Gary95

I just got a set of 4 Yokohama's (Y388). Yeah, don't rib me--I'm just not ready to bump up to big rims and low profile performance. Yet. ;-) But these handle very well for an all season, without sacrificing a smooth ride.

My problem is that at 65mph and higher, I begin to get a subtle shimmy in the front end. Everything else is perfect and car tracks very straight. So, I bring it back to Town Fair Tire and had 'em rebalance the front tires again, just to be sure (free). Very little change, still feel that shimmy in the steering wheel, and now I have a slight pull to the right. My car has 99,930k on it.

Is it possible that my struts are worn? The ride feels absolutely fine. But I can't understand why I'd be having this kind of behavior with brand new tires, balanced twice. Or could it be the rims get warped over time?

If anyone has a similar experience or knows something about this, I'd really appreciate some advice. Thanks!

Gary

BriGuyMax

iTrader: (1)

hmmm...this is a tough one, a good way to test your struts is to go to the front of the car.....push down on the front end using all your weight and the let off and observe, if the car just comes right back up to where is started and doesn't move anymore, then your struts are probably fine, if the car kind of bounces for a few seconds....then your struts could be worn.
As for the shimmy, it could be any number of things, I'd get it checked out by a mechanic.

Daniel B. Martin

Tire defect such as tread ply separation.
Out of round tire.
Bent wheel.
Bent hub.
Loose (worn) ball joint or tie rod end.
Defective control arm bushings.

I suggest you rotate the tires, exchanging fronts and rears. If the symptom changes, it is a problem with the wheels or tires. If the symptom remains the same, it is a problem with the vehicle.

If all else fails, return to the idea of wheel balance. There is a new kind of wheel balancer called Road Force Measurement which is supposed to be superior. For more information, go to http://www.craigautometrics.com/huntergsp9700.htm

sachin98max

Gary....my brother's got a 93 maxima w/ about 100K on it. he was having the same problem...he got new tires and had them balanced and all...the problem got a bit better but not back to normal. he ended up going with new intrax lowering springs and kyb's in the front w/ stock shocks in the back and the problem is gone. from what you have said im not saying this IS the solution, but was in my brother's case. hope this helps.

sachin

Gary95

Well, the slight pull to the right after having the tire dealer rebalance the wheels was due to improper inflation (30psi in one front tire, 35psi in the other!). As soon as I corrected the inflation on all 4 tires, setting to vehicle specifications (33 front/32 rear), the car started to track straight again.

The shimmy still creeps in around 70mph. It is more noticeable while accelerating and less noticeable when coasting. The car has 100k miles on it now, has been taken good care of (very good at avoiding tough roads), and the struts/shocks have good life left in them.

One other thing I didn't mention, was that one of the front tires in my previous set developed a slight "wobbling" that was not correctable by balancing the tire. I drove with it for probably a good 5k miles before getting the new tires. Is it possible that this caused some kind of abnormal wearing to the bushings or tie rods?

Thanks for your advice.

Gary95

Well, in the final analysis it was the incompetence of the tire shop. The idiots working in the back (probably slightly above minimum wage) had done a bonehead job on the balancing, first at the time of new tire installation and second on the initial rebalancing.

I brought my car back in and told them I had the whole front end examined ($40 I claimed, which was untrue) and that there was NOTHING wrong with it. I was informed by qualified Nissan mechanics that the wheels weren't properly balanced.

Low and behold, when I got my car back the third time, the ride was NEARLY FLAWLESS! Only a very minor shimmy felt at 75-80mph, and only when the tires were cold. Otherwise, nearly operating table steady. FINALLY!!

And get this: Cruising 250 miles at a steady 70mph with new tires, headlights on, wipers on, radar detector, and stereo: 33mpg!

Ah... so sweet. What 6 cylinder gasoline powered car do you know of that can get this kind of gas mileage? Ha!

~Gary

maxnewbie

I think this appears to be pretty common with Maxima's. I only have 32K miles on mine and after having my tires balanced (Turanza Revo H-rated), I still have a slight shimmy when driving 80+. The higher the speed, the more evident the shimmy becomes. I had these same tires on my other vehicle (Mitsu Diamante) and even driving at 100+ the car drove with "no" signs of a shimmy. I feel that the Maxima does not have enough weight to keep it well grounded or that fact that it doesn't have a 4 wheel independent suspension may have a lot to do with it. Put in the latter I am willing to bet that the Maxima would drive a lot better. But that's just my opinion.