BMW 1 Series F20 - Steering wheel not centred should I fix?

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Mon 4 Sep 2023 09:32
BMW 1 Series F20 - Steering wheel not centred should I fix? - Tom Donaldson
Hi Guys

I’ve noticed my steering wheel isnt centred, it’s maybe off by 5 degrees of something nothing noticeably bad. However, I had the wheel and steering alignment checked and it was all straight, also had a mechanic look at the all the arms/ rods etc behind the wheels and they look fine.

1. Is this guaranteed to be a steering rack problem? If so, how expensive could this be to fix?

2. The steering is only slightly out, is it necessary to fix given what I’ve said above?

Thank you for any advice.
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Mon 4 Sep 2023 09:45
BMW 1 Series F20 - Steering wheel not centred should I fix? - Andrew-T

If the tracking has been professionally checked and adjusted, the car should travel ahead correctly. The position of the steering wheel is unimportant in the sense that it is splined to the steering column and (on a simple car) could be placed wherever you want. So one solution might be to remove the wheel and move it to the next spline. However with today's airbags that is not a sensible option.

If you had asked the fitters to centre the wheel while checking the tracking they would have done that at the track-rod ends - which they probably adjusted if any corrections were needed.

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Mon 4 Sep 2023 10:21
BMW 1 Series F20 - Steering wheel not centred should I fix? - elekie&a/c doctor
Steering wheel ideally needs to be central to zero , otherwise the esp may not perform correctly. There’s only a small margin of tolerance. Proper alignment would put this right . Nothing wrong with the rack ( which is electric on these )
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Mon 4 Sep 2023 11:32
BMW 1 Series F20 - Steering wheel not centred should I fix? - Tom Donaldson
Thank you for the response, I do believe the car travels ahead correctly. I went to the garage with the problem of ‘the wheel is not centred’ and they did all the alignment checks etc and did not suggest there was anything they could do given it was a tire garage, hence the suggestion it was the steering rack. Does this change any of your advice? Or should I just not use these guys again?
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Mon 4 Sep 2023 11:51
BMW 1 Series F20 - Steering wheel not centred should I fix? - elekie&a/c doctor
BMW models are very critical about alignment. I would take it to a specialist that can do a 4 wheel geometry check , not a tyre shop .
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Mon 4 Sep 2023 12:30
BMW 1 Series F20 - Steering wheel not centred should I fix? - skidpan

Typical sign of idle incompetent mechanic. Instead of adjusting both track rod ends they only do one.

Simple solution, never darken their doors again.

Last time I had tracking done I used Kwil Fit (needed doing urgently after new tyres). They used a clamp between the steering wheel and the seat that fixed the steering wheels position at strait ahead. They then checked and adjusted both front wheels to give the correct alignment.

Perfect for the next 3 years.

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Mon 4 Sep 2023 12:33
BMW 1 Series F20 - Steering wheel not centred should I fix? - Gibbo_Wirral

I thought the steering wheel was centred before any work carried out on the steering?

I suppose you could go through the hassle of removing the wheel and rotating it a couple of teeth further round the spline, but you'll have to disconnect the battery, go to all the effort of removing the wheel and risk damaging sensitive components or connections on the steering wheel. Do BMWs have a clock spring?

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Mon 4 Sep 2023 14:08
BMW 1 Series F20 - Steering wheel not centred should I fix? - FP

It can be difficult accurately to assess if the steering wheel is correctly centred while driving straight ahead. The camber of the road can have an effect, for example, requiring a slight movement of the steering wheel to compensate.

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Mon 4 Sep 2023 22:40
BMW 1 Series F20 - Steering wheel not centred should I fix? - bathtub tom
I’ve noticed my steering wheel isnt centred, it’s maybe off by 5 degrees of something nothing noticeably bad.

Has it always been like this, or is it since something was done?

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Tue 5 Sep 2023 11:04
BMW 1 Series F20 - Steering wheel not centred should I fix? - Tom Donaldson
Unfortunately I don’t know, I’m going to assume that it’s not always been like this I’m sure I would have noticed it sooner. I had my wheels aligned 2 ish months ago, so there’s a chance the mechanic didn’t centre it then and I only noticed it a few weeks after.
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