i give up... 96 2wd vibration...

[james t]

well, after searching through about 100 threads on 65+mph vibrations, i figured i would find what im looking for. i didnt. i have a 96 2wd that has a vibration between 65-75 mph. i have tried to troubleshoot this for the last month, to no avail. all shocks are new, new sway-bar endlinks and bushings, checked/repacked front wheel bearings (looked brand new), rotors are new (checked them for runout), removed Cobra R's and replaced with stock wheel/tires, upper ball joints replaced 2 months ago, frontend aligned 2 months ago, checked all tie rod ends/steering linkages. i am at my wits end. the vibration is not that bad, but it is there. i feel it mostly through the steering wheel. i am 95% convinced it is not driveshaft/u-joints, as i have had several drivshaft vibrations b4 on other vehicles and this just doesnt feel like it. also, i can get up to 80, shift into neutral, and as i coast down the vibe doesnt go away. any and all suggestions welcome.

 

[Jason_25]

1.Tire Balance
2.Control Arm Bushings

Sounds like you have covered everything else.

By chance is the shock that is attached to your rear diffy worn out?

 

[coolchris]

did you ever remove that little 5th shock? most people have no problems after removing it but it is there to dampen vibrations at highway speeds i read, so that could be another possibility if you took yours off.

 

[XLT_66]

I just took mine in to Discount Tires today to get some new tires put on, and i got hooked up with a free balancing thingy. It is a $100 option, what they do is balance the tire to the rim, then break down the tire, realign it, and balance it again....

It was not your average balancing...it was something like Road Balance or sumthin, not just a balance, it is all digital and computer software, and most of the time, the manager is the only one who knows how to do it. I don't think i have ever had a smoother ride since i lowered it and took off the damper shock on the rear...

I am sold that that balancing thingy did it all...i am very impressed

 

[james t]

1-the one thing that i am absolutely sure of is that it is not a balance problem. like i said, it vibrates with the Cobra R's an Nitto tires, and when i bolted on my stock wheels w/Uniroyals, same thing. it FEELS like a tire out of balance. but it just cant be. first thing i did when this started was have Cobra's re-balanced, and this did nothing. stockers are balanced perfectly, as they rode fine when i took them off, and im sure they didnt go out-of-balance sitting in my garage (as a side note, i did check to see if all of the weights were on, in case i may have knocked one off.)
2-the 5th "damper" shock is still on. whether its worn out or not, i dont know. never thought of checking it, because i always heard the 4x4 guys talk about having removed it, and had no vibration. i will check this tommorrow.
3-control arm BUSHINGS. didnt think of this. could be it. but, unless they are just about destroyed, i really dont know how to tell if they are going out or not. due to labor intensity and the fact that i will have to get aligned again, this will be a last resort.

thanks for all your help, and keep the suggestions coming. i am willing to check ANYTHING you can think of, no matter how trivial.

 

[Jarrett088]

I never noticed before, but this thing affects all years. Looking at the the other thread, it seems that everyone from 91-up has this problem. Some people have practically rebuilt their whole front end trying to make it stop. Did everone have this problem from day 1? I bought mine used and thought that new tires and a balance would cure it. I'm beginning to think it's in the drivetrain somewhere. I'm really gonna be pissed if $1000 down the road, I'm still shaking!:fire: :fire:
I wonder if any other makes/models suffer from this plague?

"I can't drive 65!"
Tim

 

[james t]

bump

 

[410Fortune]

Could be a bent axle in the 8.8.

These thingsa are not easy to diagnose. What about your tire pressure? Have you played with that?

 

[james t]

yea, played with pressure on the Cobra's and the stockers. started at too high-drove on interstate, and graduated down in 1lb. increments until i was too low. at 26 lbs. on the stockers it went away, but im not gonna run 26lbs. this was prolly due to the fact the tires were so "soft" @ 26 that they soaked up most of the vibration. as for a bent axle, could be. but, ive had bent axles before and they never felt like this. the vibration mostly translates through the steering wheel. also, most 8.8's i have seen have broken C-clips WAY before an axle was bent. but, one more thing to look at... thanx.

 

[410Fortune]

Could be a warped rotor as well, if not you need a new alignment shop. Do you have the numbers from your last alignment?

 

[james t]

i know its not a rotor, i checked the runout on all four just in case... a good reason for me to check this would be my avatar... and as far as alignment, no i didnt get #'s, and its going back to them sometime this week. i hope this is it.