Wobble in Front End

[TutorN1]

Thank you, I'm interested in seeing if that helps. I replaced my struts last year and only have 30k on them, but it's possible.

Got my front struts on yesterday, & the wobble in my front is gone.

[Karmann]

Got my front struts on yesterday, & the wobble in my front is gone.

Good to hear, I'll hopefully be doing the bearings this weekend and check for wear then. I suspect it's just a worn bushing.

[Karmann]

So I replaced the sway bar bushings, to no difference, and had a wheel balance done just for sh**s- fixed the majority of the wobble. Yet there still remains the creak when going over bumps, and a slight wobble round 60 mph... again, going to do the front bearings when I have time.

 

[Precise1]

Are the bearings loose and/or crunchy? You can tell by spinning the tire when it is jacked up and feeling any vibrations and holding the tire at 6 and 12 o'clock alternating push/pull with either hand. If it passes those tests, I can't believe the issue is wheel bearings.

 

B

[Karmann]

Well that's the thing, with the front end jacked up, the most play is about 2 millimeters at most, it's so minimal I don't expect them to be the culprit. Instead there seems to be something which pops while going around turns at full lock, coming from the front passenger area. This is accompanied by a distinct crunch while going over speed bumps.

A lot of the suggestions on here didn't seem yet applicable, so I'm really at a loss.... pulling my hair out every time I drive it.

[Precise1]

Well, honestly, even 2mm is way more than the zero it should have. I highly recommend you snug them up immediately and check to see if they are brinelled already. If they are, plan to change them very soon. If not, you can pull them and re-pack them when you have the chance.

 

As for the crunching, sorry Bud, I'm just not familiar enough with the R50 front end to do anything other than guess.

 

B

[TutorN1]

Still sounds like something in the struts, wheel bearing have a constant roar/ popping sound going down the road.

 

Told you mine was doing the same thing till I got the front struts done. It started making knocking noises, thought it was bushing wearing out. Turns out the shop put the wrong struts on.

 

Having to go back and do them again, plus top hats.

 

Reason for my rant, did the guy you had so much trouble with do anything to the front? I thought the shop I went to knew what they were doing. You know the one you went to didn't.

[Karmann]

That's true, well I wasn't billed for new struts, and when I replaced my front stabilizer bar bushings, I definitely saw that my struts were still in place. Every nut and bolt I touched when installing my lift myself was still there, and seemingly correctly applied.

 

The fool did replace the lower control arms (stupid, lazy move on his part, claiming the bushings were too hard to remove), but to give him the benefit of the doubt, the crunching noise was present before I took it to his little shop of horrors.... The thing with the struts is that they're less than 30k old, and show no signs of failure. When I put in my lift springs and spacers, a new strut bearing was put in, and the strut mount itself seemed fine.

[TutorN1]

Keep in mind tho, in words of Holmes himself

"Eliminate all other fact, and the one which remains must be the truth."

 

All I mean is don't just assume they're good because of the miles on them. There's another newer thread of someone having a similar problem with struts on even two weeks old.

 

I'm with B tho tightening our bearings, and wouldn't hurt to grease them. I'm from the old school of doing it at least every year.

[slowpokezuki]

I am getting into this late, and as a shop manager that works on all vehicles, my knowledge is not Pathy exclusive. But as a rule of thumb, a vibration is not caused or fixed by an alignment. A nearly CONSTANT vibration suggests loose or worn parts (bearings, tie rods, bushings, ball joints, etc), a vibration that occurs at a speed window ( usually a 5 to 10 mph window) is something out of round or balance (tire out of balance or bad tire).

[Karmann]

I just rebuilt and replaced my wheel bearings yesterday, with the vibration remaining, albeit a lot of the other "grittyness" in the steering is now removed. I am thinking it is the tires, and will talk to the shop again to see if I can get a deal on a replacement.

 

The popping while turning is still prevalent however, any ideas? I've now replaced the bearings, sway bar bushings (not endlinks), springs, struts 30k ago, lower control arms, and brakes....

[Precise1]

FJ600 had a vibration that he couldn't solve and it did turn out to be a tire. He took it somewhere that did something like 'road force balance' and determined it was the tire. Have this done before you replace them.

 

http://www.nissanpathfinders.net/forum/topic/37527-vibrationwobble/?p=721139

 

As for popping, the WD21's have a noise issue where the front cross member needs to be retorqued, so perhaps you need to do this with some of the sub frame fasteners? Just a gues...

 

B