Help Diagnose Steering Wheel Shake PLS!

radjxf · April 18th, 2008, 03:05 PM

I've got an 02 GT Automatic, 77k mi, with a pretty significant shake in the steering wheel from 50-80mph.
Here's a list of what I've checked and/or ruled out:

All 4 tires new, BFG G-force on factory 17" Bullitts. No bent wheels, all balance fine with minimal weights. Balanced TWICE.
Driveshaft balanced, replaced worn tailshaft bushing in trans.
Front rotors brand new, new pads.
Rear axles checked, neither one bent.
Recent alignment done.
Car does have FRPP "B" springs, only 1 1/8" drop. Did NOT use camber/caster plates. Was told by good alignment shop that I didn't need them.

BTW, I've heard of indexing the driveshaft? How is it indexed? I didn't notice any marks, etc that indicate which way it should go. Maybe it's on out of phase?
I think tie rods, etc are OK. Jacked it up and pried up and down and side to side on each front wheel. Didn't detect any looseness, etc. Any ideas? This is very annoying. TIA.

SteviGX · April 18th, 2008, 03:10 PM

It's a Mustang, not a mercedes. Don't expect it to ride llke one.

radjxf · April 18th, 2008, 03:27 PM

Originally Posted by SteviGX

It's a Mustang, not a mercedes. Don't expect it to ride llke one.

That was helpful

Been driving over 20+ years, driven other similar Mustangs. Something's certainly amiss with mine. BTW, never mentioned anything was wrong with the ride?

HMUSN · April 18th, 2008, 03:37 PM

hmm I'd toss on some 4 bols C/C's for the hell of it. it may help your problem.

welcome to the forums.. did you get a printout of the alignment so you could cross check?

mattstang · April 18th, 2008, 03:39 PM

take it to a diff shop and have them look at it. i took mine to 3 diff ones before one realized i had a bent tie rod end.

RanGer498 · April 18th, 2008, 03:57 PM

Originally Posted by SteviGX

It's a Mustang, not a mercedes. Don't expect it to ride llke one.

Nor is his car a yugo and should not drive like one .

radjxf
-if you can try putting different wheels up front (ask somone to lend you theres if you can)

-check the ware on the tires .
-try another shop just to be safe.

keep us posted

the real shocker · April 18th, 2008, 04:28 PM

bad ball joints?

MATT02GT · April 18th, 2008, 04:46 PM

Sounds like tire balance, tie rods/balljoints or bearings. With the front end in the air wiggle the tire from side to side, if theres excessive movement...tie rods. Wiggle the tire from top to bottom, if theres excessive movement...wheel bearings.

futureMACH1racer · April 18th, 2008, 05:40 PM

It could be as simple as dirt on the backside of a wheel. To tires that have worn funny.

00silvergt · April 19th, 2008, 12:32 AM

It seriously sounds like a balancing problem..... I had the same problem before. I took it to a different shop to have the balance rechecked, and it was way out of balance. Fixed the problem.

silver99gt · April 19th, 2008, 03:08 AM

Does the car pull one way or another when you let go of the wheel, that could help pin point maybe more of a certain side of the car.

zerofx150 · April 19th, 2008, 01:50 PM

rotate your tires front to back (if you dont have DRs or staggered wheels) see if it helps but yes its in the tire, wheel, or a balance issue

DEUCE · April 19th, 2008, 05:48 PM

Originally Posted by MATT02GT

Sounds like tire balance, tie rods/balljoints or bearings. With the front end in the air wiggle the tire from side to side, if theres excessive movement...tie rods. Wiggle the tire from top to bottom, if theres excessive movement...wheel bearings.

X2 - If you've had the wheel/tire combo balanced twice, I would go with one of the others suggestions...

00redgt · April 19th, 2008, 06:22 PM

aligment soundds like ur prob,but a bearing could also be bad.my work car has a bad ball joint an it doesnt shake ,how bad is the vibrating

cet2kill · April 19th, 2008, 09:19 PM

Does this happen while driving or when brakng at those speeds?

April 18th, 2008, 03:05 PM	#1
radjxf Newbie Join Date: Nov 2007 Posts: 3	Help Diagnose Steering Wheel Shake PLS! I've got an 02 GT Automatic, 77k mi, with a pretty significant shake in the steering wheel from 50-80mph. Here's a list of what I've checked and/or ruled out: All 4 tires new, BFG G-force on factory 17" Bullitts. No bent wheels, all balance fine with minimal weights. Balanced TWICE. Driveshaft balanced, replaced worn tailshaft bushing in trans. Front rotors brand new, new pads. Rear axles checked, neither one bent. Recent alignment done. Car does have FRPP "B" springs, only 1 1/8" drop. Did NOT use camber/caster plates. Was told by good alignment shop that I didn't need them. BTW, I've heard of indexing the driveshaft? How is it indexed? I didn't notice any marks, etc that indicate which way it should go. Maybe it's on out of phase? I think tie rods, etc are OK. Jacked it up and pried up and down and side to side on each front wheel. Didn't detect any looseness, etc. Any ideas? This is very annoying. TIA.

April 18th, 2008, 03:10 PM	#2
SteviGX Enthusiast 2002 Mustang GT 13.936@99.41 Join Date: May 2007 Location: Greenfield, Indiana Posts: 625	It's a Mustang, not a mercedes. Don't expect it to ride llke one. __________________ Tuned by Rick@Amazon Tuning Solutions Mineral Gray Club Member #2 spendin money that I don't have to buy parts that I don't need to impress people that I don't know

April 18th, 2008, 03:39 PM	#5
mattstang Hardcore Enthusiast Join Date: May 2007 Location: Henryetta, Ok Posts: 1,460	take it to a diff shop and have them look at it. i took mine to 3 diff ones before one realized i had a bent tie rod end. __________________

April 18th, 2008, 04:28 PM	#7
the real shocker Hardcore Enthusiast 2002 Mustang GT 13.00 @ 105 Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Jackson, MS Posts: 1,494	bad ball joints? __________________

April 18th, 2008, 04:46 PM	#8
MATT02GT Hardcore Enthusiast Join Date: May 2007 Location: COLORADO Posts: 1,511	Sounds like tire balance, tie rods/balljoints or bearings. With the front end in the air wiggle the tire from side to side, if theres excessive movement...tie rods. Wiggle the tire from top to bottom, if theres excessive movement...wheel bearings. __________________ Its not how fast you drive, but how you drive fast. 2002 Mustang GT... Just The Usual Bolt-Ons

April 18th, 2008, 05:40 PM	#9
futureMACH1racer Hardcore Enthusiast 2004 Mach 1 Too Slow Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Raleigh, NC Posts: 2,298	It could be as simple as dirt on the backside of a wheel. To tires that have worn funny. __________________ MM MACH 1 CREW MEMBER #2

April 19th, 2008, 12:32 AM	#10
00silvergt Regular 2000 Mustang Gt Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 402	It seriously sounds like a balancing problem..... I had the same problem before. I took it to a different shop to have the balance rechecked, and it was way out of balance. Fixed the problem. __________________ Tuned by Joe at Tricktuners.com

April 19th, 2008, 03:08 AM	#11
silver99gt Regular 1999 Mustang GT Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Long Island, Kansas Posts: 281	Does the car pull one way or another when you let go of the wheel, that could help pin point maybe more of a certain side of the car.

April 19th, 2008, 01:50 PM	#12
zerofx150 Regular 2003 GT 13.6 @ 101 Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Ada OK Posts: 323	rotate your tires front to back (if you dont have DRs or staggered wheels) see if it helps but yes its in the tire, wheel, or a balance issue __________________ 03 GT 5sp, K&N FIPK, MAC LT ceramic coated headers, BBK o/r hipe ceramic coated, Steeda Tri-ax, 4.10, SCT X-cal2, NX plate Kit, Eibach Drag-Launch Springs, tubular upper and lower rear control arms

April 19th, 2008, 06:22 PM	#14
00redgt Hardcore Enthusiast 2000 mustang gt Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: virginia Posts: 1,109	aligment soundds like ur prob,but a bearing could also be bad.my work car has a bad ball joint an it doesnt shake ,how bad is the vibrating __________________ 2000 GT 1chamber flows.summit tips.20%all around.255/45/17 sumitomo htr z tires.an still slow h pipe soon to come cai an different mufflers

April 19th, 2008, 09:19 PM	#15
cet2kill Regular 02 ROUSH STAGE 2 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: OMAHA NE Posts: 238	Does this happen while driving or when brakng at those speeds?

Threads Similar to: Help Diagnose Steering Wheel Shake PLS!
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
steering wheel	ThE GhOsT RiDer	5.0 Mustangs	0	March 25th, 2008 05:10 PM
'06 GT Steering Wheel R&R- Help	Goldenpony	2005+	16	February 2nd, 2008 01:29 PM
Steering Wheel	Baker02125	Visual	20	December 24th, 2007 03:06 AM
Wheel shake	MustangMatt	2005+	9	October 6th, 2007 10:17 AM
Steering Wheel Shake	rockerlynne	2005+	16	March 1st, 2007 07:45 PM

All times are GMT -4. The time now is 03:45 PM.
Contact Us - Modded Mustangs - Top
Modded Mustangs is ©2005-2008, All Rights Reserved, And is Not Affiliated with Ford Motor Company. Forum is powered by vBulletin ©2000 - 2008, Jelsoft Ent. Ltd. & SEO by vBSEO 3.1.0 ©2007, Crawlability, Inc.