[FrankoQ]

I did a search and did not find anything so I ask advice...

Lately, I noticed that when in neutral (manual tranny),
I suddenly feel this vibration. I can feel it in the shifter and my seat.
This is not the normal car vibration. It's noticeable stronger.
After a few days, I noticed that when I am at a stop and put the
car in neutral, the revs go down a little and that's when I feel the vibration.
When the car is in gear, no vibration.
This happens at all times when the car is in neutral.

BTW, no mods under the hood.
car has been perfect since I got it. Only service was an oil change a few months back.
12k miles.


Any ideas?

[dan.cuando]

My car has the same problem, It started happening since I had 3000 miles on the car and now i'm at 14000. Just that I have an auto, the funny thing is that the vibrations go away when I turn on the A/c, unlike my other car which didn't start to vibrate until the A/c was on.
I went to dealer a few times for it but they were clueless.

[oscartheclimber]

I have the same deal with AT, especially in sport program mode. I have noticed that it happens when the revs drop (something to do with the torque converter I believe) so I tried increasing the RPM slightly and it did go away. But it wasn't easy increasing the the RPM by 100 and holding it there to definitively find if that was a solution.

When the AC kicks in or out there is a change in RPM so that could do it.

It is annoying at times - the intensity varies one day to the next. I've also started experiencing rough starts - not sure if it is all related.

[FrankoQ]

I noticed the vibration getting stronger lately.
I'll take the car to the stealer and see if they can do anything.
Will report back.

[Quisp]

I would like to know if they find anything as i have asimilar problem.

[oscartheclimber]

My vibration is definitely linked to RPM. A moment or two after I stop the rpm drop from about 700 to 600 and the vibrations start. If I gas it just a tad the rpms pick up, the vibration goes away, but then it sounds like it is miss firing - a rough idle basically.

[Quisp]

In my case, the car idle drops when sitting still. Goes down to about 500-600, then seems like it is going to stall for a second, rpm crops out but come back. When that happens the car shudders . I feel that through the seat and the shift. The idle stays around 500 and a moment or two later it happens again. This happens whenit is cold and after driviving. No A/C on. I also have the bucking during acceleration problem which is remedied by a TSB that gives me a reprogram. I am hoping that maybe it will take care of the idle at the same time. Calling tomorow to schedule that. I will let you know what happens.

[UWE90]

Just out of hypothesis I think it has something to do with the air intake/filter and engine oil of the car.

When I first installed my intake I didn't connect the pipes tightly, so when I come to a stop the car just stalls itself, with the revs dropping heavily and the car causing vibration. When I fixed the problem the car doesn't seem to do that anymore. However, the vibrations came back recently but I think it's probably cuz I need to get new engine oil for my car.

Just throwing the idea out there. I'm not sure what really happened to your car.

[FrankoQ]

Originally Posted by oscartheclimber

When the AC kicks in or out there is a change in RPM so that could do it.

Interesting. I did not make the connection before, but after reading the above... my vibration started when I turned off the AC.

I turned it back on and I can the RPMs go just a little higher and the vibration is almost gone when idle.

[jaserion]

any updates on this, guys. this is driving me crazy. HELP!

[NPDAN]

Check your vaccum lines or boost hoses, whatever they're called... if they're loose at all or have the tiniest of leaks it can cause that.

Oh and when the AC is on it triggers the ac fan which in turn make car idle higher. This is why it idles better when the ac is on.

[jaserion]

Originally Posted by NPDAN

Check your vaccum lines or boost hoses, whatever they're called... if they're loose at all or have the tiniest of leaks it can cause that.

Oh and when the AC is on it triggers the ac fan which in turn make car idle higher. This is why it idles better when the ac is on.

thanks, dan. my mech ran diagnostics and said the engine and turbos are fine. i'll tell him to physically check those items you suggested.

and i'm in nyc so no AC yet.

[BeMyWife330i]

i have the same thing, i wouldnt call it a problem, my car has 35xxx miles, it just when the car idles at low rpms (600rpm) you can feel it more due to the cylinders moving slower, if it goes below 500rpms(not that it suppose to the car will stall but just an example) youll feel more vibration, so i say its normal.

[shragon]

i'm having the same issue as well. happens when sitting at idle at a stop. my car is an 2006 e90 325i with steptronic. currently at 35k miles.

when i had the ik0n exhaust on the car, it was even worse.

i have since taken off the exhaust since the vibration was getting annoying. but the vibration is still there, just no where as bad as when i had the exhaust on.

the muffler guy also told me it was coming from the motor.

i'm wondering if it has something to do with the motor mounts or something.

[cn555ic]

Can the idle be raised like 100 rpms...that will fix your problem! Ask the BMW tech if this is possible

[Majikthese42]

I've noticed this on my 328i with stick shift. There is definitely more vibration coming through the shifter at idle than on my '98 Volvo with 176k. And the Volvo I-5 is an inherently unbalanced design. This kinda reminds me of what it felt like when my old Porsche's engine mounts went flat.

Seems common enough. But what gives?

[heemry328i]

my car has 350 miles on it. it has the same problem... usually happens when starting the car in the morning

[Dr Dre]

I have the same problem but i feel mine through the steering wheel at idle with a/c on. When i turn it off the vibration goes away.

[Snaffoo]

Did anyone found out what causes this? My is really noticable when the cooling fan kicks in and I can really feel it in the steering wheel and with my hand on the door. I asked the dealer if it was the engine mounts and he said unlikely since they never go. I am beginning to doubt this but they won't check them as they have to take a good part of the engine apart and will require a ton of labour.

[cn555ic]

If you ask the tech to raise it 100 rpms it will fix the problems

[fast_lap28]

Originally Posted by cn555ic

Can the idle be raised like 100 rpms...that will fix your problem! Ask the BMW tech if this is possible

just got my coupe back from the dealer and master tech and I discussed the possible solutions to cure this little gremlin.....

he adviced that they cannot touch the DME to either raise or lower the RPM from stock (aside from flashes ie. Dinan, others)...that techs are giving test parameters they must follow and that this was not possible for them to raise RPM to rid the hesitation. btw - he felt the rough idle and slight vibration at idle, cold and at temp. they had a BMW engineer who was there look at it also. they tried new coil packs, checked plugs, ran diagnostic tests to check fuel pressure pump,etc.....and NOTHING!!!

seems that this is just NORMAL for our cars, even though tech admits that there is a small misfire but its SO small and so quick (thus slight vibration) that their diagnostics software cannot detect on which cylinder or detect any sort of pattern to say, "hey, this is where and when it happens". plugs looked great after 10K+ miles and car is strong in all other areas. the RPMs in our cars will fluctuate at start up, idle, cold, etc. as long as we are not getting a check engine light or going limp mode then they cannot find and will not find anything to cure this gremlin....

if a fault code (check engine) or anything more drastic is triggered then the tech can read this and pin point or start another test that leads to a root cause - this is what I was told by their best tech there. he was so helpful in answering all my questions and spent over 30 mins. explaining what he did and how all tests concluded that all we are experiencing is NORMAL. no doubt, if BMW starts to see more and more complaints or issues related to the same conditions of rough idle then they will start to look at other alternatives.

the thing is that many variable dictate different circumstances when people start to freak out about this and that, so BMW is just sitting back and waiting. I suggest, that if we have many folks out there experiencing the same deal, then I suggest you go to your dealer and complain about it, that way the masses will trigger more eyes on this situation.

I, being the anal retentive person about things like this will just have to deal with it for now. this was my second time going in and this was the one time everyone came to the same conclusion.

btw - tech did recommend using Techron addative from time to time to keep them intake valves, seals nice and clean of deposits

I hope this info comes in handy for those of you worrying about the rough idle gremlin you can't get out of your mind. I guess I will sleep better tonight feeling more assured that I am NOT going bannanas

[shragon]

fast_lap28, thanks for your post!

i need to bring my car in real soon for micro filter change and i'm definably going to bring up this issue.