I've been having this shimmy in the steering for a while.
If I'm on the brakes hard and I hit a rough spot in the road, the car hops all over the place, steering wheel jiggling left and right.
Everything in the suspension is pretty new, except for the idler arm, so I replace it.
Well, it helps a little, but problem is still there...
Saturday, I decide to get the car up in the air, start it up and have my daughter steer it back and forth, while I lay underneath and look for problems.
Steering box is moving about 3/4" away from the frame!
No, the frame wasn't cracked, the bolts were just loose.
Very Loose! Holy Crap!
Wow, the car sure steers better, now that the steering box is bolted securely to the frame!
Anyway, my point is, don't overlook the simple things, like a loose bolt. I chased this problem for a couple weeks and felt pretty stupid after finding out what it really was.
-Rich-

 

heh it's ok we've all done it before. It's kinda like when you're looking for that damn 3/8" socket. You know, you're lookin in the toolbox, on the workbench, on the ground, under your hood, EVERYWHERE.. And then you realize "Hey what's this I've been holdin in my hand for the past 20 minutes?"

 

LMAO!!

SO true

 

Yeah, I was tracing down a ps leak when I discovered that the bolt to my pitman arm fell off. I was lucky I didn't go racing that night before I noticed it.