The Shimmy!

[Noah]

Swapped rims on my 95 Legacy -

Old rims were F'd and super bent/unbalanced. With these steelies they feel great until ~55 and then a pretty good shimmy comes through the steering, and then fades by ~65 and is great above that speed. Could this happen w/ unbalanced wheels?

[wtdash]

Seems 60-ish is the prime 'shimmy' speed....I'd get the balance checked....is your suspension good too? Worn struts/bushings/etc. can cause issues, too.

Td

[Noah]

Seems 60-ish is the prime 'shimmy' speed....I'd get the balance checked....is your suspension good too? Worn struts/bushings/etc. can cause issues, too.

Td

Suspension is far from new (194k miles) so im actually afraid is bushing related. If i hit a pot hole (damn montana) I get a reverberating shake (not the same as this speed wobble) that seems to linger for a few seconds after hitting the bump.

Ball joints? Linkage bushings?

[wtdash]

Do the jounce test on the struts...I believe it's pushing down on each corner firmly a couple of times and see if the car keeps moving after you let off....it should 'settle' immediately...not continue moving after you let go.

Td

[Noah]

Do the jounce test on the struts...I believe it's pushing down on each corner firmly a couple of times and see if the car keeps moving after you let off....it should 'settle' immediately...not continue moving after you let go.

Td

But that just test the struts....you can rock blown struts all day long;)

Im only really worried about joints/bushings/bearings

[wtdash]

GL,
TD

[Legacy777]

Worn struts will cause the tire to bounce and not stay planted on the road. This can lead to uneven treadwear on the tire, which in turn can cause shimmy and vibration.

If you know your struts are bad, replace them. Start with what you know needs fixing and then go from there.