Gman91932

My 300 e shimmy at 60 mph and I do not know why. Any suggestions? by the way waht is the best wax for your car?

Subman

Are your tires in balance, you could have throug a weight.
You may also need new wheel barings, this will also make a wineing noise.
I would think it is your tires (out of balance)
Subman

Gman91932

I have had t eh car alligned and the wheels balanced. STILL SHIIMYS!
Any suggestions?

Subman

Can you try to desribe it a little more. Ok now I am thinking it could be the lower (well upper to but they dont go as much as the lowers) control arm bushings. Where does it fell like it is comming from?
Subman

Gman91932

It seems that it may be in the front, and it is right at 60 to 62 mile an hour, whether accelerating or decellerating.

techbike

is usually attributed to wheel balance. Click on this to find out more about vibration control:

wheel vibration

Also, check the steering dampener. Most people disregard it but you should change it at 50K miles. It's an inexpensive part.

Subman

When there is a vibration at such a specific speed, you can almost bet it is a wheel out of balance.
The other things i mentioned would happen at most all speeds. You should try to find a shop that has a "Hunter wheel balancer" they are the best, it tells the tech wherer to mount the tire on the rim. there is also a sand type substance you can have put in your wheel that is a very efective way of balanceing a wheel.
These are very high tech ways of balancing wheels so dont be surprised if the tire people look at you like you are carzy.
Subman

suginami

Worn out tie rod ends can also cause these symptoms.

I had the same problem with mine, and it was worn out tie rod ends.

Also find a tire shop that uses a Hunter GSP 9700 tire balance machine.

www.gsp9700.com

With this machine, you can surely rule out a tire balance problem.

Enter your zip code on the site, and a whole list of shops near you should come up.

Gman91932

When they balanced, did they put weights ONLY on the inside wheel lip? I expect that this is what they did.

Static balance keeps the wheel from hopping up and down. The problem is that adding weight ONLY to the inside makes the wheels dynamic balance worse. Dynamic imbalance causes the wheel to wobble. Modern cars are very susceptible this "wobble."

There are too many tire stores that set their expensive machine for a static balance so that they can put weights ONLY on the inside rim so that they do not scratch the outside of the wheel.

If there are ONLY weights on the inside, the only way you will get this corrected is to INSIST that they DYNAMICALLY balance the tire. The ONLY way that they can DYNAMICALLY balance the assembly is to use weights inboard AND outboard at least on two planes with one being on the outboard side of the center of the wheel. If you have nice wheels that you do not want to scratch there are two choices that will not scratch the wheel, but will allow you to put weight where you need it. These two choices are:

Use a regular weight on the inside lip, then use a tape weight on the inside diameter of the wheel as far outboard as possible. Some of the newer machines are capable of telling the operator exactly how much weight to use in this location. Even if the balancer has no aluminum wheel mode, the operator can get it right with some experimentation. You will have a fight on your hands at many tire stores to get this done right.

Second method is using MB weights, which are available from tire supply stores on the aftermarket. These weights consist of a clip that is put in place without touching the part of the rim that shows, then using a special tool that is used to open the clip to slip the correct weight into place.

My preference is the clipped weight because the machine tells the operator exactly how much and where to add the weight, there is no guesswork involved.

I have gotten so frustrated over the years fighting with tire stores that I recently bought a used computer balancer and tire changing machine. You know, the old saying is if you want it done right you have to do it yourself. I don't know where I've seen a situation where this old saying is more true.

Best of luck with this and if you find a cooperative tire store that will balance your wheels properly, share their name and location with us here at mshop please.

Have a great day,


__________________
Larry Bible
'01 C Class, Six Speed 17K miles
'84 Euro 240D, manual, 533K miles
'88 300E 5 Speed 203K miles
'81 300D Daughter's Car 206K miles, fresh engine
Over 800,000 miles in
Mercedes automobiles

Gman91932

I just left a Alignment place. I found that I needed tie rod Steering damperner, center link and front strut. WOW
All this after just putting on new rotors, pads and tires balanced.
Thanks everyone. i let you know what happened after I save enuf money for these fixes.
Gman

suginami

I've replaced some of these items on my car.

The tie rod needs to be replaced because the bushings wear out. This is probably causing your tire wobble. It's a $58 part, and only 30 min. to install.

A steering damper is about $41.00. Easy to replace.

As far as the center link, I can't tell you.

Front struts should be replaced in pairs, and are really reasonable if you buy on the internet. Only buy Bilsteins.

Gman91932

Any price point that I should look at for shocks. So far about 118.oo each.
Thanks in advance
Gaidi

suginami

For OEM Bilstein front Struts, I got $132.16 from the place that usually has the best prices.

csnow

Just bought Bilstein HDs for $131 at Importec. This was the best price I could find, since shipping was free. HDs are somewhat stiffer, and also more expensive than the regular OEM-equiv Bilstein model ($118 not unusual). Don't forget the bump-stops and dust covers which are not included (and probably worn out). Before throwing out that old strut, rescue the plastic clip that secures the ABS and wear-sensor wires (also not included).

I would suggest that anyone who undertakes strut replacement work themselves plan in advance to replace the balljoints at the same time. Odds are that they are shot by the time the shocks fail, and you will be doing most of the labor towards their replacement anyways. I can promise that in road-salt areas, the old balljoints will NOT last as long as the new Bilsteins you are installing.

One balljoint was so worn, that when I hit a speedbump, it popped out of its socket. This is not a good situation.

Also, you may as well replace all of the sway bar bushings, since you will have easy access, and they are very cheap.

My control arm bushings were also completely shot (after 180K-not so bad). If you do replace the control arm bushings, buy the special 'eccentric' bolts too. I had to cut 2 of them to get the arm off, and even the ones that could be driven out were very worn.

Good time for a brake job, tie rod ends, bearings.....etc....
This project is mushrooming out of control....

suginami

A buddy of mine has an 86 300E, and he just purchased Eibach springs and Bilstein HD shocks.

He found the best price at:

www.shox.com

It's worth a try.

S-Man

An out of round tire can cause the same problem. It can be dynamicically balanced, but not roll evenly and thumps the road. The better tire balancing equipment can measure this force.
I had to put number rubber on mine to quiet it down.

S-Man

suginami

I found Bilsteins on sale today at this webiste for $99.00! Rear shocks are $59.00! How can they make money at that price?

http://www.adsitco.com/ss.html

Gman91932

Hi, besides struts, what is the best way to maintain the luxury ride in your car.

suginami

Purchase high quality tires, like the Michelin MXV4's, and keep the proper tire pressure in them.

csnow

In terms of "luxury ride", those low-profile tires will not help.
Bilstein makes 'Comfort Setting' struts, which are presumedly even softer than stock, and might compensate for the harshness that the tires add.
Worn swaybar bushings, especially in the front, can cause a choppy/clunky ride, and diminished handling precision.

suginami

Fwiw, the Michelin MXV4 are classified as a premium touring tire, and are the original tire for your Mercedes. They come in a large amount of tire sizes, and are not simply "low profile" tires.

They are the quietest, smoothest riding tiring, IMHO, for your car.

Also, the Bilstein comfort shocks are the same shocks that your car came standard with. They are not softer than stock. Refer your question to Bilstein to confirm.

csnow

Actually, I was not referring to the Michelin MXV4s as low-profile. I was referring to the tires mentioned in the signature of Gman's post that states "215/45/17 tires, OEM chrome wheels".

These will not contribute to a 'luxury ride', though personally I would enjoy them, since luxury is not my goal.

I would believe it if the 'Comfort Setting' Bilsteins are the stock damping. Vendors market these in various ways, so it is very difficult to tell. Some vendors list both "Replacement" OEM Bilsteins and "Comfort Bilsteins" seperately, and the prices are different. This is why I presumed they were different models.
The Bilstein site does list only 3 models; C, HD, and SP.

Gman91932

Hi, I got the tie rod and steering dampener fixed. found out that the Idler arm need fixing. The center link and bushing and bearings aare all fine. I hit the freeway and guess what! Shimmy at 62!
Now I have new kimho tires, does the fact that they are directional have anything to do with it? Also would the Idler arm contribute. I admit that the shimmy is not as much BUT it still shimmys!
Thanks for all your help
(and to think I was just asking about comfort!)

csnow

Well Gman, that is a frustrating state of affairs.

Tell me, is there by any chance still excessive play in your steering when you are parked?

Test:
1) Car off, but key turned one click (steering wheel unlocked).
2) Open window, stand outside, and close door.
3) See how far you can rotate the steering wheel back and forth before the wheels react. If the play is significant, there are a handful of remedies I can suggest. (I had this problem)

Probably not the leading suspect for a 'shimmy', but worth a try...

Gman91932

this week I plan on doing a couple of things. (needed to save my money first) First I plan on changing the "dler arm". Also when I went to the wheel alignement place I was informed that the tires were "directional" and the direction of the tread was wrong. Anyone heard of this? Also I had not saved enuf money to do the shocks. that will come next. I hope I get to the bottom of this soon, it is seriously affecting my sanity and my wallet.