Front Wheel Wobble

topgunjames

topgunjames

Member
Been nearly 3 weeks since i done the twin pot upgrade and brakes are great, then last night i heard a kind of a knocking sound coming from the front when i reach 40km/h or so, the noise goes away when i accelerate or brake, at first i thought it was my brakes, i took both front wheels off today and brakes were fine no problems there, but i did discover wheel play (movement) if i pulled on the wheel when the car was jacked (on both front wheels)

What are the possible causes? I know wheel bearings could be one, or worn bushings on the lower control arms is also possible, i forgot to look if any of the bushings were worn, has anyone else experienced this?

And please dont say "just take it to a mechanic" i would rather not have someone else work on my car who doesn't share the same passion
 
I had the same thing a while back and it was the bearing, pretty much exactly what you described. It had failed, got it replaced then about 1 month later the whole hub collapsed and had to get that replaced too.
 
Which direction were you pulling the wheel when it was wobbling?

Ie, if you hand is on the top most section of the wheel, were you pushing in the direction of vehicle travel or towards the the engine?
 
I hand my hands on each side of the wheel (not the top and bottom), so if an imaginary line was drawn between my hands it would be parallel to the ground, make sense?
 
RELEVANT!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scFbb43fwqk[/youtube]
 
if it wobbles up and down and back to front its a bearing.
if its just back n forth it can be the steering rack bushes.
 
Yes positions of my hands were 3 o clock and 9 o clock, its not the suspension reason i know this is because i jacked the car up and put my foot on the accelerator to spin the rotor, and soon enough i heard the noise, so i guess you can rule out the lower control arm since my i'd also notice problems with handling which isnt the case, but i checked the cv boot, no leakage and condition was fine, thats why im leaning towards bearings as a certainty, btw thanks for the input guys
 
jack it up and check if it wobbles at 12 n 6. if it does then it is def's the bearing.
also is it just the one side or both?
 
yes i considered the drive shafts as a possibility, however usually the first signs of them wearing out is the clunking nosie and you know there on their last legs when you hear those same noises when just driving straight, so since i havent heard the clunking noises when turning im ruling out the cv's
 
Update on this problem, solution was actually much simpler, ended up being the lug nuts on both front wheels which are wearing out, so they have to be tightened and soon replaced, but yeah took the car for a long test drive tonight, not knocking noises

This would explain why the noises arent heard when accelerating or braking which was a result of change in rotational torque
 
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