Nasty Front End Shake 65-85 MPH

**LS2Tuner** · 05-21-2008, 01:07 PM

Originally Posted by Raoul-Duke

ok soooo the shake is back..it came back after a hour n a half drive to michigan. keep in mind my buddy with a i/e s2k went too n we raced soo speeds for me were round 140-150+ for awhile..(buslengths) lol. he was like " i knew you were gonna beat me but i couldnt believe how much your car pulled past 100mph) lol..but neways u think this because i didnt use a torque wrench??

Could be........

**surfinjoe** · 05-21-2008, 04:20 PM

My shake is back also. As I stated earlier, the wheel bearings are good.

I have torqued the wheels every time with a cheap torque wrench from autozone. Could this be the issue? Anyone with some advice? I am getting tired of this fucking shake!

**Sarge** · 05-21-2008, 04:24 PM

I'm lost....tires? I mean it is going to be a matter of elimination unfortunately....

**PatrizioD** · 05-21-2008, 06:18 PM

Ive got the shake, and it happens while braking AND downshifting. Im gettin an alignment and balancing tomorrow, though I doubt itll help. Ill post up after I cruise it for a bit...gas prices permitting, of course.

**LS2Tuner** · 05-21-2008, 08:19 PM

Originally Posted by PatrizioD

Ive got the shake, and it happens while braking AND downshifting. Im gettin an alignment and balancing tomorrow, though I doubt itll help. Ill post up after I cruise it for a bit...gas prices permitting, of course.

Make sure you also have them check the rear alignment.

**PatrizioD** · 05-21-2008, 10:54 PM

Good deal. Im having Town Fair Tire do it, and I was probably gonna just do the front end, save $20. But since you have the experience and a hot chick avatar (Kristanna Loken??), imma follow your recommendation.

**surfinjoe** · 05-22-2008, 04:39 AM

No Sarge, my tires are brand new. The shake happened before and after the new tires. Also, when I put the new skins on, I rotated the rims from back to front so it shouldn't be a rim issue.

My only guess is that I didn't check the struts correctly or my torque wrench is not working. When I checked the wheel bearings, I also checked the rotors for flatness while rotating. I am telling you, everything is well within spec. According to the shop manual, my shit is better than the 'new' spec. that they list.

Nothing like having a $35K car that shakes like a beater!

**surfinjoe** · 05-22-2008, 04:41 AM

You can't have just anyone check the rear alignment. They need to be a Pedders dealer and have the Holden cradle alignment tool. Just want you to be aware and not waste time and gas

**surfinjoe** · 06-04-2008, 08:52 AM

I have to say that this shake is driving me crazy. Now the steering wheel does not shake (well sometimes it does but not always), but I can still feel a shake in the car. WTF is going on with this? It's not horrible but I hate the fact that my car shakes at any speed.

**mark21742** · 06-05-2008, 01:35 AM

Originally Posted by PatrizioD

Well I had em do an alignment/balancing/rotation on my 245/45 17"s on saturday, then I took her to Cape Cod for Memorial Day. She drove much more smooth, but there was still slight shake during the braking. They ended up throwing 2.5 oz worth of weights on the wheel Id hit the curb with, and threw it on the back end. I hate New England roads. She tracked to the left for a bit, then to the right, then to the left, then she went straight. Im gonna have the brakes checked next, since the shake is gone while downshifting. And as soon as the money's in, im doin the front end pedders fix. All in all, i dont think I wasted the $100 on the Town Fair Tire work.

I have an aunt that lives just out of providence lol your not jokin about the roads up there, you guys have potholes big enough to lose a mack truck in... last time I was there I came home on a spare cause I bent a rim so bad

**surfinjoe** · 06-05-2008, 05:34 AM

I hit a monster pot hole yesterday and lost a tire. Lucky for me it was one of the stock BFG's that I was trying to get rid of. I took my car in to the shop and the alignment wasn't even off.

Now I have 4 new tires, a 4 wheel alignment and the shake is still there. I will keep digging and see what's up.

**Tide** · 06-05-2008, 06:12 AM

Warped rotors?
Bent driveshaft?
Trashed bushings?

There's only so much it can be.

**surfinjoe** · 06-05-2008, 08:59 AM

I checked the rotors with a dial indicator - well within spec.
I replaced the bushings
The shake happens when in neutral - not a driveshaft issue
I replaced the tires (all 4) and rotated the rims front to back and back to front.
I hand-torqued the wheels several times - improved the issue but it did not go away
I checked the wheel bearing run-out - well within spec.
I checked the strut bushings to the best of my ability however I have my doubts that I did it rite - next area to check again

**mark21742** · 06-06-2008, 12:39 AM

I'm just throwing a guess in but could a lose or worn strut bearing or radius rod bushing give you this problem?

**BlwnCamaro** · 06-06-2008, 01:28 AM

Wow feel bad for you thread starter shake is annoying and destructive as well. I was a tech/sales/assistant manager for firestone before I opened up my own shop and I have to tell you persistant shake is major complaint of many drivers. I usually find that its in the wheel and tire balance but obviously there are many other factors. Most late models are very sensitive to wheel torque sequence in regards to warping rotors. It sounds like yalls gtos are very sensitive. Even if someone ever overtorqued them once in wrong pattern the mounting face of your rotors could be warped even if you retorqued properly. I cant count how many shops just zing away on late models with high torque gun instead of by hand! I would try replacing front rotors if you havnt done already. Furthermore is your wheel balance static or dynamic? Usually with stick on or hammer on weights on the inside of a tire only is static balace which is up and down motion. Dynamic involves placing weights on inside and outside of wheel which balances up and down and side to side which is a much more accurate balance. I've had so many wheel and tire combinations its hard to fathom and have had and seen customers wheels and tires that would not balance out especially with only static balance. The problem being that many nice wheels you cant put weights on outside cosmetically and damage wise. I've pulled off dynamic balance using stick on before on inside and outside of inner wheel. Most guys at tire shops dont know how to balance well and many machines are out of calibration as well. So dont count out your wheel and tire combo even if they are new. I'd have a pro recheck your wheel balance and consider replacing and hand torqueing your rotors with high quality torque wrench in proper sequence. If that doesnt fix it I dont know what to say unless gto has major defect in front suspension. Usually vibration comes from rational mass though which points to your wheels, rotors and or bearings, not suspension. Good luck.

**BlwnCamaro** · 06-06-2008, 01:35 AM

furthermore I would believe bushing wear would actually just make a vibration worse and more evident because of play rather than being the actual source of vibration. The vibration is what causes bushings to wear prematurely, keep in mind vibration is coming from rotating objects, ie wheels rotors, bearings. But bushings and bearings do need to be good and tight for good ride and any vibration destroys them quicker. Hope that helps narrow it down without checking your combo in person its hard to say absolutely but I wouldnt count those ideas out. Many peoples cars have warped rotors and they dont even know. My Ls1 Z28 rotors are warped on braking surface and I turned them once and its better but I just live with it under braking until I can afford crossdrilled and slotted larger upgrade.

**mark21742** · 06-06-2008, 08:58 PM

Originally Posted by BlwnCamaro

Wow feel bad for you thread starter shake is annoying and destructive as well. I was a tech/sales/assistant manager for firestone before I opened up my own shop and I have to tell you persistant shake is major complaint of many drivers. I usually find that its in the wheel and tire balance but obviously there are many other factors. Most late models are very sensitive to wheel torque sequence in regards to warping rotors. It sounds like yalls gtos are very sensitive. Even if someone ever overtorqued them once in wrong pattern the mounting face of your rotors could be warped even if you retorqued properly. I cant count how many shops just zing away on late models with high torque gun instead of by hand! I would try replacing front rotors if you havnt done already. Furthermore is your wheel balance static or dynamic? Usually with stick on or hammer on weights on the inside of a tire only is static balace which is up and down motion. Dynamic involves placing weights on inside and outside of wheel which balances up and down and side to side which is a much more accurate balance. I've had so many wheel and tire combinations its hard to fathom and have had and seen customers wheels and tires that would not balance out especially with only static balance. The problem being that many nice wheels you cant put weights on outside cosmetically and damage wise. I've pulled off dynamic balance using stick on before on inside and outside of inner wheel. Most guys at tire shops dont know how to balance well and many machines are out of calibration as well. So dont count out your wheel and tire combo even if they are new. I'd have a pro recheck your wheel balance and consider replacing and hand torqueing your rotors with high quality torque wrench in proper sequence. If that doesnt fix it I dont know what to say unless gto has major defect in front suspension. Usually vibration comes from rational mass though which points to your wheels, rotors and or bearings, not suspension. Good luck.

oh I know, I preach hand torqueing even if you go by feel...I think the "torque stick" is the worse invention ever

**surfinjoe** · 06-09-2008, 04:40 AM

I took my car in on Friday for a 4-wheel dynamic balance. They found that one of the rear rims was slightly bent. They did manage to 'balance' it out however it is still bent. The car feels much better now and I don't have a shake throughout the entire vehicle. I think that there are two issues:

1) The steering wheel slightly moves from right to left. This is most likely due to worn strut bearings or warped hubs/rotors. I am thinking that it is strut bearings because it only happens sometimes and comes and goes as I drive.

2) The vehicle shakes at high speeds. This is for sure a result of the bent rim. This rim used to be on the front of the vehicle and it caused a sever steering wheel shake. Now that it is on the rear, I feel the vibration but it does not cause the steering wheel to shake. Now that I had the dynamic balance, it feels much better.

Any thoughts would be appreciated. I think I am getting close to having this black bitch fixed, but I still have a little way to go.

Thanks to all for the great feedback.