Severe front end shaking

[myfinalcoffinx]

Hey guys,

I'm on the road this morning, on my way to work, and I notice a shaking, didn't think anything of it, as I was on a bumpy road. Keep driving, and it keeps getting worse. By now the car is shaking violently from the front right wheel, and I'm scared for my life. I let off of the gas and pressed in on the clutch, and it stops shaking but still makes a clunking noise in time with the shaking.. like if i were to let the clutch back out, the shaking would perfectly correspond with the clunking. It is both a vertical shake and a horozontal shake and it freaks me out so much that I can't even drive right now.

 

Any thoughts?

 

Thanks

[Humble Nuto 53]

probably the axel.

[myfinalcoffinx]

I don't know what ever became of this, but it doesn't do it anymore!

[TheSubaruJunkie]

Your CV Joint (axle) is about to go. Better replace it. The problem is sure to come back and will probably be even worse next time.

 

-Brian

[myfinalcoffinx]

Do you have an estimate for the cost of parts? How about the amount of time it would take to complete the job if it's my first time doing this? I don't really know much about this stuff.

 

Also, what will I need to fix it? I know I need a new boot (mine is clearly ripped), for it as well, but what else do I need that I may not think about until my front end is torn apart, and I have no way of getting to the store.

 

One more thing, is the "CV joint" an actual part, or is it just what we call the connection between the axle and the axle stub? Do I replace the axle and leave the stub or how does all this work? Should I be concerned with the double-offset joint, or is that usually fine?

 

I'm full of questions, mostly because I'm full of concerns...

 

Thanks!

 

Your CV Joint (axle) is about to go. Better replace it. The problem is sure to come back and will probably be even worse next time.

 

-Brian

[Flowmastered87GL]

I agree that the front axle is probably going out. Back when my old axles were going out the car would shake bad under load. (like going up a mountain pass) It was ok otherwise... finally ANY load made is shake bad (enough that I had to pop it in 4WD here and there around town to take some load off the front when going straight)

 

I also had a rear driveshaft (from tranny to rear diff) go out (hey the car had over 300K) and that just shook the whole car. Since the shaking feels to be from the front, I say front axle.

[myfinalcoffinx]

One more thought.

Is there a possibility that it could be my steering rack? I feel it bouncing side to side as well as the thump thump thump and up and down jump that I described before. The goobers at les schwab seemed to think so when I got my alignment done. I read just a little bit ago that it was indeed the source of one person's problem, and that plus what the guy at the store said, kinda makes me wonder.

 

What do you guys think?

 

Scratch that: It only happens when I apply a load, and I don't think that the rack would cause that.

[AlpineRaven]

Wheel balance?

Cheers

AP

[myfinalcoffinx]

Brand new tires last week, and it has been happening every few weeks for about 9 months now. It's about time to get it fixed.

 

Thanks though!

 

Wheel balance?

Cheers

AP

[chazmataz]

just my 2 cents worth but it is your axle i've done enough of them to know by what your describing, if you let it go to long then it will separate while you are driving and you will either be lucky and it will stay together and come to a rolling stop or it will come apart and do alot of damage to your car as it flops around hitting everything around it and destroying it and possibly hit something to were it will lock up. i had one go out on me going home ( to portland )from central oregon one time as i was climbing up into the mountains it stayed in the socket so i was able to limp home to portland in 4wd but it shook real bad under load ( excelarating and climbing ) i replaced one in prineville before i left but the other one was bad too but could fix it had to get home. i would check it and get it replaced, soon. just thought i would share my experience with you.

[wesley willis]

it's a repair that takes all but an hour and a half of your time, unless you run into some snags. i'd definately replace the axle with the torn boot anyways, keeps peace of mind in order.

[Turbone]

Just for the heck of it, check the lug nuts. Sometimes a tire store will not get them tight enough and after a week or so they can work loose. I'll try and come by sometime this week and take a look at it.

[edrach]

I'm with everyone here who thinks axle; except it's not the CV joint but the DOJ (inboard) joint. Typical of DOJ failure to shake badly under load and run okay as soon as you let off on the gas. Especially if the torn boot is the inboard joint, replace the axle. You can get pretty good ones cheap at the local PAP yard if you carefully inspect the axle you expect to pull. Plus it gives you practice in pulling the axle on your car.

[myfinalcoffinx]

What should I look for in an axle from the PAP? Luckily I have a parts car sitting around, but I don't know if they are good or not. Also, are the right and left sides unique, or can they get switched around?

 

Thanks!

 

I'm with everyone here who thinks axle; except it's not the CV joint but the DOJ (inboard) joint. Typical of DOJ failure to shake badly under load and run okay as soon as you let off on the gas. Especially if the torn boot is the inboard joint, replace the axle. You can get pretty good ones cheap at the local PAP yard if you carefully inspect the axle you expect to pull. Plus it gives you practice in pulling the axle on your car.

[edrach]

What should I look for in an axle from the PAP? Luckily I have a parts car sitting around, but I don't know if they are good or not. Also, are the right and left sides unique, or can they get switched around?

 

Thanks!

Right and left side are identical, but I'd suspect that they wear differently. If you're replacing a left side, a left one would match; but a right side would have less wear. In either event, I've never found it made much difference. I look for a high mileage car which likely had axles replaced already; check for labels from a re-man still present to indicate age; lastly, and most importantly, check the rubber boots for micro cracks (no good) and thickness (the thicker the better). The better rebuilders use a thicker rubber boot that will last longer. Also see that the rubber is still flexible and smooth (good). Check for obvious play in both joints and avoid that. Good part is that PAP warrantees the axles for 30 days so if you get a back one you can return it for exhange for your money back (save your receipt and make sure it is marked before you leave). Once you decide the axle is bad, you can order a new rebuild if you like and return the "donor" axle from PAP (I've never done that since I've always managed to pick good axles). Also, make sure that you get the proper version EA81 versus EA82 cars; also FWD and 4WD drive axles are slightly different but I've found it doesn't make much difference in actual use on the EA81 cars.

[NV Zeno]

Just for clarification and not meaning to step on any toes here, but what you're looking for is the "axle assembly", which is more than just a boot..includes DOJ, axle shaft, CV Joint, boots, and sometimes the castle nut and roll pin. Ready to go. Usually about 50-75 bucks (plus ~$30 refundable core deposit) at a parts store. My experience is most brands are OK, but stay away from ARI branded axles. The NAPA stores around here sell them, but they have been pure junk right out of the box.

[myfinalcoffinx]

I have a parts car sitting outside my house, and I'd like to use that, if possible. The axle appears to be sorta rusty, but the boots look good, and there is no grease anywhere outside of the boot. I don't know the condition, but is it safe to assume that since the boot is still good, that I'm good to go?

 

Right and left side are identical, but I'd suspect that they wear differently. If you're replacing a left side, a left one would match; but a right side would have less wear. In either event, I've never found it made much difference. I look for a high mileage car which likely had axles replaced already; check for labels from a re-man still present to indicate age; lastly, and most importantly, check the rubber boots for micro cracks (no good) and thickness (the thicker the better). The better rebuilders use a thicker rubber boot that will last longer. Also see that the rubber is still flexible and smooth (good). Check for obvious play in both joints and avoid that. Good part is that PAP warrantees the axles for 30 days so if you get a back one you can return it for exhange for your money back (save your receipt and make sure it is marked before you leave). Once you decide the axle is bad, you can order a new rebuild if you like and return the "donor" axle from PAP (I've never done that since I've always managed to pick good axles). Also, make sure that you get the proper version EA81 versus EA82 cars; also FWD and 4WD drive axles are slightly different but I've found it doesn't make much difference in actual use on the EA81 cars.

[Turbone]

It depends. You wont know unless you get under the car and grab either end and move the DOJ/CV around. But in general, if the boots are good, it should be ok for awhile or a long time.

[myfinalcoffinx]

I just finished replacing the axle, and I'm about to go on a test drive. We'll see how this goes...

 

It was my first time doing the job, and from start (beginning with pulling the axle off of the parts car) to finish (tightening the lug nuts on my car) it took about 8 hours. Ouch! Well, that actually includes about 1.5 hours when I left to go get a Christmas tree with my dad, and about 20 mins for dinner this evening (the girlfriend made mexican woohoo.) I started at 12:30, and just finished about 10 minutes ago.

 

Cross your fingers...

[myfinalcoffinx]

WOO HOOOOOOO

 

It's been doing this for months and months now, and now it's GONEEEEEEE.

 

hooray.

 

No more shaking, and no more clicking.

 

As it turns out, the DOJ boot was completely ripped into two pieces, and the CV boot wasn't much better.

 

Ed: you said that the passenger side is usually less worn, why is this? I've gone through two of them in the same number of years, and haven't had any problems on the driver side.

 

One more thing: when I was in there, I took a look at my brake pads, and the same one that wore out just recently, is almost gone again. It's only been on for about two months, and all of the other ones are just fine. What do I need to do to alleviate this problem?

 

Thanks for all the help guys.

[chazmataz]

replying to:

One more thing: when I was in there, I took a look at my brake pads, and the same one that wore out just recently, is almost gone again. It's only been on for about two months, and all of the other ones are just fine. What do I need to do to alleviate this problem?

 

it sounds like you might have a caliper not releasing or your brake hose is deteriorating inside itself which isn't letting all the pressure release from you caliper which will cause your brakes on that side to drag which will intrun wear that side out sooner then the rest. i'm asuming that your parking brake is on the front like the EA82 you could have a cable hanging up in the housing or again the caliper is bad. does the car pull to the side that the brakes are prematurely wearing out when you let go of the steering wheel or can you feel it when you are driving trying to pull to that side ( the opposite caliper maynot even be working at all, too ) or it will pull to that side but when you apply your brakes it then pulls to the other side? thats another indication that you have a problem with your brakes. one way to check this is to jack of the car with the parking brake off and out of gear and grab the tire and turn the wheel do the same on the otherside if one is harder to turn or not at all then the other then your brake is hanging up on that side. hope this helps.