steering wheel shakes, help!
12-01-2000, 06:55 PM
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2000
Posts: 807
Especially around 60mph. I’ll check wheel alignment first as that is the cheapest. Any other ideas?
This car is honestly starting to drive me crazy. O-rings or gasket might need to be changed as a little oil leaks in some of the spark plug sockets. Worse, my engine light says the speed senor/speedometer is bad though the sensor works and the gauge is $300 to replace and appears to work fine also. At 60K the extended warranty people are also a pain, and I purchased the Maxima as this was to be a very reliable, long lasting car. Of course the test drive was impresive for a "family/sport sedan". I suppose the mods didn’t help, but they’ve only been on for the last 8 to 10K miles. Any one else past the 60K and worry free?
This car is honestly starting to drive me crazy. O-rings or gasket might need to be changed as a little oil leaks in some of the spark plug sockets. Worse, my engine light says the speed senor/speedometer is bad though the sensor works and the gauge is $300 to replace and appears to work fine also. At 60K the extended warranty people are also a pain, and I purchased the Maxima as this was to be a very reliable, long lasting car. Of course the test drive was impresive for a "family/sport sedan". I suppose the mods didn’t help, but they’ve only been on for the last 8 to 10K miles. Any one else past the 60K and worry free?
12-01-2000, 08:09 PM
#4
Wheel Balance
Take a look at your wheel balance weights. There should be some on the innermost edge of the wheel and more either on the outer edge or just behind the spokes. Some places don't know how to properly balance a wheel with hidden weights so they just do a "static" balance, leaving the likelyhood of a dynamic imbalance (I won't get into it).
If you have a dynamic imbalance, it may cause a "shimmy" in your strg wheel.
Could be your rotors, too. I wouldn't waste $$ on an alignment in search of this problem.
Good Luck
If you have a dynamic imbalance, it may cause a "shimmy" in your strg wheel.
Could be your rotors, too. I wouldn't waste $$ on an alignment in search of this problem.
Good Luck
12-02-2000, 12:36 AM
#8
Have you had to do anything with the CV joints yet?
I wrecked my car a couple years ago, and it drove great until I had to have a tranny seal replaced (because the !@#!@ at the body shop messed it up when they repaired my car)..
well, since they have to remove the axle/CV joint to do that, the place that replaced the seal didn't get it back in correctly and my car had a terrible shimmy for almost a year. I replaced wheels, struts, springs, sway bars, more wheels, 3 sets of tires...
none of them fixed it..
Well, finally a few months ago, I blew a CV boot while I was on a trip to visit family.. so I decided to change the boot while I was there instead of risk driving the 300 miles home on a torn boot.
when I got everything put back together, the shimmy was GONE. completely, totally gone. I'd been fighting this for a year, and even accused the guy that sold me my rims of selling me bent rims.. (which I have since sold to someone else and he had no probs)..
Soooo, my whole point is if you had any work done on your CV joints or axles or anything, that could be the problem. just yank the axle otu of the tranny, give it a 1/2 turn either direction, and bolt everything back together. it's 20 min job if you know what you're doing with the right tools.
I wrecked my car a couple years ago, and it drove great until I had to have a tranny seal replaced (because the !@#!@ at the body shop messed it up when they repaired my car)..
well, since they have to remove the axle/CV joint to do that, the place that replaced the seal didn't get it back in correctly and my car had a terrible shimmy for almost a year. I replaced wheels, struts, springs, sway bars, more wheels, 3 sets of tires...
none of them fixed it..
Well, finally a few months ago, I blew a CV boot while I was on a trip to visit family.. so I decided to change the boot while I was there instead of risk driving the 300 miles home on a torn boot.
when I got everything put back together, the shimmy was GONE. completely, totally gone. I'd been fighting this for a year, and even accused the guy that sold me my rims of selling me bent rims.. (which I have since sold to someone else and he had no probs)..
Soooo, my whole point is if you had any work done on your CV joints or axles or anything, that could be the problem. just yank the axle otu of the tranny, give it a 1/2 turn either direction, and bolt everything back together. it's 20 min job if you know what you're doing with the right tools.
12-02-2000, 05:37 AM
#10
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2000
Posts: 866
Originally posted by TexMaximum
Especially around 60mph. I’ll check wheel alignment first as that is the cheapest. Any other ideas?
This car is honestly starting to drive me crazy. O-rings or gasket might need to be changed as a little oil leaks in some of the spark plug sockets. Worse, my engine light says the speed senor/speedometer is bad though the sensor works and the gauge is $300 to replace and appears to work fine also. At 60K the extended warranty people are also a pain, and I purchased the Maxima as this was to be a very reliable, long lasting car. Of course the test drive was impresive for a "family/sport sedan". I suppose the mods didn’t help, but they’ve only been on for the last 8 to 10K miles. Any one else past the 60K and worry free?
Especially around 60mph. I’ll check wheel alignment first as that is the cheapest. Any other ideas?
This car is honestly starting to drive me crazy. O-rings or gasket might need to be changed as a little oil leaks in some of the spark plug sockets. Worse, my engine light says the speed senor/speedometer is bad though the sensor works and the gauge is $300 to replace and appears to work fine also. At 60K the extended warranty people are also a pain, and I purchased the Maxima as this was to be a very reliable, long lasting car. Of course the test drive was impresive for a "family/sport sedan". I suppose the mods didn’t help, but they’ve only been on for the last 8 to 10K miles. Any one else past the 60K and worry free?
12-02-2000, 07:09 AM
#11
Donating Maxima.org Member
Join Date: Aug 2000
Posts: 2,931
Originally posted by TexMaximum
Especially around 60mph. I’ll check wheel alignment first as that is the cheapest. Any other ideas?
Especially around 60mph. I’ll check wheel alignment first as that is the cheapest. Any other ideas?
It could be 3 things: Balancing the wheels, tires out-of-round (in which case they must be replaced, probably under a warranty), bent wheel. I've had all 3, and they all cause vibrations when on the front wheels, so look for all possibilities.
12-03-2000, 03:18 PM
#12
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2000
Posts: 807
cyclemax , I went and got an alloy 2 "dynamic" blance on each wheel, and an alignment. It just had a static. The problem is now gone!
Now I nee to rid my stupid engine light. Says 0104, speed sensor. Had the sensor checked and its fine, they claim its my guages, but they work!? Its a $300 repaid, and not covered in my warrenty
Other then that, fix the paint a little and I'll enjoy the ride a lil longer I hope.
[Edited by TexMaximum on 12-03-2000 at 07:57 PM]
Now I nee to rid my stupid engine light. Says 0104, speed sensor. Had the sensor checked and its fine, they claim its my guages, but they work!? Its a $300 repaid, and not covered in my warrenty
Other then that, fix the paint a little and I'll enjoy the ride a lil longer I hope.[Edited by TexMaximum on 12-03-2000 at 07:57 PM]
12-03-2000, 05:30 PM
#13
suggestion:
I had this problem on my stock 15's before I replaced them.
It can be the things others have stated, out of shape tire, bent rim, poor wheel balance. I am not sure how alignment can cause vibration, I thought with a poor alignment the car would pull to the side, but who knows.
I suggest you take one of the front wheels and throw it on the back, take it up to 60 see if the problem continues, if yes, then do the same with the other front wheel, that way you might isolate the one wheel that is giving you problems and go check its balance/tire shape/rim shape.
hope this helps
It can be the things others have stated, out of shape tire, bent rim, poor wheel balance. I am not sure how alignment can cause vibration, I thought with a poor alignment the car would pull to the side, but who knows.
I suggest you take one of the front wheels and throw it on the back, take it up to 60 see if the problem continues, if yes, then do the same with the other front wheel, that way you might isolate the one wheel that is giving you problems and go check its balance/tire shape/rim shape.
hope this helps
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