tierod or balencing??

[long tall eta]

guys, i just had a set of almost new tires mounted and balenced. i now have a vibration between 60 and 80 mph. kind of a shimmy, or shudder. took it back cause it feels like a balencing problem. i also noticed that 3 of the wheeles have weights on the outside of them and the drivers side rear dosen't. took it back and they said that i have a tierod starting to go bad. ( right side ). what r the symtems of a tierod starting to go? i still think it's balencing. they r going to check it tomorrow but i would still like to hear from u guys so i know what i'm talking about when i go in there. whats bothering to me is, the shake wasen't there before i took it in and i noticed as soon as i left the place.

[Hellabad]

If a tie rod (or anything else is worn out) the car will not necessarily shake just because of something loose.

Something needs to start it shaking. aka badly balanced wheels.

[jlevie]

Do you have aftermarket wheels? And if so are they hub centric and a close fit on the centering flange? Non-hubcentric wheels or a poor fit to the centering flanges can mean that off the car balancing just won't work and the wheels will have to be balanced while on the car.

[long tall eta]

Do you have aftermarket wheels? And if so are they hub centric and a close fit on the centering flange? Non-hubcentric wheels or a poor fit to the centering flanges can mean that off the car balancing just won't work and the wheels will have to be balanced while on the car.

no after market. running stock bottle caps w/ 195/65/r14's on the same wheeles that i've bin running for 3 years w/o any problems.

[avery0829]

If you just got the tires put on and you now have a vibration, it's the tires. Have them rebalanced. At my work when we put tires on and they get a vibration, we recheck the balance and if they balance out fine then we do a road force balance. Good luck.

[jlevie]

no after market. running stock bottle caps w/ 195/65/r14's on the same wheeles that i've bin running for 3 years w/o any problems.

Okay, unless one is bent it won't be the wheels. This may be just a bad balance, but know that worn shocks, tie rods, control arms, or bushings will exaggerate an otherwise unnoticeable balance error.

[einstein57]

Well you could always rotate that side front to back. If it is just one unbalanced tire then the steering shake should be gone and make the balance it right.

[long tall eta]

If you just got the tires put on and you now have a vibration, it's the tires. Have them rebalanced. At my work when we put tires on and they get a vibration, we recheck the balance and if they balance out fine then we do a road force balance. Good luck.

what is a road force balence? do u mean high speed balencing as compared to bubble balencing? or something else?

[moatilliatta]

Or rotate to the left side, If it shakes on the left side then its the wheel and not the tie rod.

[long tall eta]

ok, so the wheele balencing checks out ok and i do need tie rods on the passenger side. now, my next question is, should i replace only the bad one or do both sides? also, there are some cheaper brands out there other than moog or lemforder. i am on a budget but don't want to comprimise safety. any advise? and can u use the cheaper tie rob with the moog or lemforder ends? are they compatable. and do they all come w/ grease fittings?

is this a job that can easily be done in the driveway w/o special tools or shoule i take it to a shop?

[Hellabad]

ok, so the wheele balencing checks out ok and i do need tie rods on the passenger side. now, my next question is, should i replace only the bad one or do both sides? also, there are some cheaper brands out there other than moog or lemforder. i am on a budget but don't want to comprimise safety. any advise? and can u use the cheaper tie rob with the moog or lemforder ends? are they compatable. and do they all come w/ grease fittings?

is this a job that can easily be done in the driveway w/o special tools or shoule i take it to a shop?

Most of the time, if you have to ask, you shouldnt do it. But in this cae, it is fairly simple. The money you save from bringing it to a shop, will pay for quality parts, plus some extra parts.

You will need to realign the front toe-in if you change one part, or two parts, or 12 parts.

Additionally, you should buy "toe plates" instead of bringing it to someone for an alignment.

It is more difficult to build a doghouse than to align an e30 with tape measures and a level.


http://www.amazon.com/Longacre-Toe-P.../dp/B000VAOHB2