BMW 3 of the E46 series

since 1998 release

Repair and operation of the car


BMW 3 of the E46 series
+ BMW 3 Cars (E46)
+ Current leaving and service
+ Engine
+ Cooling systems, heating
+ Power supply systems, injection and release
+ Electric equipment of the engine
+ RKPP and transmission line
+ Automatic transmission
+ Coupling and power shafts
+ Brake system
- Suspension bracket and steering
   - Forward suspension bracket
      Removal and installation of a depreciation rack
      Dismantling of a depreciation rack / removal and installation of a shock-absorber/spring
      Check of the shock-absorber
      Utilization of the shock-absorber
      Removal and installation of the bearing of a wheel
      Removal and installation of a beam of a forward suspension bracket
   + Back suspension bracket
   + the Steering with the hydraulic booster (servoupravleniye)
+ Body
+ Onboard electric equipment
+ Schemes of electric equipment


Check of the shock-absorber

The following signs indicate malfunction of shock-absorbers:

— Additional fluctuations of a body at the movement on roughnesses of the road.
— Increase of amplitude of fluctuations of a body at the following one after another roughnesses of the road.
— Jumping of wheels at the movement on the normal road.
— Involuntary drift of the car when braking.

can be a consequence of other reasons.

— Instability at turn owing to a bad continence of a track and drift of the car.

— The increased wear of tires with a cut of tops (washing away) of a protector.
— A sign of defective shock-absorbers are also existence of the roaring noise. This noise can be a consequence and other reasons, for example, an otvorachivaniye of bolts of fastening and nuts, failure of bearings of wheels and hinges of equal angular speeds. Therefore before replacement of shock-absorbers always check their state.


The shock-absorber can be checked manually. However exact check of operation of shock-absorbers is possible only with the help shock tester or the special test car.

Check manually
1 Remove the shock-absorber.

2 Install the shock-absorber into position, put forward and squeeze it. Throughout all course the shock-absorber has to move exactly and smoothly.


3 At gas-filled shock-absorbers with a sufficient pressure of gas the rod itself comes back to a starting position. If the rod does not come back, it does not mean need of obligatory replacement of the shock-absorber. Its principle of action corresponds to the principle of operation of the ordinary shock-absorber until there is no considerable leak of oil. The damping operation of the shock-absorber remains also in the absence of gas pressure. However thus its noise characteristics worsen.
4 At normal functioning of the shock-absorber insignificant traces of the flowed-out oil are not the basis for its replacement. The basic rule is the following here: if the oil acting from a rod epiploon is visible, but it does not spread further the lower plate of a spring, the shock-absorber is serviceable. Insignificant leak of oil has even some advantage as thus the epiploon is greased that promotes increase in its service life.
5 At considerable leak of oil the shock-absorber is subject to replacement.