2000 Disco, no lift just the brush guards and 255/70R16's

I have been rover-less for the past two years and finally found a worthy replacement for my previous D2. Attached is a pic. It was a one owner who babied the vehicle, even did the front drive shaft. He did all of the services when they were required. He was a true enthusiast.

Now, it has 255/70R16's on it. BF Goodrich AT's that have plenty of tread. The rover sat in a garage and was not used much for about a year. It has 105kish miles. No lift, no other mods.

Between 50-60 mph there is a lot of shimmy in the steering wheel. I was going to just order another front driveshaft from Toddco to be on the safe side, but before I did, I just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something silly. I was first going to try having the tires balanced and throw a new steering damper on because it does have 105k miles. The shimmy is during acceleration and deceleration.

I did some searching, but couldn't quite find the exact issue on the forum, because I don't hear a clunk when I shift from park to reverse or drive and it doesn't shimmy above 62ish mph or below 50mph.

Could it be something as little as tire pressure?

Any help you guys can give is always appreciated. I must say that I am very excited to be driving a rover again.

 

I had this issue with my old tires. After I changed them it was totally different truck. I would definitely try balancing the tires first before looking at anything else. This is your cheapest option as well.

 

I am going to start there. Thanks, I will report back as I make progress.

 

If the vehicle sat for a year, then you have flatspotted tires. cords could have shifted. Alot can be going on with those tires. Time for new ones

 

Yup.....let us know please. Like I said......this was a problem on my truck.

 

So did I. I replaced my tires and found 15 ounces of water in one of them from the last time i went offroading. And a sizeable screw between the thread blocks with no visible head.

 

If you feel it in the wheel, probably tires. RPM range suggests driveshaft. Could be front or rear. Mine threw a weight (both front and rear). I had the front balanced by Tom Woods, $45 including return shipping - very satisfied. Wish he was tooled to do rears with Roroflex. I added two hose clamps with the screws on the rusty spot on the rear shaft and I lost 95% of my vibration. Look at your driveshafts and see if there are any rectangular rough spots on the tubing. If so, you've lost a weight. I live in suburban Detroit and, even though this is the Motor City, I can't find anyone to balance for less that $200 and an hour drive so I'll stick with my hose clamps.

 

OK! so first report back. Took it to get the tires balanced and had them check alignment and rotate. Alignment was off, on the passenger side, so that was a good sign.

While they were under there, I had them check the shafts for anything visible that I may have missed on my own and fill the grease points. (it has been cold and rainy here and it is too tall for the garages I have access to, I'm really not a wimp)

Tires balanced and rotated, BUT now I can feel the same shimmy in the rear... Is there a chance the more I drive it, that it will correct itself? - If not, I guess I am going to be buying new tires.

Front end has no issues now, just the rear.

Thanks for the help guys.

 

The problem will not eliminate itself. It will probably become worse and cause more damage.

Put the back tires on the front and the front ones on the back. Take it for a spin and if the vibrations are coming from the front now.......they YES. You need new tires. If the vibrations are still coming from the back then your problem is elsewhere in the rear of the vehicle.

Just go logical and eliminate one thing at a time. Let us know the results.

 

Yeah, I had a feeling. The shop that balanced the tires put the fronts on the back. I could tell right away because my butt was rumbling, not my feet.

Does anyone have any thoughts on good AT on MT tires???