Front end shake

[hcollado]

I am pretty anal about things and like them perfect. But I am getting a bit of vibration in the front that is not consistent when I am on the Hwy. It will do it at various speeds usually over 55 MPH and in the turns. Could it be that the shocks have gone bad or wear in the ball joints and other suspension parts? How smooth should I expect the ride to be in the front?
Brand-new tires and balanced correctly, supposedly.

[Bob Putnam]

98% of front end vibrations are driven by tire/wheel imbalance, out-of-roundness, wheel out-of-true, or tread separation. 1% is caused by brake problems and 1% all the rest. If you can't see the wheel literally bouncing, it ain't your shocks. (Hopefully, you would notice bad shocks way before that happened.)

If your front tires weren't balanced dynamically, do it. If they were, find a tire place that can check your tire balance while the assembly is on the car.

[BCompy]

H, As a prior Shakeaholic I would like to offer this advice when dealing with this problem. Make notes and a checklist of what you have done to date.In diagnosing my problem I had a tendency to be redundant and trying the same fix over again. What I believed to be an out of balance tire causing a front end shake turned out to be an out of balance driveshaft causing the whole car to shake. I did feel it in high speed turns.It did come and go between sixty and seventy with no rhyme or reason. I had the front end checked and rechecked, aligned, complete new set of tires and replaced the rear axles without curing the problem. I finally just pulled the driveshaft for grins and two hours later had the car smooth as glass. I still grit my teeth at seventy waiting for that dam shake to come in.But it is like driving a new car.
Good Luck I hope it is not the pain in the ass mine was!

[Bob In Ct]

Hey Bill:
My dealer told me they all did it, and I would just have to live with it.

I've had the tires balanced (3 times), the alignment is good, the shocks are new, my air pressure is correct. Are you telling me an 8 inch long drive shaft is causing the problem? If so, why does the problem come and go? Does the driveshaft go in and out of balance? In my case it's at its worst accelerating up a hill!

Bob

[Excaliber]

I just got some new FRONT tires (for the street), no change on the BACK tires. Premium balance and all that. Got this NEW vibration at 55 to 60, subtle, but it shakes the steering wheel. Got to be front tires right?

So I haven't had the fronts re-checked yet. Mean while I put on my road race tires on the BACK only (just playing around) and the FRONT vibration went away! NOW I'm scratching my head!

Ernie

[Bob In Ct]

Ernie:
Ditto here!

Bob

[BCompy]

Bob, we have two different manufactures cars with two different drive lines .I think the Superformance driveshaft is too short to balance. I belive the machine shop told me anything under ten inches is not necessary.
All the pro's kept telling me that it could not be the driveshaft because I was feeling it in the front end. I only tried it because it was making me crazy and there was nothing left to change. I am only guessing the frames are so stout that vibrations can be transmitted in an unconventional ways. All the material I had read on diagnosing vibrations were written about unibody late model cars.
Who cares what works as long as it works!

[wadesdad]

I recently had the same problem. Re-torqued the front wheel bearings and it went away.

Expensive toys that shake are NOOOOO fun!

[Excaliber]

Hmmmm,,,,I just put on those new Wilwood calipers and pads,,,,better go back and check my wheel bearing torque.

Ernie

[Jeff Frigo]

I say shocks or ball joints. Take it to somebody for a free inspection.

[hcollado]

A lot of good information. I'm fixin (Atlanta talk for "getting ready to") to replace the stock 9" front disk with 11". Now I have a lot more things to check and play with. I love this... It's like owning two boats. You just keep pouring money down a hole.