Have owned my 95 Maxima for 2 years and have had a steering vibration to contend with. I have bought new tires and had them balanced countless times, had frontend aligned with no luck. Also when moving at slow speeds of 25mph or less the steering wheel will slightly turn back and forth. Has anyone had this problem and if so how can it be remedied. Thanx in advance.

 

I have the same problem you have. I have replaced the tires, had 2 alignments, and 3 wheel balances with no luck. I did notice that I lost some wheels weights in between balance jobs. Our rim has a unique flang that generic wheel weights are not compatible with. I wil propbaly goto the dealer next because they use the factory Nissan weights. I would also recommend taking a look at the rims and see if they are bent at all. I too have the steering wheel shaking at 5-20 mph. At this speed, wheel balancing shouldn't make a difference so I suspect my rims maybe bent. Good luch, let me now how you make out.

 

The clue to your problem is the steering wheel movement while at low speeds. Something is bent. Check your rims. Rotate front to back and see if it goes away. Jack the car up and spin both front wheels and watch the wheel very closely. One of them will be weaving back and forth slightly. Change that rim with another one that spins perfectly. Check again to be sure the wheel spins true. If it doesn't, then chances are your hub is bent or you have a defective wheel bearing or spindle.

 

Hi,

I have a '96 max that has vibration at higher speeds (~ 70 mph) that I notice in my seat. The vibrations get stronger with a loaded trunk or loaded back seat. My thinking is that the vibration is in the back wheels. (At speed in neutral gear the vibration is still there.) I have replaced tires, aligned the wheels and balanced tires, checked the bearings, replaced wheel lug nuts and the rear struts. The only thing left is to replace the wheels and then the car. I wander if TSB 97-012 (issued FEB 97) Wheel Balancer Adapter Kit - Use could fix this problem?

 

I have had mutilple balances, multiple alignments. I get a vibration from 65+ mph. I get it with both my stock 15" wheels and my 18" wheels. I have tried putting it into neutral when it shakes, it still shakes! I have tried braking lightly while accelerating above 65 to see if it stops the shaking momentarily.....Still shakes!
My tie rods are in good condition. My wheels are not bent.

I figure either I ahve a bent hub or a bent axle or something. But how can I tell someone please help. This has plagued me for a year now.

 

Don't forget about rearend alignments. Just a thought

 

There is no provision for rear alignment on the 4th and 5th gen Maximas.

Nothing back there to adjust.

 

Also any worn front end parts? Have you had the rack and pinion checked?

 

Same here. I have had this problem since I bought my car. This seems to be common with 4th Gen. Maximas. I too have had countless alignments and wheel balancing and still experiencing steering wheel vibration. Every mechanic I have spoken suggests it could be many things. However, they always say that my front end is solid. Hmmm...
I was told by one mechanic that it could be worn or warped rotors, especially since the vibration gets worse at higher speeds. Or it could be worn struts. Most mechanics suggest that OEM struts should be replaced at around 50-60 thousand miles. I am going to start with the rotors and if this doesn't help, then I will replace the struts. If all of this fails, then I will replace the car with something more solid like an Audi.

 

Hi,

I have just replaced my struts (with aftermarket units) and had the rotors machined to no avail. The bearings were inspected, also no problems. Seveal weeks ago I drove a Chevy Impala (business rental) and have found it to be rock steady at highway speeds. I hate to think that a Chevy is more solidly built than my Max. I'm thinking of writing to Nissan North America with my (your) complaints. (I understand that Ford has similar issues with the older generation of Explorer (news article) that they would vibrate at speed and Ford has no way to fix the problem. It does not happen to all Explorer's, just some.)

 

The problems that most of you are describing are probably rooted in the wheels. Either bad wheel balancing or bent wheels. It is also a possibility that you have a rack and pinion problem and even worn suspension parts. My feeling is that it is most likely a tire/wheel issue. I have a 95 and have no such problems. I have aftermarket wheels and it is slightly lowered, but I didn't have the problem before or after those changes. As a rule of thumb, vibrations at lower speeds point toward front and at higher speeds look to the rear. Also, unless the rotors are severely warped (which you should have felt every single time you come to a stop) they are not going to be the cause of vibrations at high speeds. Like someone on here before said, it will likely be the spindle before it's the rotor causing the vibrations. Lastly, everyone please use a qualified mechanic that knows how to work on our cars and not Joe Blow down the street. If you think that a driver makes a big difference in the car, what kind of difference do you think a good mechanic makes. He will save you money and time by fixing the problem and not speculating. BTW, I don't mean go to the dealer necessarily. Just trying to help.

 

I had steering wheel vibration for a long time. My max has never been wrecked or had any off-road excursions and had 99,000 miles at the time. I went through the tire and wheel routine and everything would always check out fine. At the time I had a stock suspension.

It was time for me to replace both driveaxles as both outer CV joints were leaking grease. After the new driveaxles were installed the steering wheel vibration disapeared. I would not have suspected replacing the driveaxles would cure the vibration, but it did. My guess is that with little or no grease the bearings and races in the CV joints wore down to the point were there was enough space for movement between the two to cause a vibration.

 

What are the chances that my car (50,000 Miles) has bad bearings or CV joints? Is this something that I should have Nissan check?

 

It's unusaul, but wouldn't be unheard of to have faulty wheel bearings or CV joints at 50k. The Haynes manual lists faulty wheel bearings, tie rod ends, lower balljoints, CV joints, misaligment, and tires/wheels as sources of vibration.

Yes you could have Nissan check the CV joints but you can also do it yourself. For the CV joints raise and safely support your max. Take off the wheel and inspect the outer cv boot for tears, cracks, loose clamps, and leaking grease. Look in every nook and cranny! If you don't see anything wrong put your wheel(s) back on and go to an empty parking lot and drive around in tight circles checking for clicking noises.