cling noise from mid car think its driveshaft

[nxtstep]

hey guys....so i been hearing this noise from mid/rear of the car for about a week or so...only happens 1st and 2nd gear when i go from a full stop to acceleration or just let off the gas i get a cling.

i took the car in today to a shop and he heard the noise and said its pretty much replacing my driveshaft and wants $2000 for it oh and it would take about a week being in the shop so he can rip it out and make sure thats whats wrong before we get it done....i been reading stuff on the forums and people are buying the item for like 1500 installed at dealers..i wanted to know ask a few things and please no jack @$$ remarks if you have any don't waste our time.

Link to someones post with video my car has the same noise but not as often..barely does it. http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthr...ght=driveshaft

1...does upgrading to a CF driveshaft really give you more power and speed for an everyday driver? any noise? any different than stock? asking this since i have been looking on the threads and i see a few different things.

2... any idea where i can pick up a cf or stock driveshaft cheap?? and any good installers in ventura county area??

3... anything else i should have changed while doing this?

4... i saw in the thread listed above that bmw put a statement out saying that it would not change the drive or harm anything ...how true is that since i haven't noticed any different at all once my car is rolling or even at really high speeds but i have been reading people have vibration in the wheel.

thank you all in advance for the help.

[squartus]

Well CF driveshaft both fall line and DSS make a humming sound at speeds over 70-80 mph. It does remove the clunk you get from the OEM two piece shaft. You will launch a little better and rolling out of 1st gear will be smoother as you no longer will have the "lashing" movement.
So no more clunk etc but you will get another noise in its place from the harmonics.

Though why its going to take them a week to do install is beyond me.
You drop midpipes and simply unbolt it, bolt new one back in.

[nxtstep]

Originally Posted by squartus

Well CF driveshaft both fall line and DSS make a humming sound at speeds over 70-80 mph. It does remove the clunk you get from the OEM two piece shaft. You will launch a little better and rolling out of 1st gear will be smoother as you no longer will have the "lashing" movement.
So no more clunk etc but you will get another noise in its place from the harmonics.

Though why its going to take them a week to do install is beyond me.
You drop midpipes and simply unbolt it, bolt new one back in.

hey thanks a bunch for the info...do you know if there are any videos of the noise..most of the time I'm already driving past 75-80 so id really like to see what it would sound like...

you think its something easy for me to do myself or its better just to have a shop do it?? i can get jacks and have worked on cars back years back but lately everything has been new and warranty but i had to have an e93 so gave up the warranty on it....do you know about how much shops should charge for the install?

also i was looking around and was wondering if it was TIG welded since there is movement would that work or not?? i know usually TIG welding would pretty much be 1 of the strongest things you can do hence why i asked.

[nyfg56]

Had this exact problem and noise in that vid. Ended up being my driveshaft...$1,500 later it was fixed

[nxtstep]

Originally Posted by nyfg56

Had this exact problem and noise in that vid. Ended up being my driveshaft...$1,500 later it was fixed

Was it from the joint or somewhere else?? Going to have exhaust customized tomorrow so while its off going to try looking at it and seeing whats going on. 1 dealer quoted me like 1800 but hey said like 6 hours work so told them to requote me.

Any idea if it was tig welded it would work or there is another solution for fixing the existing driveshaft??

[nyfg56]

Originally Posted by nxtstep

Was it from the joint or somewhere else?? Going to have exhaust customized tomorrow so while its off going to try looking at it and seeing whats going on. 1 dealer quoted me like 1800 but hey said like 6 hours work so told them to requote me.

Any idea if it was tig welded it would work or there is another solution for fixing the existing driveshaft??

No tig welding will fix it. It's play in the u joints cashing the noise which can't be replaced on these unfortunately

[squartus]

Originally Posted by nxtstep

hey thanks a bunch for the info...do you know if there are any videos of the noise..most of the time I'm already driving past 75-80 so id really like to see what it would sound like...

you think its something easy for me to do myself or its better just to have a shop do it?? i can get jacks and have worked on cars back years back but lately everything has been new and warranty but i had to have an e93 so gave up the warranty on it....do you know about how much shops should charge for the install?

also i was looking around and was wondering if it was TIG welded since there is movement would that work or not?? i know usually TIG welding would pretty much be 1 of the strongest things you can do hence why i asked.

Its the play in the U-joint, you can work it back and forth with your hand when under the car so cant tig it. I did it myself on jackstands, pretty easy to swap out driveshaft. No clue what a shop would charge for it though, should not be much.
Dont have any videos of the sound, be hard to pick up especially in my car with the other sounds.

[R3dliner]

I just went through this. Clunking when load change or decelerating. Replaced the center support bearing and (guibo) flex plate and it solved the issue. Was a much better option than changing the entire driveshaft

[nxtstep]

Originally Posted by R3dliner

I just went through this. Clunking when load change or decelerating. Replaced the center support bearing and (guibo) flex plate and it solved the issue. Was a much better option than changing the entire driveshaft

hey R3d...thanks for the info...can you show me the parts that you swapped out??? I'm thinking to have a dealer maybe pull out the shaft and look at it to see if its the shaft or the bearings and stuff.

btw anyone know if this is really an issue if there is absolutely no vibration or any issues other than the noise?

[R3dliner]

Swapped out # 1,2,8,10
Center support bearing was on backorder so I had to wait 2 weeks from Germany.

[doogee]

You need an entire new driveshaft. The U-Joints are not serviceable.

[nxtstep]

Originally Posted by R3dliner

Swapped out # 1,2,8,10
Center support bearing was on backorder so I had to wait 2 weeks from Germany.

hey thanks a bunch for sending this over....might just take it to the dealer have them pull it all out and tell me exactly whats up with it since there is a chance i don't need the whole thing but want to be quoted if i do need all of it from get go....

so anyone know if this is a serious issue or is it fine if there is no vibration or anything other than that tiny noise when you first start driving or at low speeds when you let off the gas????

thanks again for all the help guys

[B73M]

Hi,

Have you solve this yet?
I have the same issue, and dealer wants to change the entire shaft.
There is a metallic clunk sound coming from the shaft.

Originally Posted by nxtstep

hey thanks a bunch for sending this over....might just take it to the dealer have them pull it all out and tell me exactly whats up with it since there is a chance i don't need the whole thing but want to be quoted if i do need all of it from get go....

so anyone know if this is a serious issue or is it fine if there is no vibration or anything other than that tiny noise when you first start driving or at low speeds when you let off the gas????

thanks again for all the help guys

[B73M]

Hi R3dliner,

I am tempted to buy those parts you mentioned.
When I had a look at the center support bearing, it looks fine and not worn. Nothing was loose and looks alright but when I turned the wheels, it clunks! Does your look worned or damaged when you changed?

From your perspective, what's causing the clunking sound?
Perhaps hardening of the Guibo?

Originally Posted by R3dliner

I just went through this. Clunking when load change or decelerating. Replaced the center support bearing and (guibo) flex plate and it solved the issue. Was a much better option than changing the entire driveshaft

[R3dliner]

Originally Posted by B73M

Hi R3dliner,

I am tempted to buy those parts you mentioned.
When I had a look at the center support bearing, it looks fine and not worn. Nothing was loose and looks alright but when I turned the wheels, it clunks! Does your look worned or damaged when you changed?

From your perspective, what's causing the clunking sound?
Perhaps hardening of the Guibo?

If your flex disc and CSB looks fine it might be your U joint. If its the U-joint you have to replace the entire driveshaft.

[MFL]

Check your diff bolt/diff bushings as well.

[kamber]

Question for those who are more versed with this and have sat in multiple E9X M3's, both with and without this issue; how does this sound differ from the standard "M-Clunk" that is organic to stock 6MT E9X M3's? I listened to the video, and while the recorded sound definitely seems louder and more pronounced by a large degree, I hear a similar, but softer and less "clangy", sound regularly when engaging and disengaging the clutch upon acceleration/deceleration in gears 1, 2, and 3. I've always thought this to be the infamous "M-Clunk" that is just inherent to the platform.

[B73M]

Thanks for the advise. I have ordered a new drive shaft. Not really costly, usd800+.
The sound is definitely from the shaft, it's like hitting on a glass bottle sound.
The Normal M-clunk is actually a dull "thug" sound, which can be resolved after a DCT tune.

[BPMSport]

I had the same issue a couple years ago, and it turned out to be the driveshaft. Luckily BMW covered 85% out of warranty for me. First they replaced the diff, and when that didn't fix it, they put the old diff back in and replaced the shaft.