Greetings,
I have developed a shaking in the front end of my townie, I think it is coming from the front end. When I drive over 40k I get a shaking, un smooth ride. I took the townie to the shop to have it checked out and was told I needed to change the tie rods and have the bearings adjusted. I ordered the rods and they finally came in and I went to the garage today. The mechanic adjusted the bearings and said that the tie rods were absolutly fine. When I left the garage I stopped by a tire shop and had the front tires rebalanced, but to no avail. Does anyone have any suggestions.
Thanks
Mervin

- (#9393) mervin, 30 Jun 03 13:34

Mervin. Were the "tie rods" the steering ball joints by any chance? Your symptoms indicate, to me, that the steering geometry needs adjusting and the steering tie rods are where the adjustment is made. Perhaps the first mechanic did not explain things too well as the tie rods themselves don't need changing or replacing but, the balls joints, which screw onto them, quite often do. I suggest that you have a wheel alignment check,(the settings are given in Ace Answers)and, at the same time, have the new ball joints fitted.

- (#9394) John nDavis, 30 Jun 03 14:06

You think the front end
Is the focus of the shake coming up the steering column or is it more vague than this?
If the focus is'nt totally clear - don't discount the driveshaft - that'll get the whole car shaking - check bolted up ok and feel for play - an out of balance prop really shakes the vehicle up - also check your engine and gearbox mounts
Also can you drive through the shake? - is it worse on braking or cornering etc? this would offer more clues.

Actually I had a vehicle displaying your symptoms once - it turned out to be a tyre that had gone out of shape - lift the wheel just slightly off the ground - spin it and observe to see if it is true round (not bumping the tarmac with each turn) - had a full set of 'remoulds' and believe it or not 3 of them went this way eventually - very scary when it first started on the motorway though
- (#9395) chris turner, 30 Jun 03 19:22

Does it only happen in cold weather?

If that is the case I would suggest an extra jumper or coat, or turn the heater on! (HeHeHeHeHe)

But seriously, if anyone is using 'retread' tyres as they are called here in Aus, then don't.
They not only go out of round, but in a recent tyre test in a magazine, things like the handling and braking effectivness of these tyres is GREATLY compromised.
They are cheap, but not worth your life!

And they could very easily be the source of your problem. They can balance O.K. on the machine, but then cause problems on the vehicle. A few places will actually balance the tyres on your vehicle with simulated driving weight on them. This takes into account all sorts of things and gives the best balance, but usually costs more.

Change the tyres one at a time to see if this makes any difference - if it goes away when you put the spare onto one place, then you have isolated the tyre as the problem.

Dave.

- (#9396) DaveW, 30 Jun 03 21:22