Suspension gurus.. lend me your brains..
Discussion
Hi all
Have a 126,000 mile Civic Type R EP3 with a very annoying vibration problem.
Symptoms:
At around 75-95 mph the front offisde starts to wobble, or at least through the steering wheel mainly. Depending on the steering angle (its most pronounced just either side of straight ahead) and speed this wobble changes to become more of a harsher vibration that has a noise that sounds not too disimilar to the noise a helicopters rotors would make as it takes off! (that thump thump thump sound)
I can drive through it, past 100 it dies off and below 70 I cant feel it at all.
Putting it in neutral it remains the same so it's not box or engine related.
My first port of call is tyre balance or wheel out of round but want to see what other issues it can be. It's due it's MOT this month so this will be investigated but I want to be pointed in the right direction.
To me it feels as if there is play somewhere rather than a simple tyre balance issue, simply because it can progress from a simple wobble to a noisy vibration.
Some pertinant points:
These have been replaced in the past year-
Steering rack (for good 2nd hand one)
Front shocks
Front top mounts
Nearside wheel bearing (not the offside as of yet)
Track rod ends
Ball joints
A bit of internet research has thrown up bushes, wheel bearing and steering column in that order. Anything else to look out for or any other food for thought chaps?
Have a 126,000 mile Civic Type R EP3 with a very annoying vibration problem.
Symptoms:
At around 75-95 mph the front offisde starts to wobble, or at least through the steering wheel mainly. Depending on the steering angle (its most pronounced just either side of straight ahead) and speed this wobble changes to become more of a harsher vibration that has a noise that sounds not too disimilar to the noise a helicopters rotors would make as it takes off! (that thump thump thump sound)
I can drive through it, past 100 it dies off and below 70 I cant feel it at all.
Putting it in neutral it remains the same so it's not box or engine related.
My first port of call is tyre balance or wheel out of round but want to see what other issues it can be. It's due it's MOT this month so this will be investigated but I want to be pointed in the right direction.
To me it feels as if there is play somewhere rather than a simple tyre balance issue, simply because it can progress from a simple wobble to a noisy vibration.
Some pertinant points:
These have been replaced in the past year-
Steering rack (for good 2nd hand one)
Front shocks
Front top mounts
Nearside wheel bearing (not the offside as of yet)
Track rod ends
Ball joints
A bit of internet research has thrown up bushes, wheel bearing and steering column in that order. Anything else to look out for or any other food for thought chaps?
You can ballence out a buckled wheel, the front wheels on the wifes escort (RS 7 spokes) are buckled to fook but the only have a 10gr weight on them and are fine for wheel shimmy but there is a harder vibration rather like a worn inner CV from 20 to 30 (doesn't shimmy the steering wheel but i can feel it through the floor) once driven through it never reapears even up to 90.
On another note i once recomissioned a Mk3 cortina that had very similar issue but over 70, one wheel needed 95 gramms to balence, the other 145!, that turned out to be buckled tyres from sitting in a garage for 3 years without moving, you can get the same issue if you go up a curb hard and snap or bend the tyre reinforing bands inside the rubber.
As said get the fronts balenced and while they spin up get the fitter to hold a referance pointer on the wheel rim and tyre tread (probably have to lift the cover and do it on the slow down, hopefully the machine wont have a mag brake and they will freewheel for a while to do the check ?
On another note i once recomissioned a Mk3 cortina that had very similar issue but over 70, one wheel needed 95 gramms to balence, the other 145!, that turned out to be buckled tyres from sitting in a garage for 3 years without moving, you can get the same issue if you go up a curb hard and snap or bend the tyre reinforing bands inside the rubber.
As said get the fronts balenced and while they spin up get the fitter to hold a referance pointer on the wheel rim and tyre tread (probably have to lift the cover and do it on the slow down, hopefully the machine wont have a mag brake and they will freewheel for a while to do the check ?
Well first off thanks all for the replies.
It was found on the MOT this week that the offside front shock has some play in it. Which I was a bit miffed at, seeing as I replaced the original Honda ones last year as the same shock offside had the same issue. So this (albeit cheap) shock has lasted 6000 miles and one year before suffering the same fate.
The roads are terrible near me, full of speed bumps and potholes, plus I don't baby the car as long as its safe to do so, but surely this should have lasted longer
I have bought some well known replacements and will try and get the old ones returned under warranty.
It was found on the MOT this week that the offside front shock has some play in it. Which I was a bit miffed at, seeing as I replaced the original Honda ones last year as the same shock offside had the same issue. So this (albeit cheap) shock has lasted 6000 miles and one year before suffering the same fate.
The roads are terrible near me, full of speed bumps and potholes, plus I don't baby the car as long as its safe to do so, but surely this should have lasted longer
I have bought some well known replacements and will try and get the old ones returned under warranty.
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