Re: Morning drive..

[Scott Fisher <sfisher71@domain.elided>]

--- "Gregory S. Youngblood" <greg@domain.elided> wrote:
> 
> I noticed the car starts to feel loose, with a
> slight shake/shimmy
> that is really noticeable at about 60 mph. I think
> the problem is going to
> be on the rear - I didn't feel any vibrations
> through the steering wheel.

Start with the cheap stuff: rotate your tires, moving
front to back and back to front.  If the shimmy moves
to the front, you've isolated the problem to the
wheel/tire combo, and it's most likely a missing wheel
weight.  If that's the problem (or part of it), most
tire shops will balance your wheels for you -- the
Sears where I just bought new tires for my Spider
charged $9.99 a corner.  (I give it 20 minutes before
somebody says I was ripped off... :-)

> I'm looking for advice on the order to try and fix
> this -- what should I target first? 

Bushings, in particular the big one at the end of the
"T" bar at the top of the diff but also the ones in
the trailing arms.  They're likely to make a bigger
difference in the kind of symptoms you describe than
the shocks, unless the shocks are just worn out.  

Also, believe it or not -- how old are your tires? 
Not just how much tread is left, but when were they
put on the car?  Rubber ages over time, especially (in
my experience) if the car has sat for any time -- and
double-especially if the tires have gone flat and the
car has rested on the sidewalls.  You will get not
only the out-of-round feeling, but also a side-to-side
wobble that's frightening at high speeds.  

But swapping tires front-to-rear is easy and free. 
Start there and see if you simply have a missing wheel
weight or something.  

--Scott Fisher
  Tualatin, Oregon
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