Cartisan carried out a 2009 BMW E60 520D suspension overhaul recently. The car had clocked around 59,000km and was due for a suspension replacement. The customer had put in a request through the Cartisan app
The car was taken to the closest Cartisan Preferred Workshop where the suspension was dismantled and inspected for wear and damage.
BMW E60 suspension overhaul parts
Firstly dismantling and inspection, it was determined that the following items required replacement
- Control Arm Bushes
- Strut Buufer & Boot
- Strut Mounting
- Link Rods
- Tie Rod Ends & Ball Joints
- Sway Bar or Balance Rod Bushes
A quote was provided to the customer, he accepted and the work was underway.
BMW E60 suspension overhaul process
Firstly all wheels were removed and brake pads, calipers & rotors were unmounted from the wheel hub.
Next, the tie rod ends were disconnected from the hub. The tie rod ends are responsible for alignment of the wheels and controls the wear of the inner and outer surfaces of the tyres. They are directly connected to the steering gear via the steering ball joints. New tie rod and ball joints from Sachs are installed to the car.
Next, the sway bar is disconnected from the chassis of the car. The sway bar’s purpose is to control body roll while taking turns at speed or when driving on an irregular surface. Basically, it provides balance to the front end of the car.
The sway bar bushes were disconnected from the sway bar and replaced with brand new bushes from Febi Bilstein.
The BMW E60 control arms were then disconnected from the body of the car. The other end of the control arm is connected to the wheel hub. The entire wheel hub is removed along with the upper and lower control arms. These control arms are then disconnected from the wheel hub.
The control arms are connected to the main body of the car via bushes or brushings and the other ends are connected to the wheels by a ball joint. The control arms are responsible for the turning or pivoting motion of the wheels of the car.
The bushes are removed and replaced with brand new bushes. The new bushes are pressed into the grooves of the control arms with the help of a lathe machine.
Next, the shock absorber for the BM E60 is removed from the car. The shock absorber is connected to the car by means of screws which are accessible from the engine bay. These are unscrewed so that the shock absorber can be removed through the wheel well. Once removed, the springs are compressed so that the mounting, which is located on top of the shock absorber, can be unscrewed with ease. While the spring is in the fully decompressed state, it exerts a force on the shock absorber mounting which makes removing the mounting extremely difficult.
Therefore once the mounting is removed, the spring top plate, the boot and buffer are removed as well. The boot covers the shaft and prevents accumulation of dirt and dust. The buffer acts as a mini shock absorber, absorbing any additional stress that might be caused due to sudden impacts.
A new boot and buffer are installed and the spring top plate is placed back onto the shock absorber. The mounting is screwed onto the spring top plate and the springs are finally decompressed.
The springs are compressed and decompressed with the help of a pneumatic impact wrench and clamps.
The new shock absorber is then mounted back onto the frame of the car.
The link rods which are connected to the ends of the sway bar are removed and replaced with brand new Febi Bilstein link rods. The link rods along with the sway bar provide balance to the wheels of the car.
Finally, all the components are fitted to the car and the wheel hub is then connected. Once the hub is connected, the brake rotors, brake calipers, brake pads and finally the wheels are mounted onto the hub.
The car is lowered down to the ground and taken for a test drive to confirm that the work was carried out successfully.
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Originally published at Cartisan.
