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#1
02-20-2012, 04:52 AM
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Name That Vibration
Just bought a low miles 82 300SD
It has a bad vibration that feels like it's coming from the left side of the front end It is hard and regular, also very fast. It's somewhat like driving on the bumpy part of the highway when you start to go onto the shoulder, but not quite as loud. Only happens at high speeds, hardly noticeable under 55. It mostly only occurs when the wheel is turned (even slightly) to the left. It's worse under harder acceleration, and barely happens when braking. It pulls very slightly to the right. From a brief look under the car with just my cell phone for lighting, I could see that the rubber on the lca ball joint is ripped. The right one looks worn but ok. The inner half of the right tie rod is coated in oil. No obvious damage on the rest of the rubber parts. I'm planning on getting underneath the car tomorrow in the garage, but I only have a very limited amount of time with this car before it heads down to California. I don't have very much experience with front end problems, but from my understanding of the ball joint it doesn't seem like it could cause this bad of a vibration? What is the most likely culprit here? Are there any other good ways of diagnosing problems with front-end components? Last edited by reinventthewheel; 02-20-2012 at 06:56 AM. 
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#2
02-20-2012, 07:51 AM
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Safely jack that wheel off the ground. Grab the tire at 12 an 6 oclock postion and try to rock it. Should allow very little movement. Play indicates worn ball joints. Now grab tire at 3 and 9 oclock and do the same. Movement indicates worn tie rods or other steering issues.
On MB also check guide rod play by prying on knuckle at base of rod - should be tight. I have gotten similar vibration issues from a bad wheel bearing. Usually the sound/vibration will vary as you turn the seering wheel at speed.
__________________
81 300D Turbo 190K sold 83 300sd 319K best $500 I ever spent-daily driverw/ 2 tank WVO set up
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#4
02-20-2012, 03:49 PM
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Quote:
A bad wheel bearing does sound like to could be the issue. Is there any way to tell without pulling them out? Quote:
Last edited by reinventthewheel; 02-21-2012 at 02:49 PM.
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#5
02-20-2012, 05:16 PM
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Pull that tire off and inspect it carefully, NOW. It could be de-laminating, and if you don't get it replaced soon it will blow out, and possibly kill you and whoever is in the car. Look for any unusual bumps, dimples, bald spots or uneven wear. After doing that then I'd start looking into steering and suspension issues. You can also swap tires from one side to the other as see if the vibration switches side. If so it's a wheel problem. Could also be that you lost a wheel weight.
__________________
Andrew '04 Jetta TDI Wagon  '82 300TD ~ Winnie ~ Sold '77 300D ~ Sold
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#6
02-20-2012, 05:55 PM
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I agree with swapping tires as a quick test. I've seen bad tires do all sorts of weird crap...even though they "looked" just fine.
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#7
02-20-2012, 06:02 PM
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Will do! Seemed unlikely at first but I think just because I haven't dealt with this before.
I'll just pull one off a different car and see if it goes away
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#8
02-20-2012, 09:22 PM
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Its your car...
any good front end man can tell you about your car if you ask for an alignment. Since you asked for input "name that vibration,' I thought the suggestion might keep you from getting a volley of ideas from we who don't even know what color the car is much less haven examined it.
Sorry I got on your thread, no offense intended. Dan
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#9
02-20-2012, 09:32 PM
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Quote:
You bring the vehicle to one or two "mechanics" and they cannot agree on the issues that are front end related............and they get paid to fix the vehicle. And yet, people come on here and expect some part time wrenches to give them the actual cause of their vibration when nobody has even had the benefit of seeing the vehicle or the front end. Hell, I'll take a guess too..............a "friend" came out and packed lead on the inside of the rim because he's pissed off at you for some reason. It's as valuable as any other recommendation. 
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#10
02-21-2012, 02:44 PM
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No need to get all huffy about it.
I was asking for advice on how to diagnose the issue and fix it spending as little money as possible, not go spend a bunch of money on a whole set of brand new tires that the car doesn't need and take it to somebody else who'll tell me that the whole front end needs to be rebuilt.
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#12
02-22-2012, 11:34 PM
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Right tire was bad!
I replaced the left one and no change, and then I remembered that more stress is actually on the right side when making a left turn. The vibration was so bad that at high speeds it was loud enough that it transferred to the left.
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#13
02-23-2012, 12:17 AM
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Tires do weird things. Glad you got it figured out. Just noticed you're in Oregon. Where abouts?
__________________
Andrew '04 Jetta TDI Wagon '82 300TD ~ Winnie ~ Sold '77 300D ~ Sold
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#14
02-23-2012, 12:23 AM
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In Portland now, moving out to the country somewhere soon
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#15
02-23-2012, 12:31 AM
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I figured you'd be in Portland, that seems to be where most of our Oregon Members live. How county are you talking? Rural western Oregon, or BFE eastern Oregon? I've spent a lot of time in the middle of now where eastern OR for work, 3-4 hours from any town or dot on the map.
If you make it down to the Albany area any time soon let me know. We can chat diesel MB's over a cup of coffee.
__________________
Andrew '04 Jetta TDI Wagon '82 300TD ~ Winnie ~ Sold '77 300D ~ Sold
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