joemax1

Hey guys! Im just curious about what you guys would consider "Steering wheel shimmy". When I drive between 70-80mph, I have a very slight side-side movement of steering wheel which seems to decrese or even become non-existent in some roads at same speeds. Is it just the road or is it a "shimmy"?

Thanks

cklamer

I have had a similar situation here locally. When they did there big resurface job out on the main highway I noticed after I bought the Maxima that I had a lot of noise and and shimmy on this one section of about 10 miles.

I found out later they had grooved the entire section so there are tiny grooves in the surface so some of it depends on your tires and how they catch the grooves.

But if this is not the situation then I am not sure.

joemax1

My steering wheel rotates very very slightly left and right in some stretch of the interstate while not on others or not as noticeable as others. Im guessing its the road surface but Im not quite sure...

joemax1

by the way, when you guys talk about steering wheel shimmy, is it a right-left "rotation" of the steering wheel or does the steering wheel feel like its "pistoning" (moving/vibrating back and forth on the rack...)?

lightonthehill

joemax1 - The traditional 6th gen 'shimmy' does not involve any rotation (turning) of the steering wheel; it is strictly a side-to-side vibration of the steering wheel, usually occurring within a limited speed range. I don't think I have seen many (if any) here with the classic shimmy at speeds under 40. The most common speeds where shimmy is noticed fall in the 50 MPH to 70 MPH window, and most are limited to around a 5 MPH range, although some have had it at higher speeds, and some have had a wider range than 5 MPH.

There have been many variations of this, and it has been fixed many different ways. In fact, there have probably been a hundred threads and a thousand posts here on shimmy since March, 2003. It is my feeling that the 'cure' for this was more often tied to wheels/tires/ alignment/balance than it was to a weak steering rack or poorly designed plastic spoiler under the front end or warped rotors or any of several other things that caused it for some folks. I still feel the steering wheel will not shimmy because of warped rotors unless the brakes are being used, so I don't think rotors are involved in your situation.

The 6th gen Maxima front end is extremely sensitive to even the slightest deviation from perfection in tires/wheels/alignment/balance. Earlier '04s were plagued by this problem, but far fewer occurrances were noticed in the 2005 model, and even fewer afterwards.

Even though this isn't happening for you on all roads, if you notice this on several different roads, then there is probably something not quite perfect in your car. If it reaches the point it bothers you, I would consider a complete tire rotation with spin balance, and if that doesn't help, a realignment on the Hunter 9000 (at least I seem to remember that as the only alignment system that works for the 6th gen Maxima).

Good luck.

ser_altima

I have more then the shimmy.. I have vibrations sometimes that feel like my hands are getting a massage no joke.. It goes on and off.. now i will tell you that my rear passenger side rim is "less then perfect" and i mean its to the point where you throw it on the balancing machine it looks like it is wobbling because the owner that had the car before me hit something or bent the rim.. i would replace it but cant seem to fork out the bucks for the SE-R rims from nissan and nobody on EBAY is selling just one.. do you guys think that the rear rim can affect steering vibrations if the wheel is severe enough??

BIG GILLES

The same here' My steering wheel rotates very slightly left and right time to time nothing works,spin balance, alignment, tire change, nothing.

VigilanteMax

iTrader: (4)

Absolutely
Also, shimmy and vibration are 2 different things, but lightonthehill summed it all up. Balancing is the key and also making sure the rotors at the hub are true, not the surface itself.

ser_altima

had the wheels fully balanced weights added at firestone with one of those new electronic alignment machines that uses lasers or something.. the determined my front right wheel was causing the vibrations because of the condition it was in from hitting a curb or something from the previous owner.. they moved it to the back and I still had this problem.. I think I just may have to replace the wheel because of how out of line it is. do you think something further could of been damaged if in fact the previous owner hit a curb?? possible bent axle or something, but something doesnt add up and thats the fact that it doesnt vibrate ALL the time.. only once you get above 50 mph and sometimes it just stops.. wierd i know.