93 400E, OEM but not stock 17x7.5 AMGs. Has happened on 2 sets of tires, 2 diff brands, wheels checked for bends, has been aligned, rotated, balanced multliple times, indie says all suspension components look fine and also says they never do bearings on these cars.

The alignment guy (separate shop) said there was play in the fronts, and he would replace them.

I don't know what else would be causing this shimmy, steering wheel shaking, at speed

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former: 83 300D, 97 C230, 93 400E

current: 08 C300 Luxury , 92 500SL

I hit a pot hole with firestones,they are known to break belts,solution moved to rear,until I can buy better brand.

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1999 w140, quit voting to old, and to old to fight, a god damned veteran

Again, 2 sets of tires, Yokohamas and now Michelin Pilot Sports. It's not the tires but thanks

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former: 83 300D, 97 C230, 93 400E

current: 08 C300 Luxury , 92 500SL

Check for a bent wheel...or try having the tires balanced again at a different shop.

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Current cars:
2000 ML55 AMG, 174k miles
2003 C240 T-Modell, 202k miles
1995 S320, 207k Miles

Jesus people! READ!

Wheels have been checked. 2nd set of tires. Why would you reply to a post without reading it? OMFG.........

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former: 83 300D, 97 C230, 93 400E

current: 08 C300 Luxury , 92 500SL

http://www.gsp9700.com/index.cfm

I did read, try getting a dynamic balance

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'02 BMW 325i
'85 300D 450k
'93 190E 2.6 170k(killed by tree)
'08 Ducati Hypermotard 1100S 6k
'06 Ducati S2R800 14k(sold)

Because the same idiot could have balanced both sets of tires..... Your not being very polite to the people giving you suggestions.

I have had cases before where i had to return the car 2 or 3 times before they finally balanced them so i didn't get a shimmy.

Anyways, yes play in the bearings could cause a shimmy, they need to be inspected and if worn they need need to be replaced. If the races and bearings look fine they need to be re-packed and set to the correct tension.

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1985 300TD Turbo Euro-wagon
1979 280CE 225,200 miles
1985 300D Turbo 264,000 miles
1976 240D 190,000 miles
1979 300TD 220,000

GONE but not forgotten
1976 300D 195,300 miles
1983 300D Turbo 175,000 miles

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e3...e485-1-2-1.jpg

Excellent - thank you. They've been balanced in 2 different shops 6 times - I doubt balancing in the issues. Bearings are the last suspect, so I need to try that next. Thanks for the dynamic balance tip - although I think that's been done. Is that "road force" balancing? If so, I did it most recently.

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former: 83 300D, 97 C230, 93 400E

current: 08 C300 Luxury , 92 500SL

Well PARDON ME for trying to help.

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Current cars:
2000 ML55 AMG, 174k miles
2003 C240 T-Modell, 202k miles
1995 S320, 207k Miles

There's places other than bearings to look. I doubt the bearings are so loose as to cause a shimmy and if they are loose a simple tightening should eliminate or at least moderate the shimmy. First item I would check is the steering damper, then the bushings on the stabilizer bar, the ball joints, and the shock absorbers/struts.

Also, suspension bushings can fool you into thinking they're OK when they're not OK. Check the idler arm bushing again. Check brake rotors for runout.

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'02 BMW 325i
'85 300D 450k
'93 190E 2.6 170k(killed by tree)
'08 Ducati Hypermotard 1100S 6k
'06 Ducati S2R800 14k(sold)

How many miles are on the vehicle?

Yes wheel bearings can give a shimmy, but it will get progressively worse as the lose bearings destroy themselves. Tightening the bearings up will bring them back into the correct run out but I'd inspect the bearings for wear when you check them. If it's only one, you'll find that hub will exhibit substantially less drag when spinning the hub alone as opposed to the other front.

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1993 190E 2.6 Sportline

178k, new steering damper 10k ago, my indie who charges the highest prices and does the most comprehensive repairs of any shop around, including the dealer, says the shocks are fine, bushings are fine, and control arms are fine. In spec. He is the one who recommended doing the steering damper when it was done.

The problem was not noticeable until driving with the 17" wheels for some period of time. Perhaps the extra weight and drag wore something out.

This is an avg-cond car cosmetically, VGC condition mechanically, but it's also 17 years old. So, you can appreciate my desire to fix this issue, but also to not start replacing expensive items by the gross, for process of elimination

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former: 83 300D, 97 C230, 93 400E

current: 08 C300 Luxury , 92 500SL

So why hasn't your indie adjusted the wheel bearings?

agreed, not economically prudent

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'02 BMW 325i
'85 300D 450k
'93 190E 2.6 170k(killed by tree)
'08 Ducati Hypermotard 1100S 6k
'06 Ducati S2R800 14k(sold)