Unusual vibration problem

update...

The pass side front tire is wearing very uinevenly (these firehawk LH's have less than 15,000 mi on them) to the point where the outside of the tire is completely bald.

there is alot of play in the outer tie rod end.

I will replace that as soon as I have time to throw the car up on jacks and get dirty.

made an appt with the local lincoln/merc dealership for friday, so the two new contis are going on the back, and they will most likely confirm the bad tie rod, and probably tell me they cant do the alignment due to the bad tie rod.

the motorcraft part is 38.99 from rockauto.

ill order that next week, get it installed before the snow falls, and get an alignment done.

will keep you guys updated.
 
'01 LS V8 with the same vibration issue. I don't notice it until speeds above 70 mph, especially approaching 80. The vibration is not consistent and the road surface doesn't matter. It seems like it will vibrate for a few minutes and then go away for a while, then the vibration returns.

The previous owner had reported this vibration as early as September 2001 and had taken it to the dealership to be looked at, but they didn't know the cause and tried rotating and balancing the tires to no avail.

This seems to be a pretty common problem on the LS, yet the exact cause is always unknown.
 
finally got a chance to get the car on a lift...

tie rods are fine. and the pass side (really uneven tire wear side) is as tight as it was when it left the factory.

drivers side ball joint is going.

was quoted 615 by the lincoln dealer.

does the entire spindle have to be replaced or can the ball joints be repacked?

the conti's came today, so they will be going on friday (as will my 02 center console)

looks like im buying 2 more tires anyways and an alignment
 
I had my front driver's side steering knuckle replaced a couple weeks ago for $650 with labor at the LM dealership. The knuckle unit cost $518. The steering vibration is still there, however.
 
well... clearly this is a suspension issue... i will take photos of the front tires wear today.
 
im also wondering if my full size spare (rear drivers side) could be causing this...

its a 9 year old tire, probably no where near balanced....

i guess we'll find out on friday
 
2000sport said:
im also wondering if my full size spare (rear drivers side) could be causing this...

its a 9 year old tire, probably no where near balanced....

i guess we'll find out on friday
Click to expand...

Tires between the age of 6 years to 10 years are considered to be at risk for a blowout. Tires 10 years and up are almost certain to explode. There are some members on here who have had spare tires explode while in the trunk.
 
I have a donut in the trunk as well, so i wont be totally stuck... but the tires are getting mounted friday as it was the only day I could take off this week... until then im just praying it doesnt blow-out
 
I've never heard of a tire grenading itself in the trunk before... flat yes, catastrophic failure no...

As far as the replacement joints are concerned I really hate to tell you that you can buy the parts yourself and take them to a local garage and have them install them for you, for a heck of a lot less than $600+, that's just insane. On my 2000 I changed every friggin part except for the driver rear upper control arm. The worst were the front knuckles... $258 each. labor wise, it really wasn't horrible from my local guys.

if it's warranty I'll take it to the dealer, outside of that, I'll do it myself or take it to someone else I trust that won't rape me.

My 06 has a neat vibration 70+, but this one's coming from that stupid 2 piece drive shaft mess... carrier bearing is flaky...
 
tires

Hey now, all tires are different. They may look the same and feel the same, but every week new batches of rubber are mixed in the factories and tires are made with new products, old chemicals, rubbers from different parts of the world and different qualities. Different tread designs can give you the shakes at different speeds, its a natural resonance of the specific tire design. Some tires just do not match up with the vehicle itself causing a natural vehicle resonance at certain speeds. Some tires develop separations within the tire structure, yet no indications on the outside of the tire. Yet the tire will thump thump down the road. Some tires have poor design and produce high speed wobble. Tire quality control is not so good at some plants, causing bad batches to get released to the public. The best tires are sold to new vehicle manufacturers so they run smooth. You get what you pay for, Michelin is best quality, Goodyear too.
 
not really being cheap lol

bought the car like 6 months ago and never got around to changing it.
 
Full Member







not really being cheap lol



I think you are!!!!! what would be a good excuse for rolling on bad tires???
 
Replaced Half-Shafts

I own a '00 LS V-8 (produced in July, 99 - one of the first!). I had the same rumble and steering wheel vibration problem over 70 mph. It would gradually worsen as the speed increased.

After balancing tires, checking rims, etc. a very astute service tech went on a ride with me (90+ mph) and thought it might be the half-shafts. There is a TSB for this, but it mentions vibrations at lower speeds. At any rate, the half-shafts have been replaced and the vibration over 70 is gone.

Now I get a rumble between 35 and 45 in cold weather that diminishes as the car warms up, but never goes away as long as the weather is cold. Still trying to figure that one out.
 
just so everyone knows...

I have since replaced the spare with a continental contitouringcontact tire.

also have the contiextremes for the front sitting in the garage awaiting the arrival of my balljoints (and me finding the time to have them installed)

oh and the 2 new rear tires solved the vibration issue....

But now it feels like its missing at idle, and the traction control took a :q:q:q:q... (traction control engages when i give it throttle anything over 60mph, so i just turn it off when i start the car :) )
 
Vibration problem

LS04sport said:
Hello,

I did look thru the search function and did not find anything similar. I have a v8 2004 LS that has a front end vibration. It is not a tire balance problem. The car does it normally in the 65 to 75 range and is some what inconsistant. It seems almost like it varies buy road surface. It is only in the front end and is transmitted thru the steering wheel. Here is a list of what has been replaced or is new.

Three different sets of wheels and tires, no difference
New shocks
New springs
Sway bar links are in good shape
Sway bar bushings are in good shape
Control arm bushings are in good shape
Ball joint appear to be good and tight, no clinks
Wheel bearings/hubs have no play in them

I am stumped. If I did not know better I would swear it was a out of balance tire, but as I mentioned above I have tried three different sets and they all do it. I am thinking that the steering rack or a warped rotor might be the cause. Any body have a similar experience or have any thoughts? Thank for any help you can provide.
Click to expand...

582boat I am having a slight vibration problem that occurs betwen 600/800 RPM, while in neutral or park, took off all belts, check the harmonic balancer, went to the transmission place thinking I might have a torque converter problem, they said it seem to be the motor mounts have slightly collasped causing the engine to vibrate on the frame area, hoping new motor mounts will cure the problem.
 
check the COPs... mines doing that now... and can get quit nasty at times... yet i'm not throwing a CEL... and all the coils are brand new (had new coils installed with the new motor)
 
Hate to dig up a 12 year old thread haha. I just had the entire frontend suspension (except outer tie rod on driver's side) replaced on my '02 V8 and it's still doing exactly what's been described by several in this thread. Car is smooth as butter up until about 75 MPH, then starts vibrating like mad from the front driver's side. The vibration is bad enough that it jiggles my hand back and forth holding the steering wheel. Wheels have been balanced several times in an attempt to fix it. Multiple shops have told me that the outer tie rod is fine. One shop claimed it was "too tight", whatever that means. But no play.

Was anyone ever able to fix this problem on their LS?
 
skizot722 said:
Hate to dig up a 12 year old thread haha. I just had the entire frontend suspension (except outer tie rod on driver's side) replaced on my '02 V8 and it's still doing exactly what's been described by several in this thread. Car is smooth as butter up until about 75 MPH, then starts vibrating like mad from the front driver's side. The vibration is bad enough that it jiggles my hand back and forth holding the steering wheel. Wheels have been balanced several times in an attempt to fix it. Multiple shops have told me that the outer tie rod is fine. One shop claimed it was "too tight", whatever that means. But no play.

Was anyone ever able to fix this problem on their LS?
Click to expand...
I had a small shake at around 55-75
After putting brand new tires on my LS it went away
 
LS04sport said:
Hello,

I did look thru the search function and did not find anything similar. I have a v8 2004 LS that has a front end vibration. It is not a tire balance problem. The car does it normally in the 65 to 75 range and is some what inconsistant. It seems almost like it varies buy road surface. It is only in the front end and is transmitted thru the steering wheel. Here is a list of what has been replaced or is new.

Three different sets of wheels and tires, no difference
New shocks
New springs
Sway bar links are in good shape
Sway bar bushings are in good shape
Control arm bushings are in good shape
Ball joint appear to be good and tight, no clinks
Wheel bearings/hubs have no play in them

I am stumped. If I did not know better I would swear it was a out of balance tire, but as I mentioned above I have tried three different sets and they all do it. I am thinking that the steering rack or a warped rotor might be the cause. Any body have a similar experience or have any thoughts? Thank for any help you can provide.
Click to expand...
I changed my outer tie rods had same vibration before changing then now smooth no vibration at high speeds
 
Thanks guys. I thought it might be the tires as well, so I moved that driver side front wheel to the back and back to the front. Vibration stayed in the front left driver side. Guess I'll go ahead and replace that outer tie rod on the driver side.
 
skizot722 said:
Thanks guys. I thought it might be the tires as well, so I moved that driver side front wheel to the back and back to the front. Vibration stayed in the front left driver side. Guess I'll go ahead and replace that outer tie rod on the driver side.
Click to expand...
Do both sides I paid 35$ each side did myself you may need alignment after that
 
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