jdc1203

Just got back from Nashville, TN just north of where the Maxima's are made down the road at Smyrna, TN. It was at a dealership "Action Nissan" where I bought my 04 Maxima Elite. Since I live in the Bowling Green, KY area which is about 2 Hours from Nashville for me I have been taking my Max to "Jim Johnson Nissan in Bowling Green" with shimmy problems for last 6 months. After rotors turned & replaced , road force balance and a rim replacement which made it better but far from fixed. I gave up on Jim Johnson Nissan being able to fix this Maxima's problem. So I called up Action Nissan and told them that I had the shimmy, vibration problem. They said that I wasn't the only one and they worked with Nissan on a fix. So I setup a service date and took my car in. They did "Steering Rack Adjustment" which took out the shimmy "Baby Bottom Smooth" and replaced my rotors "Since they had been turned twice by Jim Johnson Nissan trying to fix the problem." So I told the Service Manager that I would post there name and that If anyone wanted to bring there Shimmy Maxima in for a fix. So if you need a shimmy fix give them a call "Action Nissan of Nashville, Tn" 615-534-8244. I asked the Serivce Manager why Nissan hadn't put out a TSB and he said that he had take a Maxima back the plant in Smyrna to prove the problem to them and come up with a fix. Hope this helps. jdc1203

Mike_TX

This confirms an earlier post that the steering rack "friction adjustment" cures the problem.

Maybe rather than go clear to Nashville, TN to get it fixed, you can ask your service manager to contact them for instructions on how to fix it.

Mike

lobewiper

Good suggestion, Mike!

lightonthehill

BTTT (back to the top)

I am posting simply to move this thread back to the top where it will be seen. The shimmy problem has been the most prevalent headache with the '04 maxima, and lots of folks need to see this 'fix'.

VQ35DE

Action Nissan would be the place to go!

Maxidriver

Thanks for the post... I have a date with my Nissan Dealer this Friday. I took this back months ago, they claimed they fixed it, but didn't. I'm printing out the replay with the name and phone number of the Service Manager in Tenn. and I'm going to have my Dealer call them. Better yet, I'll call first to tell them that my dealer will call if they don't fix it. I hate this. Along with many other issues I have with the Maxima, this is the biggest. Other issues are the glove box alignment, the large gap between the passerage door and dashboard, the rattle in the back seats somewhere ( I think it's a seatbelt issue) and finally the driver seat shifts when I turn.

JAANND

Sorry to beat a dead horse with this subject but I'm new to the 04 Maxima and still don't understand this shimmy problem. Does this shimmy problem only happen between 50-60 mph? It appeared to happen to me yesterday but not today. Is it sporadic? Today while I was driving into work (about 45 minutes on the highway) the steering wheel didn't seem to be shaking but when I looked over at the passenger seat it was shaking. I was going about 80 mph. Maybe all cars do this when there's no weight in the passenger seat and I just never noticed? I don't know. Please let me know if this is a problem. Also, when I brake the steering wheel shakes quite a bit. The car only has like 300 miles on it now, is this b/c the brakes aren't broken in yet, or is this another problem? Thanks for any info. you can provide me.

Maxidriver

The steering wheel shimmy's when you apply the brake slowly at a high speed of 50mph. About the seat shacking, I don't know about that. It a new one to me. This is a problem with a 30K+ vehicle. Try applying the brakes at speeds of more than 40mph and let go of the steering wheel alittle. You will see the steering wheel skimming badly. I'll keep you posted on the service I'm getting on Friday to fix it. I hope.

JAANND

You say the steering wheel shimmy's when you apply the brake slowly at a high rate of speed of 50mph -- so is this normal or is it a problem? Anyone else know about the seat shaking?

Maxidriver

No, that's a problem. Your steering wheel should NOT vibrate/shimmy/shake for any reason when you apply the brakes. I can see when taking off fast from a traffic light and the car/steering goes nuts (jumps out of your hands) because of the torque steer but not when you apply the brakes.

JAANND

Could it be because the car is brand new with only 300 miles on it and the brakes aren't broken in yet? Did anyone else need a break in period for your brakes?

Thereal411

I got the shimmy that occurs while traveling between 50-65mph.. it occurs without touching the brakes..and is most noticable on smooth highway roads... is this different than the shimmy talked about in this thread? my dealer suggest a tire balancing will fix the problem, but i know they will say anything.

04 maxse

No your rotors are warped bring it to the dealer..

bluemaxx

Y'all stop it.
The famous 6th gen shimmy is not brake judder.
The 6th gen may have brake judder too but that shouldn't be confused with the shimmy.

The majority of people reporting shimmy experience it between 45 and 55 MPH, especially noticeable on flat, level, smooth pavement.

Brake judder, shimmy when the brakes are applied is another matter.

04 maxse

I wasn't saying that's the infamous shimmy.. I know its not the brakes. But there was someone who was asking when they hit the brakes the wheel shakes and if it was a break in process.. That's not break in thats WARPED ROTERS>

phantom99

Well, I've gone through this forum reading about all this shimmy stuff that X% of people have (obviously it isn't happening to everyone), and this is the first thing I have read which actually shows something good ... a fix. This tire balancing idea in insanity ... some posts are saying right when the car was driven off the lot, there is a shimmy. Imagin driving right back with the problem, simply to hear 'oh, your wheels could be out of alignment or you need your tires balanced'.


At 12 km's or miles.

So, as much of a pain as this shimmy thing is for some owners it sound like the REAL pain is that it isn't delat with properly by Nissan resulting in numerous returns to the shop.

No question this 'Steering Rack Adjustment' should be the first thing done, anything else sounds negligent on Nissans part.

lobewiper

Well, phantom99, let me tell you a story. I bought my 04 SL new off the truck and it shimmied. Had it balanced once through dealer at Firestone; it still shimmied. Took it on my own to Discount Tire, where they used the Hunter 9700 balancer, which also checks road force variance. RFV was fine on both fronts, but each was out-of-balance. They rebalanced, and also checked to make sure tires were properly centered on the wheels, which they were. Result: no shimmy whatsoever on smooth roads; slight shimmy on irregular roads. This slight shimmy is indistinguishable from the shimmy caused by imbalanced wheels. Conclusion: some shimmy problems stem directly and entirely from improperly balanced wheels. (This is not to say that steering rack adjustment is never the problem--it apparently is for some of us.)

Thereal411

Okay, so i call my dealer today and tell him that the wheel balance done last week hasnt solved the problem. The service manager tells me "that was my best tech and he didnt notice any shimmy" so i tell him that it only occurs 100% of the time and he suggests i go on a drive with the tech. It only took me until i could get up to 46mph to show the tech. So we get back and he calls Nissan techline. They tell him that the balancing unit they have in the service dept isnt approved by Nissan so they will have to take the car to a Les Shwab type place and get the results from their balacing machine (he said some kind of ###9700 or something). Once he had these results he could give them to nissan and they would approve me for tire replacement...
because nissan said the problem is caused by a hard piece of rubber in the tire and tire replacement will fix the cause, but only once they take my tires to some other shop.

lightonthehill

Thereal411 - There will be some here who probably feel Nissan may be giving you the 'runaround'.

Maybe they are. But then maybe they aren't.

During the past year, the steering wheel shimmy has been eased/reduced/fixed in many ways. Sometimes it was fixed by very careful balancing on a very sensitive balancing machine. Sometimes it was fixed by replacing the tires. One driver said his shimmy went away when his rotors were turned (ummmm . .).

In one case, it was fixed by replacing the wheels. In another case, it was fixed simply by rotating the tires (which means the problem was in the front tires/wheels which were moved to the back). One driver swore his shimmy went away when his front struts were replaced.

This is clearly a situation where one cure definitely does not fit all. It seems Nissan/the dealers lean toward all the 'usual suspects' before they resort to the 'steering rack friction adjustment' that has cured the shimmy for some of the most persistent cases.

Your best bet is probably to keep following the steps Nissan/your dealer suggest, and just be patient and persistent (but politely firm) as they chase this rat to its hole.

Maxidriver

Update from my service on Friday. Service Manager told me they need to resurface the rotors so they can get credit from Nissan Corp first. If the problem persists, then they will replace the rotors. They told me they resurfaced the rotors and clean between the rotor and hub ( I believe he said that). Because rust builds up behind the rotors and slitely push them out to cause the shimmy. He told me it's also happening on the Altima's. The car felt great for two days. It's back to its old waynow. I'll take it back soon to get new rotors. They also fix the misalignment of the glove box. I'll keep you posted.

Thereal411

My dealer KNEW it had to be my tires.. however all checks on the tires were A-OK.. so i ask could it be anything else? could it be steering rack?? "No, it has to be tires"...
...well after he called nissan with the specs from my tire tests, which were all normal, he called and told me nissan told him to check the steering rack.. hmm.. go figure.. so next tuesday they want my car for the whole day so they can go thru this procedure which i believe they have never done at this dealership. I just want it fixed, i cant wait!