I have a 1998 GXE. I am expriencing some shaking and vibration when I am on the highway. I took the car in, they said the rim was bent, put on a new one. It helped...but didn't cure it. I took it back, said that the tires weren't round, got new ones and now it seems to be worse. I am taking it back in but don't know what to do. I hit a spare tire on the highway and they replaced the stearing knuckle and control arm and it seems to ride fine...just the vibration. Any help...both me and the shop are getting frustrated.

 

did they balance and do an alignment after? because that will cause vibration over 60 mph

 

I don't know. I thought that they had. I will check. Any other thoughts.

 

There could also be too much air in the tires. Check that too.

 

ball bearings... lower control arm bushings..... Had this problem on my 93 SE. Also, alignment and tire balance!

 

ALOT of maxima's have had this problem. I do everyday on the highway. So does my sisters max. It also feels unstable at 70 which really p!sses me off. I think it's partly b/c the Max's sensitive steering. My car follows road contours way too faithfully.

 

This isn't a Maxima-specific problem... a lot of cars in general have this problem. Caused by any one of a number of things, most notably alignment, balancing, and under- or overinflated tires. The Maxima is actually an easier car on which to fix a shuddering problem since its 99.9% nothing related to the rear axle, unless it's bent somehow.

...and if you think the Maxima's steering is sensitive, try driving almost anything made in Germany. The Maxima actually has one of the least sensitive steering systems I've ever used outside of something large and American.

 

I have a 97 Maxima GLE and experience this problem on the highway everyday. At speeds of 70+ the car's steering becomes very unstable. Steering shakes like a leaf and becomes worse at higher speeds. I have my tires balanced several times and alignment done 2x and still experience this problem. It could be that I have one or more bad tires (possible radial pulls or separation). However, before buying the car, I read in some reviews that Maximas become unstable at high speeds. I also think that the Maxima doesn't have enough weight to keep it well grounded.

 

Does the car seem to be driving straight? Does it pull to either side?

SuDZ

 

It pulls to either side.

 

i had this problem but i knew my rotors were bad so i changed my rotors and front brakes and all the shaking and vibrating went away i have shaking problems whenever my car is moving but i had that problem also when i was using my brakes it would shake a lot ..personally i think my max handles great i love it... 95 max 54k on it....

 

Interesting about the brakes & rotors...I think my rotors are going to need replacing when I do my brake job...prolly within the next 6 months...but I never attributed that to the shaking in my steering wheel while driving (while stepping on the brakes yes - warped rotors).

My steering shakes between 70 & 80 depending on the part of the freeway I'm on also and I just had the tires balanced (they didn't need to be aligned).

 

AGX

The front strut plays an important role in keeping your wheel planted firmly on the ground. It also is a major part of your front suspension. The lower control arm and the strut are the only 2 things keeping your wheels attached and tightly secured to the car. If the strut piston becomes lose (I'm not just talking about dampening) you get play which in turn will amplify any imperfections in the tire and road.

Since I've installed the AGX's my cars steering is so tight it's like a different car. I never had a shaking problem as many on here report but I can tell you the steering feels much more solid and even bumps are felt much less in my steering.

You've replaced the tires, had the car aligned, checked for wheels which could be bent, put new control arms in. Whats left out in this picture?? The strut!

 

This may be true, but my car only has 42K on it. Why would it already need new control arms or struts? Or replacing them with new ones will improve the ride despite the mileage?

 

i got 2 alignments to fix this problem..
still shakes like a SOB

 

What do these AGX struts go for and where can I buy them?

 

No you dont need to replace them. Just make sure there isn't any play in the bushings. An alignment shop will find play in your front end when they try to align it.

The AGX's are available at Shox.com Cattman.com just to name a few..

 

I got the same problem. I've balanced, aligned, tried both sets of wheels tires (stock & 18") no such luck, it still shakes. I do have warped rotors however, I hope that fixes it.

But, I have 78,000 on my car. What do you guys suggest replacing besides Struts. I am going to replace them but since I will have the car apart, I might as well replace whatever else I need.

 

i love this post...
covers up all i wanted to say..
how are your 18"?
and what kind do you have?
i'm going to get 18" soon

 

TSWs
Click the link to my Homepage
It is a directory of pics

 

18" TSW's? Hmmm... They could easily make the car shake. Generally speaking TSW's are heavy wheels. They add alot of stress on the suspension. Any sort of bump will toss those hard, which the stock struts aren't designed to take. Btw... at 78,000 you need new struts.


The Max weights 3300lbs. I think it weights plenty.

NewbieMax are you still on the orginal tires?

fyi... My 95 101,000 max drives great on the freeway, I can easily hit 100 mph and ride smooth, well depending on the road. But, I've got H&R's, Tokicos, RSB, fstb, rstb, and bushings. <g> hehe...

 

hmm, I thought I was the only one with this problem. My car starts to shake when I am doing 60-70 mph on the hwy. I thought this was due to me messing up the suspension system when I went over a bumpy road at a pretty fast speed (I still believe this is the problem). After going through that very bumpy road, I had to change my rims and tires - rims got bent and tires got bumps. Anyway, I went with some really heavy 17" chrome rims, since then I've been told that the shaking is due to the weight of the wheels.
Also, the cars starts to vibrate when I am about to make a complete stop at a red light (from 5mph to 0mph.) The vibration is minimal but if felt. Any clues as to why this happens?
1997 maxima gle - 65,000 miles

 

How is your idle when you are stopped? My car used to vibrate then too...I figured my idle was to low..when I sat at a stop my idle was about 500 rpm and the car shaked as well.

I had my mechanic adjust my idle screw and I'm fine now.

 

yeah, about somewhere in the 500rpm area. Let me try that. thanks . . . maxima princess? not many have that stat