I am getting vibration when I approach 70. I replaced the front shaft with one from Tom Woods and just replaced the rotoflex rubber coupler in the rear. I have many choice words regarding the bushing.... that said; I am still getting the vibration. Im at a loss. Only think left is the rear u-joint. Any thoughts? I do also have some vibration when braking(replacing rotors soon) but i dont think that is related.

Thoughts?

04 Disco SE, 90k

 

Check front and rear hubs, all driveline fluid levels and quality or change if they are all original and check for foreign materials, tires could need balancing or replaced if they are old, brake caliper could be hanging up, could be that unchecked u-joint, how often do you grease your front shaft - they can fail quickly if not maintained, check backlash on axles/trasfer case and make sure all flanges seem secure.

Vibrations can be one of the most difficult issues to find.

Brian.

 

was the viberation there B4 replacing front shaft and rear rotoflex,? if not then its one of the 2 replaced parts (more likely the front shaft),, But if viberation was already there B4 you replaced parts then you know its not the parts, then my guess will be tires, they can be out of balance or worn out uneven or even turned a little oval thats not noticable to the eye if old and neglected for a while,,

 

X2 as Brian said + wheel balance might work.

 

Going to take it tomorrow and check the balance at the hobby shop. Ill check into the hubs while i have it up on the rack. The front U-Joint on the ear shaft didnt really want to take grease well today when i went to grease it. As for the front shaft; I grease it more often than I change my oil it gets done every 3-5k with high temp red.

 

I have the same issue even after doing the following. I rebuilt the front drive shaft and replace the rear one, and did the conversion to get rid of the rubber coupler. Let us know how the tire balancing goes.

 

Tires are always a good place to start, considering most folks don't drive these vehicles a lot and tires become old and hard, with belts separating inside...before they actually wearout (tread-wise). In my mind, if a tire is over 6 or 7 years old, regardless of tread, they should be replaced. The tire's ability to be flexable is diminished as the rubber gets old and stiff.

My tires on my 01 were in pretty good shape tread wise when I bought the vehicle, but they would shake the teeth out of your head at speeds over 60 mph. Put new rubber on, problem solved.

Checking those hubs while it's up in the air and looking over the brakes will help eliminate some questionable items, too. I've seen rotors that were so warped that they caused a mild vibration at high speeds.

Like I said, vibration can be very difficult to nail down sometimes. So, that's why my first post contained a "laundry list" of ideas.

Good rule of thumb...

lf you feel the vibration more in the steering wheel...focus on the front axle, tires, steering and driveline components.

If you feel vibration more in the seat of your pants...focus on rear axle, tires and driveline components.

Brian.

 

Yep on one of the Jeeps I owned "Death Wobble" was a real PITA. My Rubicon was fine after the lift, but when I installed larger tires on a different set of steel wheels I'd get vibrations aka "Death Wobble". I was told my tie rods were worn out (18K on the Jeep) so they were cheap so I replaced them no change, changed out the track bar for an adjustable one and once again no change, I replaced the front shaft with a Tom Woods, new OME Steering Damper, had the tires balanced again with no change.... I wasn't getting anywhere with it after spending all sorts of $$$$ until one day I was driving it to work, and I drove thru something on the road that caused me to have 2 blow outs along with about 5 other vehicles on I-10.

When I got to Discount Tire for the replacements they no longer sold my original tire so I got two newer tires. On the drive home I had zero vibration!!! I thought it was a joke or I was given the wrong Jeep lol. When I got home I was curious so I slapped the old 2 rear tires onto the front and the new ones on the rear and bingo vibration was back!

I went back to Discount Tire told them what was happening. They test drove it with the old tires on the front (less than 6-8K on them) felt it go nuts, and they quickly replaced the tires with the newer style. I never had "Death Wobble" or any vibrations after that, so in my case it was just the tires.

 

Since we're telling tire stories.

Gal at work needed a brake job on her F150, l've been divorce for awhile, paying child support and living on crumbs, so side work means eating again...lol...shoot her a price and said I'd do it after work and it would be about an hour. Simple job, rotors and pads, in and out within a half hour...so, I become Mr. Nice Guy...and decide to rotate her tires.

Take the truck for a quick test drive...step on the brakes..and it about rips the wheel out of my hands pulling right. I'm like???...what the heck? So, I assume a caliper must have stuck while pushing the piston in (though they went in smoothly), so I run and get a caliper and install/bleed. Test drive, same result...nearly in the ditch. Starting to lose it now, so out of desperation...run and get another caliper for the opposite side (knowing full well this isn't going to help) and install/bleed. Same results. Now, it's been over a couple hours and l've ask her a couple times..."are you sure it wasn't pulling before"..."Nope".

Just about ready to put new rubber brake hoses on each side, believing one of them is coming a part inside restricting flow...when I stop and "think" for a minute...couldn't be because I rotated the tires? Rotate the tires back to their original position...bingo-bango...all fixed. Felt so bad about the extra time and cost I didn't charge her for the calipers...just told her she had to marry me someday. Which she did...so, all's well that ends well.

So, the moral of the story is...tires can be problematic...even when they look good...and getting the woman of your dreams...can cost as little as a pair of calipers.

Okay, story time is over...everyone off to bed!

Brian.

 

Ok Brian, I think I speak for the group when I say well need to see a pic of the happy couple to see who this lady is that got you to risk marriage again! Congrats by the way, even if it is an old story.

So the vibration is definately much much less with the new rotoflex. When i dremeled out the devil bushing i did go too deep and took a tiny amount of the outer collar on the shaft out. I wonder if its enough to throw it out of balance. I wouldnt think so with it being behind the junction but who knows. I could be up for new tires. just checked and they are from 30 of 12. So 5 years old. I have another used rear shaft coming this week. May try that out.