2008 3500, front end shaking... bad.

SRT

Hi-Miler
Drove one of my 2008s home yesterday to perform regular maintenance, and the front end shakes like crazy. Feels like tires way out of balance, but switching them has no affect. The higher the speed, the worse it gets... at 70 MPH the steering wheel is going back and forth about an inch. My driver had mentioned it had a "little shake"... but it's worse than I expected.

It has 198K on it. Could the tie rod ends, etc. be shot already? My '05 T1N has endured 449K miles of back-road abuse and the front end is still tight...
 

tnesc

New member
Quick check would be to check to see if the belt is separating on one of the tires. Jack front end off the groung and spin the tire while watching for a "bubble" on the tread surface. More then likely a tire causing this issue.:thumbup:
 

SRT

Hi-Miler
Quick check would be to check to see if the belt is separating on one of the tires. Jack front end off the groung and spin the tire while watching for a "bubble" on the tread surface. More then likely a tire causing this issue.:thumbup:
Not the tires. Changing the tires had no affect.
 

sailquik

Well-known member
Hi SRT,
When you changed the tires, did you simply change them side to side, or get the outer (or inners) off the back and put them on the front.
The steering wheel can still shimmy, even with the bad tire on the rear, so check all 4 back tires as well.
This happened to me on a borrowed Chevy Suburban on a short trip to the airport. Truck had been sitting in the hot Florida summer sun for
a few months, and when I took off for the airport, the belt let go in one rear tire, then one of the front tires. I finally missed the flight and
limped back to where I borrowed the truck at < 25 mph after putting the spare on one corner and the best of the separated belt tires on
the RH rear.

I had tried 55 mph on I-75, to get to my flight, but the bad tire (s) tore up the sway bar links on the front, and a front shock, and a couple of other suspension
parts. These were pretty good Michelin tires, rated for the Suburban, but sitting for months in the sun really destroyed the tires internally.
I'd head to a tire shop and have everything re-balanced (if not separated) and aligned, then start looking at tie rod ends, ball joints, etc.
Could be one of your drivers hit a curb or a huge pothole, and damaged the tire or the front end on one side.
Hope this helps,
Roger


Not the tires. Changing the tires had no affect.
 

showkey

Well-known member
Sometimes rotating tires to check balance and the problem does not change can mean you have more than one bad tire/wheel :wtf:

Speed sensitive vibration:
1. tires or wheels and or balance
2. suspension tie rods, ball joints etc
3. drive line componets axles, drive shaft, center bearing,
4. wheel bearings less likely
 

SRT

Hi-Miler
Jacked it up to check it out. No wheel bearing-related play... should I be able to flop the tie rod ends back and forth by hand? Hmmmm.....:thinking:
 

piper1

Resident Oil Nerd.
... should I be able to flop the tie rod ends back and forth by hand? Hmmmm.....:thinking:
Um.............no. What is loose, inner or outer tie rod ends?

Of note, if you read the first post in my Ball Joint Replacement thread (NCV# write ups) the part numbers for most front end parts from Moog are in there. Save a few $.
 

ebsprintin

surviving member
And I'm am related to Piper1's experiment, because the control arms came off my vehicle at around 200,000 miles. I had more of a clunking sound in steering than vibration at speed.

eb
 

lockrob

Member
My 07 pooped a tie rod end at 30000 miles.Took 3 weeks to get one.Back ordered .
Jack up one side and have some one wiggle steering wheel left to right .See if everything moves .
 

gww7576

Member
Quick check would be to check to see if the belt is separating on one of the tires. Jack front end off the groung and spin the tire while watching for a "bubble" on the tread surface. More then likely a tire causing this issue.:thumbup:
Thank God for this forum! Developed a severe vibration driving along I40 east of Kingman, AZ. Check the tire pressures--all good, then searched the forum. Sure 'nuff, right front tread was separating. Now waiting for Good Sam, but no worries. Plenty of food, water and AC!:rad:
 

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