BMW 218D knocking noise & feeling in hot weather

  • BMW218D's Avatar
    Hi all,


    I purchased a BMW 218D (2016) back in 2021, I also bought the RAC Platinum warranty and breakdown cover for the car.


    During the summer months I noticed a clunking/knocking sound coming from what felt like the pedals & steering wheel. The symptoms include:


    1) A knocking sound/feeling in hot weather, gets worse as temp gets hotter (15-20c+)
    2) The sensation of knocking/clunking can be felt through the pedals and steering wheel.
    3) Bumps/turning doesn’t seem to have an effect on the issue, (i.e it doesn’t worse or better to just driving in a straight line over smooth roads.)
    4) Knocking can be felt massively at speeds below 30mph, the faster I go the less noticeable it is, especially on motorway I can’t feel it at all.
    5) When I apply the brake/slow down, the noise and feeling also appears then.


    I took my car to an RAC approved garage, but they were unhelpful, as they couldn’t hear the sound at that particular moment, they decided there was nothing they could do to help. I proceeded to speak to other mechanics about this issue, however none of them could come up with a real diagnosis.


    After doing some research online I discovered other BMW’s with similar issues. The other BMW owners said that either the steering rack or the tie rods needed to be replaced on the car to resolve the issue.


    Would the steering rack and/or the tie rods be covered by my RAC warranty?


    Should I take my car to an RAC approved garage? As they were unhelpful last time.

    Or, can I take my car to my local reliable car garage and claim the money back?


    Would the diagnosis process be covered?


    Has anyone else had this issue with their car? If so, was it resolved?


    Any help would be greatly appreciated!
    Thank you
  • 3 Replies

  • Best Answer

    Lianne063's Avatar
    Best Answer
    Hi! Not sure if you’ve solved this issue yet but I had the exact same thing with my 220i! It ended up being the tie rod/track rod assemblies. I bought two new ones (Lemforder ones I believe) on autodoc and had them fitted. Not had any issues since 😊 I hope this helps!
  • Marc's Avatar
    Community Manager
    Hi @BMW218D
    Welcome and thanks for posting!
    I don't know for sure, it def sounds like you should take it back to the garage. That's what I would do, but that's just a personal view of course.
    Re the question about warranty cover. Community members don't have access to accounts so this really needs to go to customer service.
    I hope it get sorted for you soon.
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  • Mark07's Avatar
    Community Manager
    Thanks for sharing @Lianne063!