vibration/shaking help guys.

[costa_rican13]

ok so my problem is i have that annoying as hell shaking in my steering wheel from 30-40 mph. i just got brand new tires, balaned and mounted, replaced tie rods(outer and inner) and still have the shaking. idk what would keep causing this. my rims arent bent i know for sure. and its not the bumps in the roads either because i have the shaking everywhere i go even on the highway. any suggestions my fellow niconauts?

[rsmithdrift]

If tie rods arent the problem then you might have a warped hub or a warped rotor mounting surface. Creating a wobbly wheel and in turn a vibration.

My car is vibrating HARD from 65-75 right now and feels unstable above 75. Like the tires are skipping across the pavement and not really rolling on it.

My tie rods are shot so I have some M2 sport ones (megan replica) on the way. Praying that fixes it

[costa_rican13]

ok thanks smith! ill try those they are junkyard rotors.. but ill try to get some new rotors and if that doesnt fix it, im gona be pissed.. but still more suggetions peoples!

[costa_rican13]

also i dont have power steering either.

[brizanden]

rotors probably maybe the bearing in the hub. like stated, but most likey ur junkyard rotors

[OutToWinPAHC]

Really, rotors from the junk yard?

[costa_rican13]

I was broke and not as smart as I am now and they came off a j30 that only had 75k on it. And rotors looked pretty good to me for only 10 dollars for both.

[rsmithdrift]

I guess it was worth a shot then I guess.

Still I'd say that's 90% chance your problem like my problem is 90% chance my tie rods considering the play I have in my steering lol.

Give 88 rotors a call. They'll send you some custom made drilled slotted ones on the cheap. 626-442-3150 Whatever you need they'll make it for you. Even if it's something that doesn't exist yet haha. Tell em what year J30 and it'll be at your door within a week. Shameless plug I know. But I've had nothing but great experiences with them and I'd recommend them to anybody. 70 bucks shipped to TN for my altima d/s front rotors.

[DanThaMan]

OP I have the exact same problem as you, same speed and everything. I too replaced pretty much everything, wheels/tires, balanced, new rotors, hubs, inner/outer tie rods good ball joints CA bushings etc. and to no avail. next thing I'm gonna replace is the rack bushings, I'm gonna try this week if this damn snow melts.

[OutToWinPAHC]

Yeah I dunno, do you know how they balanced the wheels? Its either wheel balance, rotor warp, or loose suspension (ball joints, tie rods, etc)

[costa_rican13]

I guess it was worth a shot then I guess.

Still I'd say that's 90% chance your problem like my problem is 90% chance my tie rods considering the play I have in my steering lol.

Give 88 rotors a call. They'll send you some custom made drilled slotted ones on the cheap. 626-442-3150 Whatever you need they'll make it for you. Even if it's something that doesn't exist yet haha. Tell em what year J30 and it'll be at your door within a week. Shameless plug I know. But I've had nothing but great experiences with them and I'd recommend them to anybody. 70 bucks shipped to TN for my altima d/s front rotors.

ill try them if i find out my rotors are fuc%^d, thank smith

[costa_rican13]

Yeah I dunno, do you know how they balanced the wheels? Its either wheel balance, rotor warp, or loose suspension (ball joints, tie rods, etc)

umm well my buddy did it at the dodge dealership where he works. i watched him do it. he put the rims with tires on aired up on the spinning thing and made the number on the spinning machine say 0 on both sides. so im sure its not the balancing. plus sometimes my steering wheel shakes slowly like im going over a bump or something while im going slow(5-15 mph). im guessing that really narrows it down to the rotors?? if its the rotors then im gona get drilled and slotted ones plus i have the q45 calipers so ima switch to them and get those size rotors. now i saw this thread that this guy has q45 calipers with the z32 rotors?? is that possible?? thought the rotors were too big.

[EvillE423]

Yeah I dunno, do you know how they balanced the wheels? Its either wheel balance, rotor warp, or loose suspension (ball joints, tie rods, etc)

umm well my buddy did it at the dodge dealership where he works. i watched him do it. he put the rims with tires on aired up on the spinning thing and made the number on the spinning machine say 0 on both sides. so im sure its not the balancing. plus sometimes my steering wheel shakes slowly like im going over a bump or something while im going slow(5-15 mph). im guessing that really narrows it down to the rotors?? if its the rotors then im gona get drilled and slotted ones plus i have the q45 calipers so ima switch to them and get those size rotors. now i saw this thread that this guy has q45 calipers with the z32 rotors?? is that possible?? thought the rotors were too big.

Since you said it also does it at a low speed, check your tires for knots. One of mine had a knot in it one time and it would only shake at certain speeds. High and low. And at low speeds it felt like I was going over bumps. Check it out!

[krash]

Ive got the same problem around 60-70. I'm going to change the hats on my struts and see if that helps.

[costa_rican13]

Since you said it also does it at a low speed, check your tires for knots. One of mine had a knot in it one time and it would only shake at certain speeds. High and low. And at low speeds it felt like I was going over bumps. Check it out!

so its possible to have knots in tires that are practically brand new?? they have like 90% tread and even the little nipple things on the side. idk why this is happening, its gotta be my rotors everything else looks fine but how can you tell if a rotor is warped??? and its embarrassing because my fiancé is in town for the week and end..

[Lobo240sx]

If you brake hard does it want to turn to the right or left like a mofo?? If so rotors could be warped. Happened to me a few years back.

[DamonDread]

It is unlikely that its your tires, but i have seen it happen to fairly new tires. Could be wheel bearing had one go out on me one time WITHOUT making that honing noise to warn me first. Put her up on the lift and the tire spun fine with no noise, but she shaked really bad. At low speeds it felt like i was constantly running over a bump.

[costa_rican13]

dammit, how hard is it to replace a wheel bearing???? and im just gona get the rotors in case, gives me an excuse to get the slotted and drilled z32 rotors to put with my q45 calipers. now is this poosible? i saw a guy do it. but no input on how.

[alms24sebring]

If you brake hard does it want to turn to the right or left like a mofo?? If so rotors could be warped. Happened to me a few years back.

This is not true. Pulling = a stuck caliper and the rotor is so overheated it warps.

Not sure about the bearing on a 240 as in dont know if you have to press it in yourself, or it comes already assembled meaning 4 bolts quick and easy.

I would suspect a tire with a titty on it first. I can happen to new tires. If everything else is 100% positively good, then a rotor would be a last option. I have never seen a face of a rotor warp and cause this problem, but its not impossible. To check for warpage, the 'proper textbook way' to do it is that you have to use a dial indicator and check max runout. But if you brake and the wheel or pedal shakes while braking, thats a much easier way of telling you of warped rotors. But at the same time, that does NOT mean the face is or isnt warped.

Lift up the car and just turn the wheel by hand and see if it moves in and out. That will atleast tell you which wheel it is and also an easy way to look for titties on tires. Try and narrow it down and diagnose from there. I would do this before buying anything

[rsmithdrift]

dammit, how hard is it to replace a wheel bearing???? and im just gona get the rotors in case, gives me an excuse to get the slotted and drilled z32 rotors to put with my q45 calipers. now is this poosible? i saw a guy do it. but no input on how.

Here are the specs...

Q45: 295mm diameter, 28mm nom. thickness, 5x114 bolt pattern
300zx Opt 1: 280mm diameter, 30mm nom thickness, 5x114 bolt pattern
300zx Opt 2: 280mm diameter, 26mm nom thickness, 5x114 bolt pattern.

So IF your using q45 rotors now and switch to 300zx rotors (26mm ones as 30mm will not fit) you will be going with a 2mm thinner and 15mm smaller rotor. So it would be a much less effective rotor. Even if you made the 30mm ones fit they'd still be less effective because they are smaller.

I would highly recommend staying with the q45 rotor if your getting new x-drilled/slotted ones.

[alms24sebring]

I forgot to mention. check ur driveshaft u-joints for any play too. Some is allowed but only very little

[costa_rican13]

dammit, how hard is it to replace a wheel bearing???? and im just gona get the rotors in case, gives me an excuse to get the slotted and drilled z32 rotors to put with my q45 calipers. now is this poosible? i saw a guy do it. but no input on how.

Here are the specs...

Q45: 295mm diameter, 28mm nom. thickness, 5x114 bolt pattern
300zx Opt 1: 280mm diameter, 30mm nom thickness, 5x114 bolt pattern
300zx Opt 2: 280mm diameter, 26mm nom thickness, 5x114 bolt pattern.

So IF your using q45 rotors now and switch to 300zx rotors (26mm ones as 30mm will not fit) you will be going with a 2mm thinner and 15mm smaller rotor. So it would be a much less effective rotor. Even if you made the 30mm ones fit they'd still be less effective because they are smaller.

I would highly recommend staying with the q45 rotor if your getting new x-drilled/slotted ones.

ok i understand that. so i should just get the q45 x/slot rotors from that 88 rotors place. thanks ryan! glad you could clear that up.

[costa_rican13]

If you brake hard does it want to turn to the right or left like a mofo?? If so rotors could be warped. Happened to me a few years back.

This is not true. Pulling = a stuck caliper and the rotor is so overheated it warps.

Not sure about the bearing on a 240 as in dont know if you have to press it in yourself, or it comes already assembled meaning 4 bolts quick and easy.

I would suspect a tire with a titty on it first. I can happen to new tires. If everything else is 100% positively good, then a rotor would be a last option. I have never seen a face of a rotor warp and cause this problem, but its not impossible. To check for warpage, the 'proper textbook way' to do it is that you have to use a dial indicator and check max runout. But if you brake and the wheel or pedal shakes while braking, thats a much easier way of telling you of warped rotors. But at the same time, that does NOT mean the face is or isnt warped.

Lift up the car and just turn the wheel by hand and see if it moves in and out. That will at least tell you which wheel it is and also an easy way to look for titties on tires. Try and narrow it down and diagnose from there. I would do this before buying anything

ok well i have that pulling and such if i don't hold the wheel when i stop. and the shaking comes to start around 5-10 and increases in the "vibe's" with the increase in speed but after about 55mph it becomes virtually unfeelable. i do have some vibes from the transmission as well. i think i need a transmission mount. because at about 65mph and up the shifter vibes in the high rev's. but that problem was before this shaking steering wheel problem.

[21nemesis]

I don't know if you've got aftermarket wheels or not, but, I had the same problem for months with my aftermarket wheels. Drove me nuts trying to figure it out. Went the usual route, bushings, tie rods, tension rods, I mean U name it, I replaced it! I even went so far as to buy 2 sets of front wheels! And I can't even tell how many wheel balances I had done at several shops. I was at my wits end, about ready to look for a new rack and pinion. I took my car to Nissan to have them diagnose the problem (free of charge). When I get a call back, they advised me to have the wheels balanced. I told them I had already done that countless times. They asked if I had ever had a Road Force Tire Balancing; No. They let me know where I could get it done. Drove straight there from the dealership and wouldn't you know it, PROBLEM FIXED!

What Road Force Tire Balancing does is add pressure to the tires, simulating the pressure it would have while driving, and then they spin the tires. As opposed to traditional balancing where all that is done is spin the tire, Road Force is SUPER accurate. Although not cheap; $15- $25 per tire.

So, if you haven't done this, I suggest you try that first. A little hard to find places that offer this type of tire balancing, but the results are AMAZING!

[costa_rican13]

Wow! Well I will have to try this out sometime. And I have the stock 15" steelies in the front. And well I noticed the past 2 days that it hasn't been shaking anymore! This is so weird Because it just stopped. Idk why, or what happened.. and I know its not the roads, so nobody say the roads. And I should be getting a new alignment here when I put coilovers on after it stops snowing. Just waiting for it to snow and stop.

[rsmithdrift]

well, the new M2 Sport tie rod ends helped alot, it's tolerable at all speeds now. But it's still noticable from 70-80 now and just barely noticable above 80. Wierd that it's changed it's speed range. It was noticable anywhere above 60 and horrible, I mean unbearable, from 65-75. Maybe I can rebalance my wheels the correct way mentioned above to fix the rest of it.. hopefully. Cause their's no more stock bushings/ball joints left to replace/upgrade on the front of this car anymore.

[costa_rican13]

That is weird. Mine just stopped all of a sudden. Not sure why or what happened. I just put stock tie rod ends on mine because I get them discounted and cheap. But will be saving up for better quality ones in the future.

[rsmithdrift]

after proper alignment it went back to the way it was before. I was at 1.1* toe in on both sides. Back to 0.1* toe out and resume shaking your hands off the wheel at 65-75. Right back exactly the same... it's gotta be these wheels. I had them balanced and that wasn't the issue. But it is definately these wheels. I put the different wheels on the front from a friends car just to see if it rode smooth and it did. Smooth as glass at all speeds. Now I get to figure out wtf is wrong with these wheels... They're perfectly balanced and round... so IDK. Maybe the mounting surface of the rim is uneven??? ... it is quite corroded...

[costa_rican13]

So its doing it again...

[7anshin8r]

Mine has the same issue above 55, shakes like hell through the wheel. If I rotate my tires from back to front it pulls really bad to the right, rotate them back and the pulling stops but vibration is pretty bad.