5 Series (1988-1995)
floor jack, jack stand (2 pcs), wheel nut wrench (17 mm), open-end wrench (16 mm), socket (16 mm) (6-point) (1/2″), ratchet handle (1/2″), torque wrench
When the front stabilizer bar links are worn out they usually make an annoying clink noise everytime you drive over a bump. There could be of course other reasons for that clink noise but the front stabilizer bar links are often the cause butand luckily they are easy to replace.
Tools, Skills And Parts
The job is very easy to perform and does not require any kind of special tools.
Difficulty Level:
The following tools are required for this particular work (tools marked with green checkmark are optional).
- floor jack
- jack stand (2 pcs)
- wheel nut wrench (17 mm)
- open-end wrench (16 mm)
- socket (16 mm) (6-point) (1/2″)
- ratchet handle (1/2″)
- torque wrench
The following spare parts are required for this particular work (parts marked with green checkmark are optional). Note that the BMW internal numbers are intended for a BMW 535i E34 -89.
| front stabilizer bar link (2 pcs) | 31 35 1 134 582 | 315 SEK |
| self-locking hex nut (4 pcs) | 07 12 9 964 672 | 5 SEK |
Removing And Installing
The front stabilizer bar links shall always be replaced in pairs. They are easy to replace and you must anyway raise both sides of the car – so there is no real excuse why not replacing both.
The spare parts consists of two stabilizer bar links and four self-locking hex nuts. Do not reuse the old nuts – buy new instead (which by the way is a lot easier to work with than the old rusty ones).
This job is easiest done with the wheels removed. Start by loosening (just slightly) the front wheel nuts and then raise the car and place it on two jackstands. Choke the rear wheels to secure the car from moving.
Do not – under ANY circumstances – work under the car without securing it with jackstands and choked wheels!
Note! Older parts from BMW had 16 mm grip and 17 mm self-locking nuts while the newer ones have 16 mm grip and 16 mm self-locking nuts.
Remove both front wheel to gain better access to the front stabilizer bar links. You need to raise both wheels from the ground – otherwise you will put load on the stabilizer bar and will make the removal harder.
Now disconnect the stabilizer link from the spring strut. It is attached to the spring strut with a 16 mm hex head nut.
However you need a counterhold to remove the nut otherwise it will just spin around in the ball joint of the stabilizer link. There is already a suitable location to apply a counterhold on the stabilizer link – a 16 mm grip between the rubber boot and the support. Just be very careful not to damage the rubber boot of the stabilizer link.
Next step is to do the same thing at the bottom where the stabilizer bar link and the stabilizer bar are connected to each other.
The installation is then the reverse of removal.
Tightening Torques
| stabilizer link to spring strut (self-locking nuts) | 59 Nm (43 ft-lb) |
| stabilizer link to stabilizer bar (self-locking nuts) | 59 Nm (43 ft-lb) |
| road wheel to hub | 100±10 Nm (74±7 ft-lb) |
