Paducah Home Theater Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 Got all my major mechanical issues fixed in the spring but I have a pesky tire problem that won't go away. 47-48 mph and often the truck shakes violently. Above 65 and especially 75 there is a constant vibration or wobble. If I go around a slight curve my steering wheel will jack side to side. On long trips it is pretty uncomfortable due to the non-stop shaking. It's got brand new ball joints, all other linkages are tight, new rear shocks, pretty new tires that I just got in May, actually 2 of them were slightly out of round so they were replaced and all the ones now are supposedly top notch, recently been road force balanced, recently aligned, fairly new rotors and pads, engine is running like a champ, I don't know what it could be. The only thing that even remotely makes any sense is maybe a caliper is locking up especially since it feels like it is at a loss for power when it shakes, but when I hit the brakes it's not like the rotors feel warped, they feel perfect. Any other ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtr20 Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 Ate you sure the wheels are still balanced properly? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 Do you have a steering stabilizer? If so, sounds like it's worn out. I can't recall what type of truck you had either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coytee Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 I had something similar. I had replaced a rear shock/strut. Over about 2 years, the problem slowly got worse. Long story short, one of the tires had been cupped by the prior bad shock/strut being worn out. Decided to put new tires all the way around and problem was gone in an instant. You could FEEL the little 'scallops' in the tire (inside as I recall) if you ran your hand around the tire. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
USNRET Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 I was going to say ball joints until I read that they were new. Rotate tires front to rear, one at a time and feel that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paducah Home Theater Posted October 25, 2016 Author Share Posted October 25, 2016 1 hour ago, dtr20 said: Ate you sure the wheels are still balanced properly? Since May I've had them balanced twice and road force balanced 3 times from 2 places, the last one very recently. Nothing in terms of balancing is a long term fix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paducah Home Theater Posted October 25, 2016 Author Share Posted October 25, 2016 1 hour ago, CECAA850 said: Do you have a steering stabilizer? If so, sounds like it's worn out. I can't recall what type of truck you had either. 04 F-150. Not sure, thought steering stabilizers were only on solid front axles but apparently not. When it shakes at 47 mph it's like the entire truck is bouncing up and down. The shimmy at the wheel is only when going 65-75 and around a slight turn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 We have vehicles come in with the "death shake". Normally worn out stabilizers are the culprit. Is yours 4wd? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max2 Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 A -arm bushing? I'm assuming its an IFS F-150 4WD? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 If your truck has a steering stabilizer, disconnect one end and see how hard it is to move. It's basically a shock absorber. If there's very little resistance to movement, it's worn out and not doing it's job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ceptorman Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 Is your truck a "Harley" Ford? (sorry....I had to) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvu80 Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 Automatic or standard transmission? Is this 2wd or 4wd, and does it make any difference when you switch between them? Have you checked to see if there is a trouble code? The little light on the dash doesn't tell you all that is wrong. Have you checked the harmonic balancer, which if defective can cause vibration at high RPM. If automatic I might suspect something loose in the tranny or torque converter that sets up a wobble which gets transmitted to the tires. +++ What make, model year of truck? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 2 hours ago, MetropolisLakeOutfitters said: The only thing that even remotely makes any sense is maybe a caliper is locking up especially since it feels like it is at a loss for power when it shakes, but when I hit the brakes it's not like the rotors feel warped, they feel perfect. Do you have rear disc brakes? If so, the emergency brake could have a bunch of junk built up in it and it's grabbing. Normally with rear discs there are 2 shoes inside the "drum" of the disc assembly. That could explain your loss of power and perfect feeling rotors. It can also pulsate as the "drum" can be out of round. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schu Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 A wrapped rotor in the frontend would be a good guess, but you've stated that they are new... I might suggest a wheel bearing has run out issues and is out of spec. One other thing that might also be likely is if you have aftermarket wheels is that perhaps those wheels are not hubsentric and therefore not centered on the hub. In relation, if you have rims that call for conical wheels lugs, and you are running wedged or ball faced lugs, you can experience similar driving sensations. Also unidirectional tires mounted backwards can be an issue. Where is the vibration coming from, the front end or the rear end? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvu80 Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 3 minutes ago, Schu said: One other thing that might be likely also is if you have aftermarket wheels is that perhaps those wheels are not hubsentric and therefore not centered on the hub. Out of the box thinking, but quite right. I once put some aftermarket wheels on a Honda Civic that were cheap with those multiple universal lug patterns and they never did work quite right. I had vibration I could never get rid of. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 4 minutes ago, Schu said: I might suggest a wheel bearing has run out issues and is out of spec. Normally he'd have noise that would accompany this and it would come and go while turning back and forth. Missing centering rings on aftermarket tires would certainly make a vibration but wouldn't account for his loss of power. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted October 25, 2016 Share Posted October 25, 2016 1 minute ago, wvu80 said: Out of the box thinking, but quite right. I once put some aftermarket wheels on a Honda Civic that were cheap with those multiple universal lug patterns and they never did work quite right. I had vibration I could never get rid of. 4 little plastic rings would have fixed you up. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paducah Home Theater Posted October 26, 2016 Author Share Posted October 26, 2016 1 hour ago, Schu said: Where is the vibration coming from, the front end or the rear end? I can't even tell, but just to put it in perspective, when I did it this morning I maintained the 48 mph speed as to experiment, and found that it was bobbing up and down so bad that if I relaxed my jaw, my teeth literally chattered. It's pretty bad when it does it, but, it's not constant, which is aggravating. At higher speeds it's just an annoying mild shake but when it kicks in at 48 you can't hardly stand to be in the truck. Meanwhile, the tire company(s) say everything is peachy keen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted October 26, 2016 Share Posted October 26, 2016 You've got some l things to check. Let us know what you find. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvu80 Posted October 26, 2016 Share Posted October 26, 2016 What bothers me the most is that with such extreme vibration, it has to be something major that is wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.