Wheel wobble over 65 mph/grill badges?

[Rauhbatz]

1991 190E 2.3 with 215K miles...runs like a champ.. Over 65 mph the left front wheel starts a harmonic wobble that gets worse up to 75 mph and then smooths out. My mechanic mentioned that it might be the u-joint (never been replaced). Any steer on the root cause & estimated repair cost is welcome. BTW any steer on how to get the mileage badges to put on my grill is welcome as well. As I only drive to the airport for both work and fun...I can't imagine a better car to do so...

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[zachmcgill]

These cars don't have u joints. They have flex joints. Which, if yours is original, is most definitely shot at 215k.

[Rauhbatz]

Thanks for the input! My mechanic guy said its likely ball joints (might be the same as flex joints). He went on to say that the drive shaft needs to be sent away and reconditioned...can't the flex/ball joints just be replaced?

Its just the left side...and it has a squeak when you push down on the hood...

[zachmcgill]

Originally Posted by Rauhbatz

Thanks for the input! My mechanic guy said its likely ball joints (might be the same as flex joints). He went on to say that the drive shaft needs to be sent away and reconditioned...can't the flex/ball joints just be replaced?

Its just the left side...and it has a squeak when you push down on the hood...

i meant to say flex disk, my bad.

on left, what can happen if you dont replace them. on right, what they should look like.
they basically do the same thing as a ujoint

[Rauhbatz]

I upped the air pressure in the left front tire...and the amplitude of the virbrations diminished...makes me think its the tire and not anything in the steering gear...that tire is a one-off Yokohama with minimal tread...I remember a few years back I had one start to let go that gave me almost the same wobble...

The wobble is not constant...it comes in waves where it diminishes and then comes back..

Will try replacing the tire and see what happens.

BTW I replaced my flex disk over Christmas...drive train is smooth as silk

[Turnpike]

bad ball joints on the A arms will cause a wobble over 60+ mph

[Rauhbatz]

Thanks for the steer. Last year I noticed a strong squeak coming from the left front wheel during slow speed high angle turns...and it would squeak when I pushed down on the left front of the hood.

I suspect that bringing up the tire pressure helped a little with rolling resistance but didn't make the 60+ mph wobble go away...

Ball joints do not sound like something for this backyard oil changer to do...so will take my car over to my mechanic...

Thanks again!

[number_one_c55]

Lets start with the first step. Before replacing any major components. Get your wheels balanced. Take it to your local Mercedes-Benz dealer. The techs work on these cars all day long. Your 190E is a Mercedes not a Honda Civic lets get this issue sorted out the first time. The dealer has certified techs working on your car, they know what there doing. Other have stated that it could be a flex disc or a ball joint. Your back yard mechanic won't know what to look for in a worn flex disc nor a loose ball joint. The photo provided above is one that has catastrophic failure, I doubt yours will look anything like this. How do you know its the left front wheel? If you are feeling it through the steering wheel of the vehicle please get your wheels balanced!

[Rauhbatz]

Hi MB Posters...thanks for the advice. I have a clue to my issue....

This morning per the last post I went to Discount Tire and had the pretty worn Yokohama replace with a brand new General tire.

In climbing towards 65-70 mph, the harmonic wobble is gone...I can still feel a slight patter at that speed but nothing like there was before. Makes me think the new tire with its larger size (and low rpm at speed) dampens the vibration.

I also noticed pulling on the rim last night before i got the tire changed a very tiny amount of give or play with the wheel...this was not found on the other front wheel.

Next service I will get this looked at but wanted to pass along an update for any further commentary....