Problem:My car gets the bad shakes 60mph plus.
so... today I took it to get the tires rebalanced and they were fine. Then the guy showed me that when the steering wheel is held straight (on a lift) you can wobble the front wheels around. He said I could have a problem with a steering part. The real problem is that I leave for a 2 hour drive to college on saturday 8/18 so I need this fixed A.S.A.P!!! How do I diagnose it? Can I fix it? How much $$ should I expect to dish out???

 

I can't believe a guy at a tire store was such a doof that he showed you your tires wobbling, then didn't show you what was loose. It's like a total no-brainer to figure out: you raise the car, get under it, shake the wheels back and forth, and see what moves; then you see what sists still. The place where the thing that moves meets the thing that sits still, is what's worn out. Most likely it's either a tie rod end or the center link. Pretty basic.

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"So many Mustangs, so little time..."
ICON Motorsports

 

Wobbling the wheels could be alot of different things. Did you see him do this? If he grabbed the wheel at the 12 and 6 o'clock position and checked the play in it then he was checking the wheel bearings - there should be very little play. If he was checking the slack/play in the normal turning direction of the wheels - left to right, then he was ckecking the steering parts. That could be: tie-rods (inner/outer), the centerlink, the pitmen arm, the Idler arm. There is also the balljoints. Some of these things you can fix easily yourself, but other are an all day job. Most of the expense in the front end will be labor, plus if you do any work you will have to get an alignment afterwords. I think a front end rebuild runs around $600 for everything, but alot of times everything will not need to be replaced. The only way to tell is check for play/slack in the parts. Sorry I couldnt help more, but its one of those things you need to look at to see whats worn out .

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91 B4C 305 TPI - SOON TO BE 383
TREMEC 5-SP, STOCK 1-BOLT REAREAND w/342 GEARS, K&N, AIRFOIL
EDELBROCK HEADERS, DUAL CAT TO HOMEMADE Y-PIPE & 3.5" SINGLE PIPE W/ FLOWMASTER, CRANK PULLEY, MSD, FUEL PRESS REG, COWL HOOD, WELD WHEELS
14.1@ 98MPH
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OTHER RIDE
67 CAMARO - STREET CAR, BIG BLOCK, PUMP GAS
350TH w/ATI 10", 12-BOLT w/373 GEARS
10.92@125.2 1.55 60FT. ON MOTOR - ET-STREETs w/MUFFLERS

 

Thanks guys...I'm going outside to check now.

 

well i checked....seems everything moves below the balljoints and everything above stays still (when I jiggle side to side). Does that mean the ball joints are bad? or maybe need to be tightened? Where can I buy? How much $? Can I fix? Thanks. NOT BALLJOINTS---BALLJOINT STUDS(thats what my shop manual calls them) where inner tierods connect to idler arm and relay rod/pitman arm.

[This message has been edited by squirrelybird (edited August 13, 2001).]

[This message has been edited by squirrelybird (edited August 13, 2001).]

 

Please, guys. I need all answers by tonight!!!back to the top it goes!

 

Side to side won't check the ball joints. I'm guessing you aren't sure what you are looking at. Find a friend that knows about cars and stuff or take it too a good shop and get an estimate. It just a couple of minutes, a good tech can tell you what is loose and what isn't. Idler arm, centerlink, inner/outer tie-rod ends are commonly worn out and would cause that side to side play. Take it to an alignment shop and ask for an estimate.

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350 with stealth intake, holley carb, 470 lift cam. 700r4 with .5 boost valve, vette servo, tci lock-up kit, B&M megashifter. Richmond 3.73 gears, powertrax locker, timkin bearings, synthetic lube. Custom 3 inch single into 2 2.5 pipes. 1 1/2 drop springs, 1 5/16 solid front sway bar, 1 inch rear bar, custom subframe connectors, custom LCA relocation brackets. Kobel ground FX, current red metallic paint. Lots of other stuff...
82camaro

 

Sorry..I know it's not the balljoints.........It is where the inner tierods connect to the idler arm and the relay rod/pitman arm. There is a grease bushing and a nut on top. Does this clear it up at all?

 

The center link is one solid piece about 3 feet long, it has the joints where it hooks to the Pitman arm and the idler arm. If those are the loose ones, replace the center link. It has no joints at its ends where the tie rods connect to it.

There are 4 tie rod ends: 2 outers that hook to the spindles, and 2 inners that hook to the center link. If one of those points is where the worn-out part is, replace all 4 of them.

The inner tie rods do not connect to the idler arm or th Pitman arm. If there's play at the end of the Pitman or idler arm (sounds like that's your situation), replace the center link.

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"So many Mustangs, so little time..."
ICON Motorsports