Rear wheel wobble (Page 1/2)
A_Lonely_Potato MAY 15, 01:44 PM
Hey all, back again. A few weeks ago my car started to handle very poorly. Going through left turns at 45 the rear end would feel like it was sliding out, catching, sliding out, catching. It started out minor but got severe over a couple days. Last time i drove, it would also swerve left when i hit the gas at 55, and to the right when sharply letting off the throttle. The wheel had excessive wobble when jacked up. Replaced the hub and ball joint, the tie rod seems to be good. Everything is torqued on the strut, tie rod, LCA, ball joint, and axle nut. Not really sure where to go from here, as the wheel still had wobble when jacked up. Linked below is a video showing the amount of play. Any help appreciated.

https://youtu.be/hVlmP_Zz6UE
Gall757 MAY 15, 02:32 PM
There may be more than one issue, but I think your motor mounts are broken.
cvxjet MAY 15, 03:33 PM
I had this problem (Basically) back a decade ago; Coming home from work on San Mateo bridge- straight for miles. If I hit the throttle noticed it would pull one direction, if I let off the throttle or hit the brakes it would pull to opposite side.

I had installed coil-overs with KYB GR2 gas struts.....As I was inspecting the suspension I noticed some oil residue on the bottom of one of the struts- took it off and inspected; When the guy cut away the spring perch he cut a little too deep and so the strut was leaking- the pressure was completely gone....could compress and release- no return extension.

Got a new strut and the problem was eliminated. Take your struts off and check for leakage and also compress them and see if they re-extend.

As far as the wheel wobble- remember that there are rubber bushings involved, so you will have a slight amount of flex...make sure that you use a new axle/hub nut and torque it properly....(200 lb/ft)
theogre MAY 15, 06:43 PM
year of car?
84-87 has rear cradle bushings that go bad.
Cradle itself, mounting bolts, even car frame could have problems letting steering problems as engine load changes.

------------------
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(Jurassic Park)

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A_Lonely_Potato MAY 15, 07:59 PM

quote
Originally posted by Gall757:

There may be more than one issue, but I think your motor mounts are broken.



Ah lovely, I'll crawl under tomorrow if its dry and take a look. Come to think of it, one of my tranny mounts was not tight last year, it may have come loose again. I'll check all the mounts.


quote
Originally posted by cvxjet:

...remember that there are rubber bushings involved...make sure that you use a new axle/hub nut and torque it properly....(200 lb/ft)



Previous owner replaced rubber bushings with poly, cradle and control arms. As for the axle nut, i did use a torque wrench on it (70 lb/ft drooped, 200 on the ground) but i'm really not sure the accuracy of the wrench.


quote
Originally posted by theogre:

year of car?



Ah sorry I had to retype the original question and forgot to put that back in. Its an 86 GT.
theogre MAY 15, 09:57 PM

quote
Originally posted by A_Lonely_Potato:
Ah sorry I had to retype the original question and forgot to put that back in. Its an 86 GT.

Then What I said above and/or CA bushings.

Bad bushing(s) can feel/look ok to you but can't hold loads driving,
Like Outer metal shell can rust out in places where you can't see easy and can't compress the rubber right.
Raydar MAY 15, 10:02 PM
I'm looking at your video.
What I'm seeing is a cradle and control arm that are sitting "stone still", while the wheel is moving. (I can't see the tierod, however.
There are only a limited number of things that could be allowing the movement.
You already replaced the ball joint.
You already replaced the hub/bearing, and tightened the axle nut.
That leaves the strut, or the tie rod end. Or maybe something didn't get replaced/tightened correctly. (Sorry.)
Raydar MAY 15, 10:04 PM
Double post.

[This message has been edited by Raydar (edited 05-15-2022).]

olejoedad MAY 15, 10:46 PM
Are you sure the axle splined into the hub properly before you tightened the nut?
A_Lonely_Potato MAY 16, 02:37 AM

quote
Originally posted by theogre:

Then What I said above and/or CA bushings.




I'll be doing a feelover of all the mounting points for the engine/tranny, cradle, and suspension tomorrow.


quote
Originally posted by Raydar:

I'm looking at your video.
What I'm seeing is a cradle and control arm that are sitting "stone still", while the wheel is moving. (I can't see the tierod, however.
There are only a limited number of things that could be allowing the movement.
You already replaced the ball joint.
You already replaced the hub/bearing, and tightened the axle nut.
That leaves the strut, or the tie rod end...



Some of the tie rod is visible at the top of the frame, though not much. From my eye, the tie rod is solid same as the control arm.

I will likely be pulling the strut tomorrow(bleh) to check function. Maybe i did something wrong installing them.


quote


...Or maybe something didn't get replaced/tightened correctly.




How insulting!


quote
Originally posted by olejoedad:

Are you sure the axle splined into the hub properly before you tightened the nut?




I can't say with 100% certainty, I don't have experience swapping hubs. It seemed to be seated all the way in the splines, and the 3 mounting bolts pulled the hub flush with the knuckle.