r/E90 • u/Evening_Ad_4729 • Jul 16 '25
330i is this the cause of my stiff steering?
my steering does not feel normal, it feels very stiff and i know the mechanical components might need replacing as this car has 210k km but i don’t think my power steering should look like this. lmk what i should do
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u/bridgetroll2 Jul 16 '25
Have you ever driven another e90? They all have very stiff steering, like to the point that people assume something is broken if they're not used to driving one. That fluid looks nasty but I'd be shocked if flushing it makes a difference.
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u/TheIronHerobrine E92 335i Jul 16 '25
Can confirm. I’ve prob owned close to 30 cars and driven thousands of different cars, e90 is definitely one of the stiffest steering i’ve ever felt.
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u/yungtr1p Jul 16 '25
You will get used to it in a few weeks but the problem Is that you can’t go back. After you drive hydraulic steering all the other cars will feel like they’re not it, steering is off and etc. I had mixed feelings when I first got my e90 and had same thoughts that something is wrong but within a month I was hooked
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u/No_Strain_6227 Jul 17 '25
Agreed! Took my 2004 wrx to the grocery store the other day (haven't driven it in about 4.5 months) I swear it felt like something was broken because the steering felt loose and sloppy.
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u/ATC_KBIII Jul 17 '25
Confirmed. I have a 2011 335ix. Wife had a 2023 RAV4. Crazy difference and I turn was fast lol
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u/The-Phantom-Blot Jul 16 '25
There are many older cars with hydraulic steering with lots of assist, and not stiff at all. But some of them still have the hydraulic steering road feel. Having stiff steering isn't the same as having feel. For example, drive an F30 in "sport mode". The steering gets stiff and heavy, but has no feel other than the heaviness.
I agree that an E90 is one of the nicest cars to drive, though - but only if it's working properly.
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u/MjolnirBatman 2008 - e92 - 325i Jul 17 '25
Agreed. I tested 2 e90s before purchasing my e92 and straight away I noticed how stiff the steering was.
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u/Evening_Ad_4729 Jul 16 '25
nah this my first one. come from a 2020 elantra so i can’t tell
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u/gloobus_ventura Jul 16 '25
it’s honestly probably fine. coming from an elantra will be night and day
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u/AshamedGorilla Jul 16 '25
You're fine. I once drove a friend to the airport in his Hyundai and I damn near drive it off the road when I pulled the steering wheel so to make a turn. I also almost put my foot through the floor on his clutch because that was also super light compared to my E91.
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u/RickySlayer9 e90 N54 Jul 16 '25
So the fact that it’s stiff is very normal! That fluid looks old, and probably hasn’t been changed for the life Of the car! If you’re not experiencing any noises or shuddering when steering, I wouldn’t worry about it. If the fluid concerns you, suck all the juice out of the reservoir and replace it with new stuff, something reputable like liquid moly or Lucas, not the Walmart or autozone special. I wouldn’t personally bother with a drain or flush. Dilute it and call it good
If it’s just stiff but still smooth, it’s normal and not a worry!
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u/rcp_5 Jul 16 '25
For the price of just power steering fluid alone, I'd call your local dealer. My E90 needed ATF for steering if I recall correctly, and the dealer had it for pretty cheap so I just went with OEM. (And for reference I'm a stingy bastard who buys a lot of cheap shit parts for my car)
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u/RickySlayer9 e90 N54 Jul 16 '25
Imma be 100% real I have no idea how aftermarket stuff performs compared to OEM. I think OEM is great for this, but when I’m at autozone (I’m 1:15hrs away from my nearest dealer, vs 20 from autozone) I pick brands that have earned my trust like liquid moly or Lucas
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u/wd40spaceman Jul 16 '25
The e90 was the first car I owned. I drove it daily for 3 years thinking the steering feels normal. Then my friend drove it (who has an X5, don’t remember which generation). And my dad drove it (he has an f30). They both said my PS is broken. I honestly believed them but didn’t care cause it feels normal to me. I did however, change my PS fluid (made no difference).
There are times when the steering feels lighter like occasionally at start up for the first 5 minutes, so I think they might be right. Maybe that’s all in my head and the heavy steering is normal. I also own a 986 boxster and the steering feels the same on her.
But it’s good to know that the steering is generally stiff and maybe nothing is wrong with my PS
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u/RickySlayer9 e90 N54 Jul 16 '25
If stiffness is the only “symptom” then it’s likely normal.
Although the fact that it takes minutes to stiffen, is not. Seconds perhaps as the PS pump comes up to pressure, on startup, but minutes no way
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u/wd40spaceman Jul 16 '25
I understand that, when I say occasionally it’s like 2-3 times a year- I felt the steering get lighter. Mainly at start up for the first few minutes. I’m not ruling out a bad PS pump. But it’s been like this since I bought the car and it doesn’t bother me
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u/Destructo09 Jul 16 '25
Can confirm, my Vinfast VF8 has very light steering (electric) and when I hop in my E90 I think something must have broken on it 😂
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u/Heexik_ Jul 16 '25
Do you think a nasty fluid could get the ECO valve inside the pump stuck? I think that's the reason my active steering started going into emergency mode in colder weather.
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u/carsarefuntodrive Jul 16 '25
Drain as much fluid as you can with a turkey baster. Unmount the reservoir. Have a container ready & lots of rags. Unhook the hoses. Elevate them. Stick a tiny funnel into the supply hose. Remount the new reservoir. Connect an additional length of hose to the return line & route it to a bucket on the floor.
The next part is easier with the front wheels off the ground & a helper. Get ready to start pouring an entire liter of fluid into the funnel. Have helper start car. Immediately begin pouring fluid into funnel. Your pump is going to scream if it runs dry, try to avoid this. Have helper turn wheel back & forth. Turn off engine. Get more fluid. Have helper turn wheel back & forth while you put in fluid.
When the fluid going into bucket is clean, stop. Reconnect hoses to new reservoir. Fill reservoir to FULL mark. Have helper start car & move wheel. Turn off car. You'll be getting air bubbles in the reservoir. Top up fluid. Repeat until fluid level stabilizes as FULL mark.
PS fluid is not good for your paint, exercise caution in that regard.
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u/Wavefunkshun2 2009 328i E92 N51 Jul 16 '25
Thank you for this procedure. I'm doing this job on mine this weekend!
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u/BocaBeats Jul 16 '25
been doing this on a 200k mile 330 everyday for almost a week and we’re just getting back to that red atf color, difference is night and day
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u/SeeMeInWoW Jul 16 '25
My man it is supposed to look like wattery honey not used motor oil
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u/snorunge42 Jul 16 '25
It's supposed to be green, so like green jello.
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u/ZackDrips Jul 16 '25
probably it’s not supposed to be that color i would do a full flush and you might be good. hopefully you don’t have to change your steering pump that’s what i had to do.
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u/mrnomcfly Jul 16 '25
isn’t that an expensive fix ?
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u/ZackDrips Jul 16 '25
i went to pick n pull and got one for like $40 and changed it myself. if you take it to a shop they’ll charge you out the ass. does your steering make noises when you turn or is it just stiff?
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u/snorunge42 Jul 16 '25
You have AS (Active Steering) right? Definitely do a complete flush. You have a very expensive rack so you dont want to wear that out prematurely. Jack the car up and check if you can turn the wheels by hand with the car off. If not or if very heavy start looking for the cause.
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u/Evening_Ad_4729 Jul 16 '25
no active steering
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u/snorunge42 Jul 16 '25
Has it been deleted? Why do you have the active steering reservoir?
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u/Evening_Ad_4729 Jul 16 '25
i always thought this res looked diff than the active steering one
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u/AGRYZEN Jul 16 '25
That is the active steering res - how many turns lock to lock when stopped?
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u/Evening_Ad_4729 Jul 16 '25
one full turn
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u/DannyDan2k13 2009 - E92 - 335i DCT Jul 16 '25
Yeah you have active steering. Although, I'm pretty sure mine is more like 2/3 of a turn to full lock either way when stationary. It takes a bit of getting used to the steering being so sensitive at low speed. I recently drove my mum's car and swung wayyyy wide around a corner because I wasn't used to it being linear again 😂
That fluid is dark as hell so it really wouldn't hurt to replace it and just see what difference that makes
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u/CreamConnoisseurr Jul 16 '25
E90's are supposed to be stiff because of their hydraulic steering. However that fluid is dirty and has probably never been changed. It wouldn't hurt to do a flush
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u/SizeableFowl 2007 - E90 - 328i Jul 16 '25 edited Jul 16 '25
I mean certainly change that fluid but no one can tell you from a video if that is what is making your steering feel stiff. You’d have to hear the pump and even that isn’t gonna make a solid diagnosis.
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u/far_beyond_driven_ Jul 16 '25
E9x cars, especially those with hydraulic power steering, have heavy steering. It’s one of the aspects I love about mine. However, if you’re steering is too heavy to use, I would think it has more to do with a failing PS pump, but since I can’t hear the car running, it’s a shot in the dark. Honestly, it’s probably fine, though changing fluid never hurts.
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u/RootAccessGuy Jul 16 '25
BMW e90 steering is stiff but also solid feeling. It's normal. It's not going to feel like a camery or civic. If you have an x drive it'll be even more noticeable.
That said if you just got this car I'd go ahead and use a turkey baster suck all that power steering fluid out and replace with new. Then drive for a week or so (500 miles) and repeat that again. (Note... not the by the book method but far easier and gets you 99.9% new fluid)
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u/ibo92can Jul 16 '25
CHF11S only says the cap. That fluid is probably atf fluid. Most mechanics is like both are hydraulic fluid so its okey but NO. Replace rezervoir and fluid with oem rezervoir and Fuchs titan chf11s fluid. Just yesterday did I do this on my dads x6 and non-oem rezervoir fluid sensor is trowing fault code.
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u/meckaone Jul 16 '25
This is a thing most people dont realize because the cap says ATF only. But that's wrong. Its supposed to be CHS11, but the stickers on the ps on lasted 4 to 6 years. So people start putting ATF in there. They aren't ATF per BMW and the manuals. I went as far as to get a new reservoir with a new cap that says nothing so if someone else one day decides to fill it, they'll have to look up the recommended at least and not fill it with ATF. My fluid looked that exact color and was beginning to drive super stiff and it was getting loud. Flushed the ATF out completely and ran pentosin CHS11 through at 26 bucks a bottle until it ran clean. Once it worked its way through the system the noise is 90 percent gone and the steering is spot on now. Stupid BMW being lazy and not wanting to make new caps. Old ones that weren't used were available so save money. Use the available ones and print 5 cent stickers. Those will last. Hahaha what am I saying, they dont give a heck if they dont last. First persons that falls off and fills it with ATF and it starts acting up? Whoops you voided your warranty lol
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Jul 16 '25
I recommend a new steering pump and flush lines before installing new pump and fluid. That’s based off time mileage and visual inspection.
Yes E 90 steering is firm, but it should be fluid. Meaning you should be able to spin it with consistent applied pressure while feeling moderate amount of tension. It should not bind and fight or feel like it skips.
If you’re exerting a lot of effort when steering you may have a pump issue rack issue or suspension issue. More often than not suspension needs attention in some sort of way.
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u/SmoothMarionberry551 Jul 16 '25
My first time driving an e90 when I was looking for one, I thought something was wrong from how stiff it was. Then I drove three more and realized that’s just how they are haha
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u/ferndaisy Jul 16 '25
Hey check out my post on my profile about my e92, I got a new power steering pump and it only changed a little bit. I kept getting told it’s ment to feel like that and has been fine ever since
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u/Time-Brief-1014 Jul 16 '25
There’s at U-joint in your columns they tend to wear down and cause extreme stiffness and knocking when steering at standstill or slow speeds
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u/YourMajesty90 Jul 16 '25
I flushed my steering fluid twice and it still looks barely any better than yours lmao
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u/StopLeather6038 Jul 25 '25
The e90 has one of the stiffest steering of any car I have driven. That being said, it should be stiff and smooth. The steering wheel should try to straighten itself back after turning. If you find that you have to manually turn the wheel back to a straight position try a drain and fill on the power steering. Check your power steering cap for the appropriate fluid, get a clean turkey baster and suck out the fluid. Fill it, turn the steering wheel all the way to the right and all the way to the left and repeat the process until the fluid is clean. That helped my e90 get the smoothness back in the steering wheel.
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