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AHHHHH shaking still!!!!

687 views 11 replies 7 participants last post by  kgordon7378 
#1 ·
Ok since I bought the jeep its had a shaking issue....kinda of like the tires are out of balance...so I took it to Tire Kingdom to have it balanced and they said "oh your shocks are bad and caused your tires to get chopped..." now this is about the biggest load of bs I think I've ever heard...shocks should have nothing to do with it while im on level pavement... so now I'm left with either trying to take it to another tire place, or perhaps uncovering another problem with it. Now the shaking seems to be coming mainly from the front end...axle isnt bent, the tires arent noticeably unevenly worn....now on a side note the shaking has gotten worse since they messed with it. Also what makes me lean even mor towards balancing, is that it only occurs between 55-70 mph... the only other thing I can think of that might be making it shake is perhaps the wheel bearings are gone...I know on other trucks when then get old and start to wear they will allow the wheel the wobble... well at any rate any advice would be greatly appreciated....

-John
 
#3 ·
nope, its still factory original....but i was under the impression that usually when these went bad only the steering system would shake...my whole jeep shakes like a fat boy whos trying to get the last peanut out of a jar!
 
#5 ·
eh im starting to lean towards the steering stabalizer or related components....either that or tire kingdom really can balance for ****....
 
#6 ·
I have the same problem and it happens the worst at 55-60 and above it kinda fades, but its still there. My dad said that his Durango did the same thing ever since he got his BFG AT's (but wasn't as bad). He went and got them balanced and the problem MOSTLY went away. He says its still there mostly because he let it go for too long without fixing it. So I suggest you get it balanced soon. If that doesn't work, maybe the front end needs re-aligning, but I'm not sure if it will help.
 
#7 · (Edited)
A steering stabilizer is a band-aid. With everything right, a stabilizer is not even needed. Don't replace the stabilizer to fix this particular problem.

You have a tire or wheel issue, nothing else, nothing more. First, a tire is probably a little out of balance... but the shop very well could have been right about a bad shock or two. A weak shock can allow an out of balance tire to set up a shimmy and/or vibration.

In fact, my wife's 2002 Grand Cherokee recently had a right-rear vibration when the car was in a long right-hand curving turn when that corner of the Jeep was "unweighted" during the turn. I told the dealer on Tuesday that I thought it was a bad right-rear shock (it's under warranty) and I was right, the shock was leaking hydraulic fluid and replacing it cured the problem.

I would first have the wheels carefully balanced and watch the wheels to see if one of them is bent or out of round as they balance the tires. Don't be so quick to think the shop is trying to BS you if they say a shock is bad too... though it's doubtful all four are bad.
 
#9 ·
You will not be able to see your tires out of balance, we are talking about grams of weight that are put around the edge to get the imperfections of weight difference out of the tire. (you can not have a perfectly balanced tire all the way around...remember valve stem, etc.) so weight counter balances the difference. Exactly what Jerry said, your issue is in a wheel or a tire. It is possible that the tire machines where you went where not calabrated properly, so they did not pick up the out of balance, or made it worse. I would try taking them back and telling them your problem, you paid for the service to have them balanced, and they are still not balanced. If your shocks are bad, eventually they can wear your tires to cause a chop, if you run your hands around the tire, you would feel it. Additionally, there can be something in the tire, either fix a flat, or water. And the last problem would be a tire not mounted on a wheel straight, it can be just sitting on the bead wrong, causing a problem.. So the tire shop can break down the tire, check if anything is in it, and put it back on correctly for a small fee, if anything. HTH. Keith
 
#10 ·
Very good coments above. In addition to them, A out of balance tire will over heat and wear out a shock. If allowed run this way very long. Not to mention wearing out the tires, suspension, lower gas mileage, etc.

I would also look over the front suspension and steering system. Have a friend move the steereing wheel back and forth about 1/8 of a turn. While their doin that, inspect the steering system, use a flashlight if needed. Look for movement in the joints. Inspect the trackbar, tie rods, center link, pitman arm, and steering gear box output shaft, anything that moves.

I had a customers Jeep TJ in this morning with a slight vib and movement in the steering wheel. I found the tires out of balance and the front track bar loose at the frame. Works great now, no more vibs or movement in the wheel.
Frank
 
#12 ·
the best way to check ball joints and tierod ends, is to put jack stands under your front axle. Have a buddy hold the tire at three o'clock and six. have him shake side to side. This will check the tie rod ends. If you see a little bit of movement in them, they are going, and could cause a vib, and some tire wear. then have your buddy grab the tire at 12 and six, go up and down. This will check the bj's. Once again anymovement, they are worn. While shaking down all the suspension, also look at all the joints, see if there is any play. Also the stearing gear box. Here there will be some play, yet the more the worse. Any other questions, let me know. HTH Keith
 
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