Thread: Shudder/vibration through car at 100km +

I had a similar problem and it was traced to the swivel bearings in the front hub. They needed replacing but I would certainly get the wheel balance checked out first as it is usually the cause.

I have had the exact same issue so firstly, ensure that your wheels are properly balanced as GWEB has stated. This made a big difference to the steering wheel shudder on my Disco but didn't remove it completly. Last week I replaced the steering dampner with a RTC Tough Dog and this has made a world of difference. It doesn't feel like the same vehicle with the shudder GONE!!!!!
The wheel vibrations I only get when towing my 2t boat for the first 15-20 minutes so I about to embark on the auto transmission service and take things from there.
Keep us all posted I'm intrigued to see where this post goes.

Ricky, what Discobear said!
Start with the easiest( cheapest) fix and work up.
Racked up 14 000 kays over the summer holidays. Along the way we picked up a wobble (10,80 & 105 k/ph), apparantly came and went, but truth was it was hard to pick on the sh** roads in SA and Vic. We were in a D2 w/6 pax and a camper trailer. I put it down to the trailer wheel bearings at first, then the old tyres on same, then steering damper, then bearings. Nout!!
Had checked the tyres on the Disco but seemed fine to the touch.
Long story short: after 5 hours driving at 40C ambient, I found a +10 deg c difference on one. Bingo!
The deformation was very hard to pick, ~2-3mm, swapped with the spare> Niiiice.


aside: that tyre was originally the spare( Federal H/T with a small (2mm)bubble in the sidewall near the bead
Road tyres are Cooper Discoverer ATR WAGD (We're all gonna die) that performed faultlessly (I used the federal to replace one that had a slow leak due to driver error (pin***** stake)
Cheers, Dave.

Weird!! I typed pinhole stake and it comes up as pin*****?!?
New dirty stuff filter?

I'm currently experiencing similar problems.

The vehicle (S1 Disco 95) develops a violent shudder through the steering wheel which can be felt through the car aswell. The vibration is only present at speeds above 80 but goes away when you get to 100+.

I've had the car in for not one, but two wheel balances/alignments. I've also replaced the steering damper.

any idea's?

uniball, sounds strange but have a look at the rotoflex joint on the rear drive shaft.

Cheers
Rob

that was changed aswell, the vibration is still the same not sure what to do from here. might be time for a mechanic visit. now, if only i could find i decent mechanic in darwin

Beam axle Landrovers tend to have two sorts of vibration, one is out of balance on the prop shafts, usually a U-joint, but can be other problems including a bent or dented shaft or loose drive flanges at either end of the shaft. This vibration is higher frequency and tends to be less amplitude (but if it is a U-joint can be the prelude to a dramatic and expensive failure). Fix is to find the problem and rectify it - sometimes associated with raised suspension.

The second type is essentially wheel wobble. It is often started by hitting bumps or reaching a critical speed. This type of wobble rarely has a single cause - some of the main contributors are :-

Any free play anywhere in front or rear suspension links.

Any free play anywhere in the steering (including loose steering box)

Incorrect steering geometry - toe in (actually out on most Landrovers!), caster (affected by suspension lift), camber (bent axle housing or worn swivel bearings).

Wheels out of balance

Steering damping - primary damping on Landrovers is the swivel preload, and this should be the first thing to check. Steering damper is intended to check large movements, not the small vibration of wheel wobble, and while it helps, it will not make up for incorrect preload.


The problem is that when a number of these faults are present, fix one of them, and the wobble goes away (so you think you've fixed it). Then one of the other points gets a bit worse, and it is back, but repeating what you fixed last time will no longer fix it. So you need to check all of these points mentioned (and possibly a few I missed), but the most important is swivel preload.

John