Low-speed vibration

[2.5mx3]

Hi guys-

Here's the issue: When I accelerate I get a lot of vibration from the front-end, and I feel it through the pedals and shifter - and not so much through the steering wheel. The harder I accelerate, the more vibration I get. The car also seems to vibrate at lower speeds and then goes away at highway speeds.

I just put brand new tires on the car 2 days ago, had them balanced (of course), and got a 4-wheel alignment for extra measure. The alignment fixed some other problems, but this one remains as before.

Wil, you mentioned that this may be my axles, but they do seem fine, and they're fairly new. Any other suspension part that could be causing this problem?

As always, thanks for any assistance.

[DJsMX-3]

This might be a lowtech answer..But are you sure the balancing of the wheels was done correctly?

The quality of the whéelbalancing comes right down to how good their balancingmachine is..

Is it a shop you'we used before and has a good reputation

[Steeb]

i had some mad *** vibrations. it turned out my 2 lower mounts for my engine and tranny were so soft they were tearing slowly and eventually the car was shaking under acceleration. thus causing my cv's to get jacked up. i hope u find your problem

[lakersfan1]

Check the motor mounts. If they're torn, there's a way to repair them yourself.

[2.5mx3]

To answer all the previous posts, the shop that did my alignment has the latest alignment machines and computer balancing. I trust that they did a good job.

As for the motor mounts, I put in Mazdaspeed engine/tranny mounts a couple years ago, and to my knowledge, they're fine. When we get a warmer day I'll get under the car and check out the tranny mounts to see if they're torn. I kinda wish I would have just filled the stock ones with stiffer inserts, as the MS mounts didn't feel or look all that different to me than stock.

[MX3ze@7psi]

my car has the same problem when I speed up especially on first gear. I have to speed up slowly otherwise I feel like my axles are going to break. Broken too many axles with my motor...

[Gro Harlem]

If you get a vibe ONLY when you are accelerating (and not when you let off the gas) then it is definitely something in the drivetrain, not the suspension.

Either:

1: your car is damn low bro....chances are, your axles are worn out b/c of this, the boots don't have to be torn to have a worn axle...the internals, especially at the angle that they are at w/your car being lowered 3" is going to tear them to shreds much faster than if you were at stock ride height....

2: your differential is messed up. I highly doubt this is the problem, unless one of your wheels slammed into a curbe one day going 40mph then there really isn't a way you could've messed up the internals like that.

If you are having a constant vibration, I would bet money that you have a bent rim, which any wheel balance coudln't fix. I had a set of konigs in the past and they dent pretty easy, esp on ****ty roads like in baltimore and DC. Might be worth it to take off your rims and inspect the outer lip/rim where they seat to the tire to see if any part of the rim is out of round.

[dewthis]

I have the same vibration but I know that the driver side axle is gone, there is a popping noise and grease on my wheels. I am going to have a custom axle put in since the car is lowered. Had a custom passenger side put in and its still holding up.

[Casino]

i bent my rim last summer i had a lot of vibration. it wasnt a large bend or anything but just enoungh to mess me up and 70 bucks to fix

[2.5mx3]

Yeah, that's it Wil. The subject of my thread is actually a little misleading - it really *only* happens when I accelerate.

And it's getting worse. Now the whole car shakes when I hit the gas - it's so damn annoying. And I know it's gonna be tough to track down the problem. As far as my car being lowered, I'm fairly sure the car isn't lowered more (or much more) than 2". I don't think you can go any lower with the GC coilovers than that, unless you cut the strut perches.

I've had bad axles before, but it never caused such a vibration - although I still can't rule that out. I haven't hit the wheels on any curbs, ever, so I also doubt it's a differential problem.

I do have a couple slightly bent rims, but like I mentioned, the vibration is not constant, and it's pretty much smooth as silk while cruising.

Thanks for the suggestions. Any other thoughts... anyone?

Originally posted by Gro Harlem:
If you get a vibe ONLY when you are accelerating (and not when you let off the gas) then it is definitely something in the drivetrain, not the suspension.

Either:

1: your car is damn low bro....chances are, your axles are worn out b/c of this, the boots don't have to be torn to have a worn axle...the internals, especially at the angle that they are at w/your car being lowered 3" is going to tear them to shreds much faster than if you were at stock ride height....

2: your differential is messed up. I highly doubt this is the problem, unless one of your wheels slammed into a curbe one day going 40mph then there really isn't a way you could've messed up the internals like that.

If you are having a constant vibration, I would bet money that you have a bent rim, which any wheel balance coudln't fix. I had a set of konigs in the past and they dent pretty easy, esp on ****ty roads like in baltimore and DC. Might be worth it to take off your rims and inspect the outer lip/rim where they seat to the tire to see if any part of the rim is out of round.

[Sonicxtacy02]

Wheel bearings perhaps? I know i had that problem with those symptoms.

[Gro Harlem]

Well my GC's definitely can lower my car at least 3", but i'm using the Zx2 struts.

My protege used to have this vibration. It would mainly happen only if I gave my car gas past 55mph in top gear (about 2800rpm). In lower gears it wouldn't vibe in any gear regardless of rpm (or at least i didn't notice it..i don't rev it high in lower gears anyways). past 55 it owuld start out as a small vibe, but get WAY WORSE once you hit around 70mph. At 85mph, the car was almost dangerous to drive the vibration was so bad.

But it got progressively worse. I had my tires rebalanced, replaced the wheels, tried a few things. replacing thep assneger axle was what fixed the problem for good, and now the car drives smoothly on the highway.

[2.5mx3]

Do you guys think one of the rear wheel bearings could cause this? Wil, remember you heard droning sound when I took you for a ride? I didn't quite pick it up at the time, but after getting new tires, that sound is still there - so I think you were right in that one of the rear bearings might need replacing.

Btw, the vibration happens in any gear while accelerating, but it's most noticable in lower gears.

[Custommx3]

Jack your car up... do NOT loosten your lugs...
Check for wheel play. If its that bad, you can have issues.
I had a vibration a nd wheel noise..
replaced EVERYTHING suspension, wheel bearing, entire brake setup, ball joints, axle, ect.

and in 1 month it came back. I had to replace my hub (replaced my spinde while I was at it, and I havent had an issue since.

My vibration has dissapeared as well. Check for your wheel play.

[Gro Harlem]

Here is what I've learned about bad wheel bearings.

If you are driving and hear a constant droning, as if your tires are making noise, then it could be your wheel bearings. Espeically if it only sounds on one corner of the car. To summarize how it would sound, imagine driving over a wooden bridge w/planks. That is how my Protege and my Dads Prizm sounded when their rear bearings were bad

if you are on the highway, and come across a slight left or righthand bend, and THEN you hear a strange droning from one of the corners, then it is DEFINITELY a bad wheel bearing (this is how my dads Chevy Prizm was after he spun it out in some rain).

If you hear a horrible squealing sound from the front or rear wheels when driving, then your bearings are on the brink of completely failing, and could seize up your entire spindle (happened on two of my fesitvas...expesnive and a PITA to repair).

and FYI, replacing bearings on our car is a pain in the frickin *** . You have to remove the hub (meaning, remove caliper, rotor, tie-rod end, strut, balljoint and axle from it). After that, you have to press out the bearing and entire spindle (which is the part that holds the wheelstuds in place), and then there should be two bearings. I had a rear wheel bearing replaced at my mazda dealer (after spinning out my Protege at 70mph in the dry) and I paid $110 for the damn thing! what I got was the entire spindle w/new wheelstuds presed into it, and the bearings already installed in it.

I know for a fact you can replace just the bearings, but you need to have someone press them out. I have tried replacing the bearings of some Aspire hubs (i'm doing an aspire brake swap on my festiva) and I couldn't get them out. A machine shop or some mechanics should be able to replace them for you if you bring the bearings and hub to them. It shouldn't cost more than $60 for a pair of hubs.

<small>[ February 04, 2004, 01:37 PM: Message edited by: Gro Harlem ]</small>