move the arm. So, I put the car on the lift, pulled the left front wheel, unscrewed the sensor rod and started moving the front sensor arm. No dice. Headlights were staring straight ahead, not moving. I figured that whatever was wrong must be wrong somewhere else.

Here's how the front sensor is supposed to look when it's connected properly to the rod assembly:

Attachment 388804

As you can see, the rod is actually bent from the factory and there's only one way to put it together (that's important).

Well, if the front sensor wasn't producing any adjustment, how about the rear one? I pulled the left rear wheel off and took a look (the sensor is immediately inboard of the spring). Sure enough, the rods and ball joints were connected but something didn't look right.

After I studied it for a while, I realized that it was possible to put it together two ways - the wrong way and the right way, and mine was wrong!

Here's a picture of the the right way to put it together:

Attachment 388805

In the wrong way, you position the sensor arm (at the top, plastic with cross ribs) hanging straight down, so the H-shaped arm that links it to the bracket at the bottom reaches sideways instead of up and down. In that "wrong" position, there's no stress on the sensor (it doesn't get broken) but it doesn't work either. Hence the system locks the headlights in one place and waits for someone to repair it.

When I undid the sensor arm and moved it up (to where you see it in the picture) the headlights started to move as I moved it. System function was fully restored, and there was no need to adjust the manual headlight adjusters.

So, if you're one of the guys who've had to do a manual headlight adjustment after a spring or suspension install, check the rods and arms on the rear headlight sensor. If they don't look like the picture, get it checked out by a qualified mechanic.

[By the way, if you look at the photos on an iPad, they're the wrong way up. On my PC and Mac browsers, Chrome, IE, Safari and Firefox, they work fine. On the iPad Safari browser, they revert to the original camera orientation, which was determined by getting the lens aimed at the sensors for the pictures. The front picture was taken upside down and the rear was taken sideways. If they look strange, switch browsers.]

Last edited by suprafrank; 06-20-2012 at 02:18 AM..
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      07-30-2012, 02:11 AM   #34
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Quote:
Originally Posted by suprafrank View Post
Hope this will be helpful for someone who wonder what is one of the ways to correct the sensor arms position by yourself in your garage and without taking the wheel off the car.

I had the same problem with the headlight aiming very high after installing Eibach pro springs. I checked the front sensor that seems to be hooked up properly. I didn't know there's a sensor in the rear also. after reading this post, I checked the rear sensor and "BAM" it's hooked up incorrectly. I was trying to figure it out how I can correct it myself without going back to the shop where they installed my springs.

The easiest way to do so is to lift up the driver side rear wheel with a jack (I used my other car's jack as the e92 M3 doesn't come with one (I can't find it). Then I thought I need to remove the wheel in order to get to it. BUT then after I lifted the car with the car jack, I noticed that the rear end is high enough for me to stick my head under it and my hand can reach the sensor that way. By the way, that sensor is next to the spring (inner side of the spring so it's a bit more difficult to get to it by passing my hand/arm under the wheelwell even after I remove the wheel--I think). So anyway, after making sure the jack has securely lifted up my car, I laid down on my back and stick my head under the car and try to remove the screw that connect the 2 plastic arms together. That wasn't successful as there seems to be a ball joint at the end of that screw and that just keep turning thus the nut wasn't going anywhere at all. So I used a mirror to help me to look at the sensor unit that attach to the upper arm and the car body and "BAM", I figured out what to do. There's 1 screw that fix the senor unit to the car body, all I had to do was to take out that screw (there's a small metal part stick out from the sensor unit which goes into a hole on the car body/part that helps to align/fix the unit at only 1 position so when you put that screw back on it will be fool proof to have the unit installed back to the correct position. Just make sure that metal part stick back to that hole before you put that screw back in). So I unscrew the screw and rotate the arms carefully so now the upper plastic arm (which is attached to the sensor unit) is lying horizontally instead of vertically down. There's enough room to do that and I didn't have to disconnect the wire/harness to that sensor unit.

That's it. Not too difficult to do. You just need to have the gut to stick your head under the car to do that. No need to remove the wheel and put it back on. Just make sure you put something on the floor to lay your back on so you will be more comfortable. For me, I used my kid's pack-and-play pad.

I think the auto level is working now but unfortunately since I had manually adjusted the level before now I have to readjust it (I think). I will do that tonight.
Going to give this a shot tonight. I'm glad I did a SEARCH before posting the same question and all you guys ripping my head off for not searching.
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      07-30-2012, 02:40 AM   #35
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Just remember there are two ways to attach the rear sensor, put it back on in the correct way and there'll be no problem.
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      07-30-2012, 07:28 PM   #36
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thanx this worked for me took about 5 mins and i was done light are back to normal
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      09-24-2012, 07:48 PM   #37
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Well, this problem has no borders - had the same issue here in Toronto Canada! Had my suspension upgraded Friday and got flashed by oncoming traffic at night the rest of the weekend. Other than you need racoon fingers to get access to the mounting nut, it was easy and took 15 minutes. Thanks for the information guys!
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      09-24-2012, 08:01 PM   #38
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JFWM3 View Post
Well, this problem has no borders - had the same issue here in Toronto Canada! Had my suspension upgraded Friday and got flashed by oncoming traffic at night the rest of the weekend. Other than you need racoon fingers to get access to the mounting nut, it was easy and took 15 minutes. Thanks for the information guys!
Same problem here recently after putting new springs on. After fixing the level I still had to manually adjust my lights up about 2 turns. I hate the sharp cutoff on our headlights.
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      09-24-2012, 10:50 PM   #39
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JFWM3 View Post
Well, this problem has no borders - had the same issue here in Toronto Canada! Had my suspension upgraded Friday and got flashed by oncoming traffic at night the rest of the weekend. Other than you need racoon fingers to get access to the mounting nut, it was easy and took 15 minutes. Thanks for the information guys!
Yes, since I started this thread, I believe the problem has been reported in the USA as well as here in Canada.
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      10-15-2012, 12:02 AM   #40
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I have just installed KW clubsports on my car and the headlights are WAY to low. I manually adjusted them up.. Just found this thread, but it seems as though everyone is having them too high, is it possible that I have a different problem? I disconnected the front and rear sensor when installing KW's and bolted back. They do not look damaged at all and they were never on any type of stress while installing.

Any opinions would be great.

Thanks.
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      10-18-2012, 12:02 AM   #41
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Quote:
Originally Posted by danio View Post
I have just installed KW clubsports on my car and the headlights are WAY to low. I manually adjusted them up.. Just found this thread, but it seems as though everyone is having them too high, is it possible that I have a different problem? I disconnected the front and rear sensor when installing KW's and bolted back. They do not look damaged at all and they were never on any type of stress while installing.

Any opinions would be great.

Thanks.
If you hooked them up wrong, they will not look damaged (and they won't be damaged). They just won't work. Look at the pictures and make sure that the rear ones are installed correctly.
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      12-06-2012, 12:19 PM   #42
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Dear all,

I just had some suspension work done by a shop. I got my car back, the headlights were pointing way up. the shop only manually adjusted the headlights down by turning the screws and refused to do this simple adjustment for me because "we looked at other BMWs in our lot and the sensors all looked the same (hanging down) way, so we reinstalled it right and we are not gonna touch it", and then I showed them the trunk loading test (headlight tilts with trunk load) and they told me "well, the car has to be in motion over 5mph before the sensors will kick in" -_-|||

since I dont have a jack at home, my questions are:
1. is there an easy way to test this? if I can some how reach the sensor without a jack, am I able to move it up/down without taking off the 10mm screw?
2. if the sensor is working, what should I expect from the trunk loading test? how quickly does the sensor and headlight respond? if I just rock the back of the M3 up and down, do sensor and headlight react fast enough to respond?

Regards,
Michael
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      12-06-2012, 09:51 PM   #43
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Macky112 View Post
...1. is there an easy way to test this?

2. if the sensor is working, what should I expect from the trunk loading test?

3. how quickly does the sensor and headlight respond?

4. if I just rock the back of the M3 up and down, do sensor and headlight react fast enough to respond?
1. no
2. headlights will remain pointed where they should be.
3. milliseconds.
4. yes

If you can rock your M3 end-to-end, you must be a giant, because the suspension is 'way too stiff otherwise.
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      12-07-2012, 02:55 PM   #44
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hi JAJ, thank you for the reply.

I have another question, I noticed my headlights, during starting the car for the auto-level motor test, beams only move to the bottom and then back to the middle, never go past middle to the upward position.

furthermore, when I turn the manual adjustment screws for the beams counter-clock-wise, the beams does not move up.

any thoughts/comments for me?

Regards,
Michael
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