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S Chassis Technical discussion related to the S Chassis such as the S12, S13, S14, and S15.


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Old 12-30-2019, 09:14 PM   #1
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Steering Wheel Shake

I have been experiencing a lot of steering wheel shake at 50+ mph on my S13 Silvia. I have searched and tried what other have said and it is still happening.

The weird thing is that it is intermittent. One day it’ll be fine, the next day it’ll will shake for 30 seconds at highway speeds, stop shaking for 30-60 seconds, then start to shake again. It doesn’t seem to matter on the road condition. It can be perfectly smooth and still shake.

I know the wheels are balanced, I also recently had it aligned. Ball joints look and feel good and while the front end is jacked up, there is no play in the wheels or anything else. I replaced the inner and outer tie rods, tension rods, steering shaft bushing, and steering rack bushings and it still shakes.

It’s driving me crazy! Any input is much appreciated!

Thank you in advance.
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Old 12-30-2019, 09:45 PM   #2
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my buddy's car used to do this. he replaced the ps pump and it went away

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Old 12-31-2019, 08:40 AM   #3
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Originally Posted by jkleinschrodt04 View Post
my buddy's car used to do this. he replaced the ps pump and it went away

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Thanks for the info! I can’t find a power steering pump locally. But I’ll try flushing the fluid first and see if that helps. It is very dark and old.
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Old 12-31-2019, 09:28 PM   #4
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Have you check the wheel bearings?
Did you recently do a 5 lug swap? If so did you torque to correct spec?
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Old 12-31-2019, 11:04 PM   #5
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I did not do a 5 lug swap. And there doesn’t seem to be any movement when I try to shake the wheels while it’s jacked up. So I believe the wheel bearings are not the cause of the problem.
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Old 01-01-2020, 09:10 AM   #6
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Are you by chance running cheap or old tires? The steel belts in them can flat spot from sitting parked and cause all kinds of steering vibrations that are pretty much impossible to pin point.
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Old 01-01-2020, 11:21 AM   #7
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A lump of mud or slush on the inside of a wheel can cause a temporary (or not so temporary) balance problem.
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Old 01-01-2020, 12:32 PM   #8
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I did recently get new wheels and tires from a friend but I don’t recall his car having this issue. And it did do this with my old wheels and tires too. It has just been seeming to get worse lately. I do plan to get some tires soon though. And there is nothing on the inside of the wheels, they are very clean.
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Old 01-01-2020, 02:46 PM   #9
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The shake seemed to be less after flushing the power steering system. I’m wondering if I pull the belt off the PS Pump and take it out for a test drive, if that’ll help pin point whether it’s the pump itself or something else.
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Old 01-01-2020, 05:49 PM   #10
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If you really have checked the front end, joints, bushings, bearings, etc.
If its not a bad tire or bent rim, the only other thing I can think of is that rubber steering shaft rag joint. Know what im talking about?

You running stock castor arms? If so are the bushings blown?
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Old 01-01-2020, 07:12 PM   #11
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Like I said in the original post, I replaced the tension (castor) arms and the steering shaft bushing a while back. That did not fix the issue.
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Old 01-01-2020, 07:35 PM   #12
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Take the ps belt off test drive and let us know
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Old 01-01-2020, 07:51 PM   #13
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Does the vibration happen when you brake at all? If so then your rotors are warped.
One thing alot of ppl do that warp rotors is putting wheels on with an impact instead of torquing them, which creates an uneven load variance on each wheel stud.
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Old 01-01-2020, 08:00 PM   #14
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I had an issue similar to this and it ended up being a cracked front subframe


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Old 01-01-2020, 08:32 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NashT View Post
Does the vibration happen when you brake at all? If so then your rotors are warped.
One thing alot of ppl do that warp rotors is putting wheels on with an impact instead of torquing them, which creates an uneven load variance on each wheel stud.
+1 on warped brake rotors
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Old 01-01-2020, 09:06 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NashT View Post
Does the vibration happen when you brake at all? If so then your rotors are warped.
One thing alot of ppl do that warp rotors is putting wheels on with an impact instead of torquing them, which creates an uneven load variance on each wheel stud.
It’s probably not the rotors. It happens while cruising at 50+ mph, not only while braking. And I don’t use an impact to torque the lug nuts.
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Old 01-01-2020, 09:07 PM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by IvoryWhiteS13 View Post
I had an issue similar to this and it ended up being a cracked front subframe


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I will inspect the subframe tomorrow. How’d you end up fixing it? Welding it? Or replacing it?
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Old 01-01-2020, 09:15 PM   #18
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I will inspect the subframe tomorrow. How’d you end up fixing it? Welding it? Or replacing it?
As far as that kind of damage goes, you might also inspect the strut tower tops, and upper strut mounts. The epoxy "welds" can rip out, or the bearings get loose, respectively.
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Old 01-02-2020, 08:46 AM   #19
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the rule of thumb I was given if below 60 is either alignment or suspension, above 60 wheel balance...if problem existed before then definitely check the suspension components, use a prybar to simulate load on the wheel while you have it in the air, check inner tie rod condition too...lots that could cause this issue...
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Old 01-02-2020, 02:33 PM   #20
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You mentioned new wheels from a friend. Are these wheels actually new?

A bent but balanced wheel will still elicit a shaking steering wheel. I would try getting actual "new" or different wheels before you surmise that your wheels are not the culprit.
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Old 01-02-2020, 03:37 PM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by FaLKoN240 View Post
You mentioned new wheels from a friend. Are these wheels actually new?

A bent but balanced wheel will still elicit a shaking steering wheel. I would try getting actual "new" or different wheels before you surmise that your wheels are not the culprit.
I wasn’t meaning that they are brand new. I meant new to me. But I know they were well taken care of and his car did not shake and I had this issue before I got these wheels. Also if it were a wheel balance or bent wheel, wouldn’t the steering wheel shake constantly? It wouldn’t come and go.
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Old 01-02-2020, 04:55 PM   #22
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are they alloy wheels with sticky weights?
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Old 01-02-2020, 05:51 PM   #23
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Quote:
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I will inspect the subframe tomorrow. How’d you end up fixing it? Welding it? Or replacing it?


I ended up replacing it


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Old 01-02-2020, 06:04 PM   #24
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Take the ps belt off test drive and let us know
Taking off the PS belt did nothing.
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Old 01-02-2020, 06:04 PM   #25
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are they alloy wheels with sticky weights?
Yes. I am going to bring them somewhere to get rebalanced this weekend.
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Old 01-02-2020, 06:08 PM   #26
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Just an idea, but rotate your tires front to rear to see if the shake goes away.

Check all your hardware/ fasteners on the front end, make sure all nuts and bolts are tight.

If you do end up having a cracked subframe, you could always send it off to bink industry's and have them repair and modify it or street faction makes an aftermarket subframe that has an adjustable rack feature.

I dunno what else to tell ya bro, the front ends on 240s are very simplistic.

One last though, I have seen wheel bearings that are going bad but dont exhibit play on a shake down, lift the front up and see if there is any resistance when turning the wheels as that would be a definite sign
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Old 01-02-2020, 06:23 PM   #27
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Quote:
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Yes. I am going to bring them somewhere to get rebalanced this weekend.
those can be finicky, wheel weights can fall off. if the tire guy didn't care he might not have balanced them very well or didnt clean the area for the weights off with brake cleaner
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Old 01-02-2020, 07:06 PM   #28
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Also, random idea, but check the 4 column bolts in the cab under the dash.

And are you rocking an aftermarket wheel? If so have you checked the hub but and wheel hardware? Blue loctite is your friend there
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Old 01-02-2020, 07:15 PM   #29
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Just an idea, but rotate your tires front to rear to see if the shake goes away.

Check all your hardware/ fasteners on the front end, make sure all nuts and bolts are tight.

If you do end up having a cracked subframe, you could always send it off to bink industry's and have them repair and modify it or street faction makes an aftermarket subframe that has an adjustable rack feature.

I dunno what else to tell ya bro, the front ends on 240s are very simplistic.

One last though, I have seen wheel bearings that are going bad but dont exhibit play on a shake down, lift the front up and see if there is any resistance when turning the wheels as that would be a definite sign
Went through and checked all bolts up front. Everything is tight. On second inspection I noticed very minor movements when pushing/pulling on top and bottom of wheel and tires on both sides. There is some resistance but it seems like my brakes drag a bit. I will be doing brakes and lower ball joints soon, and will inspect whee bearings further then.

Also I’ve had three different sets of wheels on this car and the shake had always been there. I really don’t think it has to do with the wheels.
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Old 01-02-2020, 07:16 PM   #30
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Also, random idea, but check the 4 column bolts in the cab under the dash.

And are you rocking an aftermarket wheel? If so have you checked the hub but and wheel hardware? Blue loctite is your friend there
I do have aftermarket wheel, I will check that.
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