LINDERS Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 Ok- let me reiterate. This is NOT the same rear control arm bushing shimmy. This is my, seemingly special, pain in the arse shimmy that no one can figure out. So please if you have anything to add...do so. :confused: About three months ago i developed a mild shimmy in my steering wheel. This would generally occur on the freeway between 50 and 70, peaking at about 65. This continued to get worse over time. As it increased in intensity i rotated and balanced my tires- 3 times and it was still there. Got new rear socks, because i needed them and since they were so bad thought this may be contributing to the problem but it was still there. Took it back to my mechanic- throwing paper work and print outs and questions and ideas and TSBs in all directions :contract: because they’ve looked my car over and I’ve looked my car over and ... they thought...and they thought and tightened and lubed up the wheel bearings- assured me that was the problem… and it's still there. Everyone kept saying rotate and balance - so again...i went to discount tire (it's where i got my BFGs) and they did the extra special, super duper balance and it's still there. So the next day i went back and spent three hours at Discount- they took the tires off the wheels and moved things around and rotated and balanced and assured me the wheels and tired are perfect – it’s still there. I took my car back to my puzzled mechanic and they said they wanted to keep it for the day, so i rented a really ugly cheap car :oops: and...the next day got a call that it's the front control arm bushing. ok- fine. fix it. Whatever you need to do. And you know what??? After all of this it’s still there. I must add that after the new control arm bushings it’s down to about 20 percent but I’m thinking that’s just because they’re absorbing some of the shimmy and they really had nothing to do with the problem in the first place. :help: Help…. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewisnc100 Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 Have you been to a Nissan dealer, only place that I know that uses the flange plate adapter to balance the wheels as required. Without that I'm not sure if you can get a true balance. What model is your 97? Recent thread: http://npora.ipbhost.com/index.php?showtop...hl=flange+plate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LINDERS Posted November 22, 2004 Author Share Posted November 22, 2004 I have not been to the dealer. but I did watch the boys at discount tire and they used the flange adapter. they have the hunter 9700 super duper balancer and have assured me the tires are perfectly balanaced. My pathy is a '97 SE 4x with 112K. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewisnc100 Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 Have they checked the steering rack sliding force, that was the second part of the shimmy TSB for the 96-99 Pathfinders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LINDERS Posted November 22, 2004 Author Share Posted November 22, 2004 Yep. sliding force adjustment check and verified. see? i told you. this shimmy is special..and not in a good way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewisnc100 Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 Did they verify the front propeller shaft alignment, any chance you have something out of balance there? Also when they used the Hunter balancer they have different adapters, did they use one that mounts via the lugs and not the center? I think I already know the answers to these questions since you've been working on this for a while, sounds like you've already been through every TSB out there. This would be a pain in the rear, but any chance you could try out another set of wheels/tires on your rig? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LINDERS Posted November 22, 2004 Author Share Posted November 22, 2004 to be honest- I didn't verify the adapter they were using I just mentioned to them if they knew that Pathfinder wheels have issues and asked if they were using the special adapter. they said yes, and the manager (the second time i went back) said he would double check to make sure. They could have been using the wrong one. I can double check that. good thinking. and i do not know about the front propeller shaft alignment. I do know that the alignment place i took it too double checked EVERYTHING twice. I bet they're getting tired of seeing me... I'll ask them about that. Again, good thinking... anything else you can think of while you're on a roll??? :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewisnc100 Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 When you go back just spell out for them that the wheel needs to be mounted via the lugs and not the center hole. Check out this page on the Hunter balancer, it appears to have some checks that are trying to force the wheel to be centered via the center hole. Also on their page where they list mounting methods the only adapters shown are cones that center via the hole and not the lugs. But who knows, maybe they do have the right lug adapter but I'd want to see them mount it myself. http://128.242.141.111/pub/technical/4442T/4442T.cfm I don't know about the driveshaft, the TSB on that lists the vibration as more of a 30-40mph vibration whereas the balance issues have normally been 60-70mph. I've had the same issues with my 97 over time, and I have manual hubs so my front shaft is not spinning and it had no affect on the shimmy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LINDERS Posted November 22, 2004 Author Share Posted November 22, 2004 well, the shimmy is most noticable on the freeway between 70 and 80, at least now it is. This is a change from the original speeds at which is occured (50-70 peaking at 65). it's also now noticable when going over bumps at lower speeds. and it was never noticable then.... I thought of checking for a weight off the driveshaft but haven't crawled under there since i had that thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dkpath96 Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 LINDERS, Could your shimmy be described as a sort of low-sounding vibration that you can feel through the steering wheel? And it sounds almost like really loud road noise? I am starting to notice this with my pathy, and it happens when I get it up to speed (50-70 mph). It also tends to happen more often going down hill, although this might be a coincidence. The funny thing is, it goes away for a while. I have a 45 min. commute and only tend to hear it once or twice all day. I am going to have the front wheel bearings looked at... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LINDERS Posted November 22, 2004 Author Share Posted November 22, 2004 no. my steering wheel actually moves. but confusion of the terminology- yea, i've had that problem. I have a shimmy that does one thing and wondered if it was the wobble other people were talking about and then there's the shake... but- after some clarification :gossip: ...mine is definately a shimmy. maybe yours is a vibration? :-) hope the wheel bearings take car of it. mabe they just need to be tightened and lubed. good luck with that. sly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted November 23, 2004 Share Posted November 23, 2004 How are your tie rods doing? Loose/sloppy tie rods might do that to ya. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LINDERS Posted December 6, 2004 Author Share Posted December 6, 2004 it's taken me a while to get back on line becuase i was busy driving the ol' girl out to colorado and back- with my route taking me through AZ and NM. I haven't checked the tie rods specifically -I will this week though (But I have pulled and yanked and prodded most pieces I can get my hands on). Strange as it would seem the whole time driving, as long as I was on a freeway and going above 60-ish things were fine. It wasn't until I got on secondary roads that the shimmy appeared again. And now that I'm back in CA well, the freeways must be crap here cause it's back to buggin' me everyday. So my final thoughts on this are...I can make it do it when I hit a bump. Which leads me to believe that the bushing replacement really did nothing except buffer the problem. I'm tired and am at the point of just accepting the imperfection she now has... living with it and hoping that eventually something will break and both the problem and resolution will become obvious. An added note and maybe proof that my car is currently possessed.... during the two thousand mile trip my engine light (which has been on now for over a year- that's a entirely different issue which we can discuss at a another time) went off, came on, went off and came on again... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RowOSU Posted December 6, 2004 Share Posted December 6, 2004 I had something similar to this earlier this year.. When i would go over bumps and such at low speeds the steering wheel itself would actully move around, pretty bad. And then at speed it would also do it. Took it to my mechanic and he reccomended new struts. (great....that was cheap) BUT it did fix it. How old are your struts? -cameron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LINDERS Posted December 6, 2004 Author Share Posted December 6, 2004 funny you should ask. they are the originals- it's a '97 and i noticed on the trip the right front is leaking. I didn't think it would be bad enough to cause the issue especially since it started leaking after the shimmy started. but it IS on my list. I hope that IS the problem! please please let it be. I've already gotten two estimates -one for 670 and one for 360. both include the struts. I think i'll go with the guys that gave me the quote of 360 but i'll bring my own struts. (why so much of a difference in price especially if the strut price doesn't really vary that much?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RowOSU Posted December 6, 2004 Share Posted December 6, 2004 Wow, that is quite a difference. I had mine done here in Columbus while I was at school last spring and one place quoted me 710 and the others 650. I didnt really know where to even go to get work done so I took the 650 at AAA auto repair and that was that. I am guessing the place that wants 360 just has better labor rates. I hope the struts fix the problem for you because that shaky steering wheel sucks! good luck! -cameron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deej Posted December 7, 2004 Share Posted December 7, 2004 If your getting your struts done, I'ld suggest checking with a Nissan dealer. I got my struts done here in Canada for $650 at a Nissan dealer and they are lifetime free replacement parts and labor and the service guy said there was no need for an alignment with Genuine Nissan Struts Don't get that but hey whatever. I DID notice a difference in ride/handling. I'm just happy that I won't have to pay for struts again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boris Posted December 7, 2004 Share Posted December 7, 2004 For what it's worth , I say it's the struts. If the shock absorber gets tired it can't keep the tyre pressed to the road surface causing it to bounce. Run your hand over the tyre and check for steps on the tread blocks. If you let it go on long enough the tyres will get bad enough that replacing the struts might not solve your shimmy problem because the damaged tyre will be the new cause of the bounce. I know struts cost $$$ but a ruined set of tyres isn't to cheep either. Why not replace the struts yourself? Save $$$ on the labour costs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deej Posted December 7, 2004 Share Posted December 7, 2004 Hey Boris, you should put the quote in your avatar as your signature ....it's too small to read and I bet it's crazy funny Just a suggestion Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RowOSU Posted December 7, 2004 Share Posted December 7, 2004 sooo if Nissan makes lifetime struts why weren't they on there in the first place could've saved this poor college student some serious coin.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deej Posted December 7, 2004 Share Posted December 7, 2004 They wouldn't answer that question when I asked them :X Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boris Posted December 7, 2004 Share Posted December 7, 2004 The "life-time" struts are just ordinary OEM items. They just sell them with the "life-time" warranty hoping that you get rid of the vehicle or it falls apart before the next time you need struts again. Read the terms of the "life-time" mumbo-jumbo , it's a blast. deej, all the caption in my avatar says is "If he can park here so can I" which was the argument I used when the hotel memager came down to the beach to complain. It worked, he walked away(or was it the fact that we had over 100 rooms booked with our group?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deej Posted December 7, 2004 Share Posted December 7, 2004 "If he can park here so can I" Now that's a good caption Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vengeful Posted December 8, 2004 Share Posted December 8, 2004 Humm....I'm starting to get a VERY slight shimmy in my steering wheel as well....never even considered the struts. I wouldn't tend to think it would be my struts, because they're only about 40,000 miles old. BUT, on the other hand, I do have a susp. lift, and I do tend to be hard on my truck off-road. I'll look into it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB3829 Posted December 9, 2004 Share Posted December 9, 2004 I was reading another forum on some Nissan offroad site and one message said something about a misalignment of the driveshaft to the rear axle causing the uv joint and trailing arm bushings to give up prematurely...I have the same problem between 55-65 mph as well as a clunk somewhere in the rear end after releasing the brake after a stop. I've also replaced the shocks and struts but the "shimmy" is still there. I feel your pain! :confused: I have a '97 SE that's going in tomorrow to have a flowmaster 50 series muffler installed with new downtubes and stainless tip(sans the resonator) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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