- Replaced passenger side tie rod end
- Alignment done
- 4 new tires, all balanced
- Replaced front disc brakes and pads
- New rattle clips
- Greased up the caliper pins
Any thoughts?
2008 Dodge Charger 167k miles
Any thoughts?
2008 Dodge Charger 167k miles
A while ago I faced a similar issue. My problem was the tie rods. Quick interjection, you should replace them in pairs. Just like headlights, if one fails, the other is close behind it.
Let's go down a list of possibilities:
The last two are unlikely. I doubt you'd have problems in your steering rack or with the subframe/subframe mounts.
As for the other possibilities, get the car safely in the air and try to move the wheels by hand. If you grab the wheel at 9 and 3 and shake, you should feel very little play, and only on the front wheels. The rear should be solid. Trying again at 12 and 6, you should have no play. Any play at all can signify your problem. This will help check your tie rods and wheel bearings.
To check your bushings, you can manually try to flex the linked components. The bushings should feel stiff, but pliable. Easy or excessive movement is a problem.
Checking ball joints can be harder since they're usually tightened down tight enough that yo can't feel play in them easily. If you can feel play, there's obviously a problem, but without removing them and testing the ball joint itself, it's harder to diagnose.
Check that the new tyres are actually seated ok and that they are running ok too..
When I say running ok.. I mean rotate them off the ground and whilst rotating look firstly from the side of the tyre across the tread to make sure that they are running perfectly level, with no lumps or bumps in the tread height.
Then look in-line with the tread as each tyre is rotating.. Make sure the tread is running perfectly in-line and not side to side. I've had a few previous issues with cheaper new tyres.. The most recent was when the tread was running out of line causing a horrible sideways vibration through the whole of the vehicle, another time was when one new tyre was running in an elliptical fashion like an egg causing a high spot type vibration. I could actually feel the suspension bouncing as the tyre hit the road.. It was only a couple of millimetres out of true too.
A lump or fault in a tyre tread will be counteracted on a wheel balancer but on the road it will still effect the vehicle as it is not just a balance issue, but a physical one.