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Shaking in front left tire

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InfidelRebel

New member
Just today I started having a problem with my car. When I drive I notice a violent shaking coming from the front left tire. It almost sounds like a flat tire, except the pressure is fine. At first I thought it was the wheel alignment, but what's interesting is when I accelerate, there's absolutely no noise or shaking. However when I cruise or brake, the shaking gets worse and worse until it feels like the car is going to fall apart.

I tried driving at about 5mph and noticed a distinct sound every time the tire completes a full rotation. I'm not sure if it could be a bent axel, cv joint, etc. I'm going to be jacking up the car tomorrow to change the rear brakes, so while I'm doing that I'll take a better look.

When I'm under there, is there anything I should look for? I don't have a lot of experience with cars. Any tips on what I should be looking for or checking?
 


warped or cracked rotor? Check that the break pads are fully in place and secure. Check the tie rod ends. Definitely check the lug nuts.........
 
It was the lugnuts. When I changed my front brakes last week I broke one of the studs on my front left tire. Apparently since then, another stud broke right next to it, and one broke on the right front tire. I just got back from registering my car at the dmv and drove home very slowly and carefully. I'm going to work in a few minutes so I don't have time to fix it now, but I'll do it tomorrow. I just need to pick up 3 studs and 3 lugnuts. I'm going to try to find a guide online, since I'm not sure how to replace them.

I must have either overtightened or undertightened the lugnuts when I changed the brakes. Or maybe the one broken stud put too much pressure on the other studs. Either way I have a busy day tomorrow. Change rear brake pads, remove sway bar, and change studs and lugnuts. *sigh*
 
unless the studs are totally snapped off inside, they just unbolt and arent too difficult. They just turn out from the backside if they are like all the other GM's that I have worked on. The new ones just go back in like a bolt, you need to access them from the backside.
 
About half of each bolt is snapped off. Basically they snapped off around where the bolt would normally meet the lugnut.

When removing the sway bar is it likely I'll need a dremel tool or have to saw something off?
 
I am not 100% sure, but I think they just come out the back. I think they have a bolt head and you just back them out...so no, if this is the case, you should not need a dremel. If I am wrong, I apologize in advance...
 


Damn! Took everything apart and broke two more studs in the process. Tried to get the studs out which was almost impossible due to the hub bearing (I think that's what it's called). Ending up having to take a hacksaw to one of them. Now my new studs are too long to put in. I got a 36 mm tool to remove the gigantic 36 mm nut in the hub bearing assembly, but ended up breaking both a socket wrench and a cheater bar in the process. I need better tools or something. Don't know, but right now my car is jacked up with a tire being supported by one stud and lugnut.

Anyone know a trick to getting the studs in, or do I just have to find a way to get that nut off? Also does anyone know what the smallest length stud I can use is? The one's they gave me at Autozone are definitely shorter than stock (I think 52 or 52 mm), and apparently for the GP they have 34 mm also, which seems weird because I can't imagine how that would be long enough.

I'm getting close to towing it to a shop and letting them do it with their tools, unless anyone has any ideas.

Thanks again guys.
 
I believe the big nut has to come off. As far as length of the stud, you should get stock or atleast close to it. At a minimum it would have to be long enough to go through everything and still let the nut go on 100% and have the end of the stud flush with the nut for it. Get some PB Blaster and soak the big nut in it as soon as you can. Keep doing this(Overnight if you can) every couple of hours. Try tapping it with a hammer(use a chunk of wood or hard plastic between the big nut and the hammer so you dont damage the nut to try and loosen up the rust. Once it is off, make sure to anti-seize all of your lugnut bolts and this large one too. If I remember correctly there should be a cotter pin that you had to remove to get this out. Please make sure that there is nothing physically obstructing it to not come off. If you know how long your stock studs are, go to a tire that is on, measure how much the stud sticks out past the nut. Subtract that amount and that should give you the bare minimum length that you could use. I would recommend sticking with stock sizes here though. Good luck. If you have to take it to a shop, make them take all of your lugnuts off on the car if you have not had them off and also with the large hub nut on the other side of the car. Put anti seize on them all and put back together. This will help you in the future. So why did all of these snap on you? Is their any signs of wear or cracking on the rest? Usually, even if one is snapped, the other four are enough to hold it through normal driving. Were these torqued on too tight at one point?
 
They may have actually been too loose. After changing my front brakes I used a tire iron to put them back on, but I may not have put enough torque into it.

My dad got tired of me trying to figure it out, and had it towed to a shop while I was at work without telling me. It was $100 since he didn't call ahead for a quote before showing up with a tow truck... *sigh*

Not only that, but apparently my front pads that I changed are down to about 20% since I didn't change the rotors when I should have. :th_tongue2:

Hasn't been a good week for my car and I. Looks like when I get paid I'm going to have to break down and get some new rotors. Front pads only cost me $15 at least, so it wasn't that big of a loss. The ****ty part is the price gauging the shop did on my dad, and that $100 was only to do the one tire. I still have a front right tire with a broken stud. I mentioned before that my front right side of my car used to shake, but I think that has to do with my broken sway bar, and not the broken stud, so it should be fine for now. I work 7 days a week so I don't see much daylight, but I'm going to try to get around to removing the sway bar, assuming I have all the tools I need.

Thanks for the help Liquifire.
 
well......get that other side stud fixed before you have issues with it too. Good luck with the rest though. atleast if you try to do it now, before you have to, you will know what you need and have time to get it.
 
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