Is this something I should be concerned about

[problemsallthetime]

Hi ladies and gents,

I’ve just parked up and noticed my car is tilting to one side should my car be taken to a garage immediately?

Thanks.

[Pepperpots]

might be a broken spring, worth someone looking at it

[swisstoni]

Doesn't look optimal, no.

But move the car somewhere else and have another look. I've convinced myself of similar, and then found that something must have been throwing me off visually.

[motco]

swisstoni said:

Doesn't look optimal, no.

But move the car somewhere else and have another look. I've convinced myself of similar, and then found that something must have been throwing me off visually.

Cover the white line behind the car with your hand and the tilt seems to disappear.

[Glenn63]

Is the gap from top of tyre to the arch different on each side? Just stick to left hand corners and itl work in your favour.

[problemsallthetime]

I travel to from Nottingham to Sheffield everyday for work I can’t go to a garage today as I’m at a wedding do you think I will be okay for another week?

Thanks

[Grenadier_45]

problemsallthetime said:

I travel to from Nottingham to Sheffield everyday for work I can’t go to a garage today as I’m at a wedding do you think I will be okay for another week?

Thanks

Nobody can say without physically taking a look. Could be anything from an optical illusion in the car’s current position, to being half the suspension hanging off.

Any odd noises coming from the back lately? If you can’t get it to a garage, and need it for work, the first thing I’d do is jack it up, take the wheel off and have a look. Maybe not in your wedding clobber though…

Most probable cause is a snapped spring. They usually snap right at the top or bottom. You’re looking for anything sharp and shiny at the ends of the spring where the metal has perhaps sheared. You’re also looking for anything that looks obviously out of place and which is suspiciously clear of road muck (where it’s broken free of its mountings), and anything that’s obviously loose. If there’s anything, such as a bit of broken spring poking out such that it might suddenly rupture the tyre, it’s a recovery job.

Speaking of which, I’d also make sure you have breakdown cover in place…

[E63eeeeee...]

problemsallthetime said:

Hi ladies and gents,

I’ve just parked up and noticed my car is tilting to one side should my car be taken to a garage immediately?

Thanks.

They all do that sir...

There's a thread on here somewhere about the E46's propensity to wonky-arsedness and I doubt it'll be the only BMW around that age to be a bit lopsided.

But do check the springs. If theyre ok and it still bothers you you can usually get thicker spring pads, or double them up. Or just park on slopes.

[GreenV8S]

problemsallthetime said:

I travel to from Nottingham to Sheffield everyday for work I can’t go to a garage today as I’m at a wedding do you think I will be okay for another week?

Thanks

Before you get too excited about it, take the car somewhere flat and level and measure the wheel / arch gap on each corner, then park it in the same place 90 degrees sideways and measure again. That will tell you whether it's an optical illusion or just uneven ground.

If it's a broken spring - it's definitely not safe for a long trip and it's a potentially safety critical problem because the spring could potentially become unseated and may even jam into the wheel.

To find whether it's a broken spring you need to look at the top and bottom of spring and see whether the ends are intact. Fortunately the availability of camera phones these days makes it practical to do that yourself without ramps or grovelling on the ground.

[E-bmw]

motco said:

Cover the white line behind the car with your hand and the tilt seems to disappear.

The car park looks slightly sloped.

[swisstoni]

Come on Op; you must have moved the car and had look by now.

I’m still going for the optical illusion fix. Very cheap.