Z4 23i e89 steering issues

[Ben__980]

Hi everyone,
I am Ben and I write from Italy. Almost two years ago I bought a wonderful Z4 that I love. However, I would like to talk to you about a steering problem that has been afflicting my car for months now.

Summarizing: about 1 year ago, after having taken a bump, I began to feel that the steering had become light and inconsistent (to be clear as if the speed increased did not correspond to a "hardening"). For every imperfection of the road surface (and in Italy there are many), off it resulted in a deviation of the steering wheel to the right or left.
In sports mode the situation got even worse because the steering as well as "soft" became even more responsive making the car unmanageable (on the highway is scary). I also realize that the steering seems to have a dead angle too accentuated (see video)

I state that the machine does not give any kind of alarm / warning light.

First I brought the car to the tire shop (I had to change tires anyway): new wheels (Pirelli Pzero) perfect convergence, perfect camber, perfect rods (the car goes straight as a sword).

I was not convinced and so I took the car to BMW assistance where, after trying it, they tell me "everything is in order, it's normal". I try to resign myself (maybe it was a wrong feeling) but the doubt remained.
After a month I decided to take the car to another authorized workshop where, after a test drive, the tester told me that, in fact, something was wrong and told me to leave the car for a check. They called me the next day telling me they had found an error in a steering sensor and that I had updated the steering ECU.
After a first test the car "seemed" to go better (even if the feeling was not really what I imagined).

After a few days again and this time, in the absence of alarms or warnings, I decide to tell my brain to stop complaining.

Until the other day when I tried a friend's 320d e93 (I know he does not have the same steering system as mine): perfect. Rigid, reactive, not nervous.

To better understand the type of problem I am attaching a short video.

https://youtu.be/Nip-fnN7-iQ

Opinions? Maybe someone who has already had a similar problem?

I await your response with confidence.

[ttl]

just an idea.. you wouldn't have changed tyres on one axle and left different brand/type on the other one?

[Ben__980]

Originally Posted by ttl

just an idea.. you wouldn't have changed tyres on one axle and left different brand/type on the other one?

no...4 Pirelli PZero of right measure

[ttl]

Originally Posted by Ben__980

no...4 Pirelli PZero of right measure

as I said, just an idea. I changed my rear tyres to a different brand a few months ago and had problems similar to what you describe. Had to change the front ones and since then the ride and steering has been perfect.

[jparnes1]

You don't say how many miles are on your car, but if there is too much play in your steering ( as your video shows), it's likely that your tie rods are shot. Either the ball joint on the outer tie rod or the ball on the inner rod, or both.

[Ben__980]

the mechanic has checked the suspensions and found that the tie rod of the left suspension and some blocks were loose. Today I'm going to try it...hoping it goes well

[jake169]

I am experiencing the same floaty issue. Did the tie rod change help?

[tintoverano]

Originally Posted by Ben__980

Hi everyone,
Summarizing: about 1 year ago, after having taken a bump, I began to feel that the steering had become light and inconsistent (to be clear as if the speed increased did not correspond to a "hardening").

when I first drove my car (same as yours), I immediately had the floaty feeling, I didn't feel secure cornering

usually sway bar replacement cures this according to several posts, I had luck adding a strut brace for a different reason, but it solved the floaty issue as well 100%

you can find out more bout my experience here