I got a question that I have been asking tons of people yet no one seems to be able to answer it so I will try here. To start off here is my car... http://members.cardomain.com/gssoccer20
check out my car
I am in the process of trying to figure out why my steering wheel shakes. Here is what has happened. when I bought the car about a year and a half ago the steering wheel shook from the beginnning....the guy i bought it from said it just needed an allignment and it would ride fine. Of course that was a lie. I got an allignment and sure enough still shaking. I eventually put my 17 inch rims on. Still shook a lot. They said you need an allignment and your wheels balanced. So of course I did that...still the steering wheel shakes. So then I lower the car shakes and rides like crap now...lol but still shakes. So they say you need a camber kit another front and rear allignment and another wheel balance...so I do all that and still it shakes what do you know with my luck. In the next few monthes im doing eithor kyb agx shocks and struts or kyb gr2's ive searched a lot on that trying to figure which one I need. Thats another post though. For this post I am asking if anyone has had the same problem or if anyone has any ideas. I have had prob 5-7 professional shops work/ look at it / tell me what they think I need....yet nothing helps... o the shaking increases as the speed increases and shakes so much at about 60 or 70 u have to keep both hands on the wheel just to keep the car steady. It only shakes a little at low speeds but still enough to be able to look at it and tell that its shaking....plz and help is much appreciated
let me try and narrow this down a little more ... i dont drive hard brake hard...dont burnout ever i have a b14 with intake and full exhuast its slow...so its not burnouts.....ummm im so clueless right now i check the tire pressure regularly run 33-37 pounds just like the tires say....could it be shocks or sturts?....
I used to have that problem with my B14 since I drive it really abusively and tended to seperate the cords inside the tires and get a bulge in the tread.I must have ruined 4 tires that way in 20,000 miles (6 mos of my driving). However, in your case I doubt it is a bad tire because the problem persisted after changing all 4 wheels and tires. It could be a severely warped front brake rotor . B14's are notorious for warping rotors after applying the brakes and hitting a puddle. Another possibility to consider is a bad engine or trans mount that is causing a angularity problem with the axles. It could also be a bent suspension member or a bad wheel bearing. I fixed a Taurus which had a similar problem due to a bad hub assembly(which contains the wheel bearings).Check for this by putting it in the air and trying to "wiggle" the wheel up and down. Excessive play indicates a bad wheel bearing.Finally, the car may have been poorly repaired from a previous accident which is now screwing with the steering geometry.
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1998 Nissan Frontier XE/2wd/5spd 1 owner, 264k miles
1985 Olds Cutlass, 350 Chevy, owned for 14 years
WANTED: 1968-1973 Datsun 510 or 1991-1994 Sentra SE-R http://www.myspace.com/junkyardengineer
Last edited by himilefrontier : Mar 8th, 2004 at 03:13 AM.
I have the same problem but have been waiting for Spring to do the work. Could be brakes but a previous discussion has also pointed to axels. The way to test is to jack up each front wheel one at a time and see if there is any free play in the rotation. Almost the same thing himilefrontier said but looking for a different kind of play. Do both checks at the same time. I wish I could give more imput but I have not done the test myself, my brakes need done and I have a busted motor mount so who knows which one it is. I am leaning towards the axels because at low tire pressure it is a very dramatic "waddling" of the steering wheel but gets better after I air up the tires.
usually an alignment will help, if it doesnt they should be able to see what the problem is. Obviously it has to do with the front wheels, it could be broken or bent tie rods or axles, bad bushings or as himile said a bad motor mount, I would check that first, becuase the other stuff they would notice when doing an alignment. I would imagine its easier than you think. Good luck.
The only thing I can even think of is that the first time I went to big ten they said they thought I could have had a bent strut. They said from what we can see of it it is not bent but thats got to be what it is.....it has to be bent...well thats what they said at least....I just wish people could do there job. There job is to be able to find what is messed up on my car without me wasteing a ton of money but of course with my luck that never happens. If I did have a bent strut would that cause the shaking problem or could it? If thats not it I guess ill try jacking the car up. After I jack it up I should see if there is any free play in the rotation? Can I get a little more datails on that. I have it jacked up but not quite sure what im looking for. Also I got a lot of ideas just not even sure where to start. I would take it to some place to do but im really afraid there not going to know anything eithor...
o and the rotors are brand new so not warped rotors just got them about 2-3 monthes ago....it shook before the rotors and after them....the paint job is 350z blue with a pearl it was about 2k which painted everything the car inside the trunk doorjams and under hood.....but it was a shop of a freind in the car club so i got a pretty decent deal
The procedure for checking axels as I have seen it is jack up one front wheel till it is OFF the ground and the other is ON the ground. Making sure the car is IN gear, try to rotate the wheel as if to move the car. There should not be excess movement or it would indicate a worn axle. At the same time rock the wheelback and forth as if trying to turn the car. Excessive play in the direction would indicte a worn wheel bearing/hub assembly. Lower car and repeat on other side. While your at it you may as well pull the wheel and then you have a wide open view of bent/broken stuff.
i have this same problem. but see. i caused mine. and its getting worse. last winter i entered an onramp going a LIIIITTLE too fast, blam, jumped a concrete lip on the drivers side. killed the drivers side rim, and cruched a cat. replaced the rim, have had countless alignments, im guessing i bent a tie rod or even an axle. but, i cant afford to fix it atm, so, th-th-th-thunk my wheel goes at moderate speeds.
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Originally Posted by RoadWarrior - ocforums.com
Yes, SATA is faster however..... putting full spec formula one tires on a 1.6L stock honda civic will not make it capable of 200Mph......
i bent a control arm (and ruined a tire) on my drivers side after i slammed a curb...rim was okay though luckily. replaced the control arm for about $300 at nissan and all my tires (they were old anyway) and i was fine again. but something like that they should spot at an alignment shop though.
and btw, Slayer...that Ashley girl in your gallery is pretty hot dude....rarrr.
i have the same problem, but only when i brake... so i suspect its warped rotors... and now my brakes make a schreaching sound, its really anoying, i cant wait to replace them..
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