[AT LAW]

Greetings,
I purchased a new 2015 550xDrive M Sport in late December.

Ever since it was new, it has been steering to the right.

I took it in in January and the dealer advised nothing was wrong. I took it back to the dealer in Feb and they advised a steering rod was broken/damaged from the factory. They replaced it. It still steers to the right.

I took it in Wednesday of this week, and the dealer advised the front springs are damaged from the factory. I was not aware a 550 had springs up front.
It is supposed to be finished next week.

Frankly, I am getting a bit upset with an $80,000 + vehicle having these steering issues.

I am curious to hear the thoughts of other members regarding this issue.

Thanks.

Tom

[493263]

Not all vehicles are perfect from the factory. It's a rare chance but it happens. They should have inspected the vehicles before selling it.

Why would you think it wouldn't have springs in front. Almost every consumer vehicle uses springs up front.

[valbmw]

This is one of the most common issues with the F10. There are mixed reasons for that, and different owners either got it fixed different ways (either parts replaced or consecutive alignment done or the car software updated). You may want to see how the suspension is designed: http://f10.5post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=369498, and read some of the previous discussions about the pulling to the right issue: http://f10.5post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1066009&. Don't worry, it can be fixed)

[AT LAW]

Thanks for the replies.

This is my third F/10. I have had a 2012 535, a 2014 550, and now a 2015 550.

The 2012 pulled to the right since it was new. The '14 did not pull to the right.

Obviously, the '15 is plagued with this issue.

Good article regarding the suspension.

[ezmaass]

I have a '14 550xi - no pulling issues.

[AT LAW]

Interesting addition.

I brought the car in on March 12th for the third time regarding the steering to the right problem.

The SA just called me and advised the parts (springs, etc.) will not be here for another week and a half. Then they have to be installed. Then they will have to determine if the issue is corrected.

I opened a case with BMW North America just so they have documentation.

Just as another point, as always my BMW SA has been outstanding. I have always been impressed with BMW's service.

I must say, I am not real happy about paying for a 550 and rarely ever seeing it.

[NewM3driver]

BMW corporate is always very good about doing the right thing for its customers. As most readers on this forum probably know I got bad 2015 535d and corporate ordered me up a fresh new car. SA tried to fix the issue a couple of times, two different BMW engineers came out to the dealer and drove the car, agreed there was something wrong, and corporate called and informed me they were going to build me a new car.

[macastel]

Originally Posted by AT LAW

Interesting addition.

I brought the car in on March 12th for the third time regarding the steering to the right problem.

The SA just called me and advised the parts (springs, etc.) will not be here for another week and a half. Then they have to be installed. Then they will have to determine if the issue is corrected.

I opened a case with BMW North America just so they have documentation.

Just as another point, as always my BMW SA has been outstanding. I have always been impressed with BMW's service.

I must say, I am not real happy about paying for a 550 and rarely ever seeing it.

can you please shared the resolution if any?
I just got a 550i 2015 and is pulling to the right. any information would be greatly appreciated.

[OEMonsterz]

Alarming thread. 80K for a car that pulls to the right??

Your a patient man that's for sure.

A shoe lace would have been coming out of the manager's a*** within 1/2 weeks of failed attempts at fixes.

[purplecow]

My money is in a defective tire.
Mine used to pull to the right with the Dunlop runflats.

Looks up tire pull on Google.

[raddy]

I just bought my 2015 535d in for the same issue. The alignment was off BADLY. I have some questions for the dealership first thing Monday morning. This is unacceptable

[RSBro]

My car seems to be doing this more often too...

I just had new Michelin's put on the rear and had the full alignment and all that done when they were installed. That was about 1.5 mo's ago. And it seems to be already out of whack... I've had to pay 2-3x already to have this car aligned since I got it in Jan 2013. Pretty annoying.

[Bmw doubles]

Mine was recently resolved with a software update for the electronic steering on my 2011 535 doing the same thing. I can find my paperwork and let you know the SIB number if you'd like.

[RSBro]

Originally Posted by Bmw doubles

Mine was recently resolved with a software update for the electronic steering on my 2011 535 doing the same thing. I can find my paperwork and let you know the SIB number if you'd like.

That would be nice. I plan to buy an extended warranty and keep this car for years to come, so not wanting to pay to fix this issue every couple of months which has been the M.O. so far...

[HighlandPete]

Originally Posted by RSBro

My car seems to be doing this more often too...

I just had new Michelin's put on the rear and had the full alignment and all that done when they were installed. That was about 1.5 mo's ago. And it seems to be already out of whack... I've had to pay 2-3x already to have this car aligned since I got it in Jan 2013. Pretty annoying.

Why the need for all the alignments? Roads you drive, or poor alignment calibrations?

My F11 is now 4-years old (26k miles) and on the original alignment as far as I know, (got it at 6k miles). Tracks perfectly straight and tires wear pretty even. My local roads are pretty poor, not knocked the alignment out.

HighlandPete

[RSBro]

Originally Posted by HighlandPete

Why the need for all the alignments? Roads you drive, or poor alignment calibrations?

My F11 is now 4-years old (26k miles) and on the original alignment as far as I know, (got it at 6k miles). Tracks perfectly straight and tires wear pretty even. My local roads are pretty poor, not knocked the alignment out.

HighlandPete

I honestly couldn't tell you. 95% of my driving is my 11-mile (round trip) commute on very smooth and well maintained roads under 50mph. There's no reason it should be changing this much.

I'm waiting on Bmw doubles to post that software update. See if it helps.
Sometimes I drive aggressively off the line here and there but that can't be the reason, even with the amount of torque we have.

[Bmw doubles]

Originally Posted by RSBro

I'm waiting on Bmw doubles to post that software update. See if it helps.
Sometimes I drive aggressively off the line here and there but that can't be the reason, even with the amount of torque we have.

That paperwork is in my glove compartment and my clutch just went out yesterday so It will be a few more days until I can post that. In the meantime here is another post showing the service bulletin for a software update. http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=549373

This is from 2011 and mine was more recent so there may be differences. I'll post mine as soon as I get my car back.

[RSBro]

Originally Posted by Bmw doubles

That paperwork is in my glove compartment and my clutch just went out yesterday so It will be a few more days until I can post that. In the meantime here is another post showing the service bulletin for a software update. http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=549373

This is from 2011 and mine was more recent so there may be differences. I'll post mine as soon as I get my car back.

Thank you. I'm going to save that so I can email it to my S.A. Unfortunately on our M-Sport 550s you can't rotate the tires so that isn't a solution if one is out of whack. I know people have mentioned that as well.

[raza123]

i think its a common issue among all BMWs. Mine has the same issue and its a e90 328i. My friend has a f10 535i and it has the same issue. A performance shop i go to told me that its fairly common. Its really annoying though not gonna lie!

[Bmw doubles]

Here is the paperwork. It's called "program for steer ahead". It cured my pulling problem.

[CLKFAN]

Getting rid of my Conti run flats cured my problem. I installed my Alpina's with some non run flats and it changed my car completely. My car rides better now and less harsh plus the pull is gone and my car handles much better with wider tires.

If you are on factory supplied run flats it could be the issue. If you know of someone who has a set of wheels and tires or can swap out just your front tires for a test run it would be worth it.

The "program for steer ahead" seems like a great solution also but if the tires are the problem this program may not work. I wish I could have shown my SA this info when they were oblivious to what I had said to them about a software update that can fix the pull I had. I'm not sure why all BMW dealerships don't know of this.

[Bmw doubles]

Originally Posted by CLKFAN

Getting rid of my Conti run flats cured my problem. I installed my Alpina's with some non run flats and it changed my car completely. My car rides better now and less harsh plus the pull is gone and my car handles much better with wider tires.

If you are on factory supplied run flats it could be the issue. If you know of someone who has a set of wheels and tires or can swap out just your front tires for a test run it would be worth it.

The "program for steer ahead" seems like a great solution also but if the tires are the problem this program may not work. I wish I could have shown my SA this info when they were oblivious to what I had said to them about a software update that can fix the pull I had. I'm not sure why all BMW dealerships don't know of this.

If you're still interested in getting the pulling software update have your dealership contact the BMW Monrovia dealer. That's where I had mine done.