Bad Vibrations
 

OK I just picked up this 1995 Chevy 2500 pick-up and it has a vibration that kicks in about 45 MPH. I have been chasing my tail here. I put a different set of tires (on the same wheels) and it still did it. The front tires would move slightly side to side when it was jacked up so I installed a new pitman arm, idler arm, and idler arm bracket. This seemed to help a little (it still vibrates, but not as violent). So I am leaning towards either bad shocks or a bent wheel. Anybody have any other suggestions? It feel like the front left tire is bouncing like a basketball, but it might be just because that is the tire I am closest to.

ball joints, tie rod ends, wheel bearings....ect...is it only in the front that it vibrates?

Yeah it feels like it is only coming from the front. I just did the brakes and the bearing looked good so I just repacked them. They had been changed at some point and were Timken brand. I think I am going to just throw a set of shocks on the truck this afternoon b/c they look original and the truck has over 100K miles. I will let you know how that works out. Thanks for the response.

Update - it was not the shocks. I am glad I am not a betting man because when I pulled those front shocks I would have sworn I found the culprit. I held them upside down and they collapsed by themselves with zero resistance and would not rebound at all. WTF! I am going to take it to a tire shop tomorrow to see if I have a bent rim. This is getting frustrating!

Is there a chance it could be a universal joint?

At this point I wouldn't rule anything out. It does not feel like the bad universals I have felt in the past. There is no noise and it seems like the bad universals I have been witness to in past howled a little (or a lot depending on the severity). It's weird because the truck is fine up to around 40-45 mph and then it will vibrate, if I keep accelerating it goes away, but there is a certain spot where it bucks like a bronco. It feels like a tire out of balance, and since the guys that put this set of tires on only had a bubble balancer I don't think they would have caught a bent rim, but I am just grasping at straws right now. I will find out more tomorrow. Thanks for all the input!

I put dibs on a bad tire.......goes away around 50-55?

You know what my 2001 does the exact same thing! I have yet to figure it out. I have had 6 sets of tires on there and 3 different rims and it is still there. So im gonna replace all the bushings on the whole suspension with that poly material. The way mine does it is it feels like I have a bubble in a tire.

i bet it's the balance of the tire... a bubble balancer is 70's - 80's technology... you need to go to a major tire shop like discount tire and have them spin balance your tires, BUT you should still replace your bushing and what not seeing how it's 15 years old...

I had one bouncing real bad several years ago. Had the tires balanced....no help. I had someone watch my tires while I drove down the interstate. One was obviously bouncing badly. It turned out to be a slipped belt in the tire. When they balanced it (bubble balancer) they had to put a huge weight on one tire. Should have be a tip off but they replaced the tire...no charge. Good luck.