HELP! Car shaking!

[1bad83ta]

its that simple on most cars unless its a FWD. lol. At the rear end there is a yoke, on that yoke are two straps with two bolts each that hold the u joint in. Just unscrew those, should be 7/16ths and then the other end of the DS pulls out of the end of the tranny.

[Orange Terror]

where is the shaking coming from, or where can you feel it?

[93formulalt1]

where is the shaking coming from, or where can you feel it?

I can feel the shaking from the shifter mostly, but the whole car likes to shake a bit too. The knocking is coming from either the engine, trans, or something hitting underneath the car, it's hard to tell where exactly. It sounds almost like a metal-to-metal knock, but I have only driven it with the windows up, so I can't tell exactly where it originates. I think it is the driveshaft, because when I nail the gas while it is shaking, the shaking goes away, like the driveshaft is getting knocked back into balance. Also, it seems to only make the knocking when I am going faster than 55mph. It shakes at all speeds, but the loud knocking is only at higher speeds than I normally encounter in the city. Thanks, I'm going to call a shop tonight to have my driveshaft balanced this weekend, but it might be something else, so please keep posting suggestions!

[Orange Terror]

I may be wrong here but I don't think its the driveshaft though. Is it a consistent shake or does the speed/amount of shake vary? Here's why, if it was the driveshaft it would shake while the car is moving at any speed no matter what you do and at slower speeds it would be less.

I'm almost thinking motor mount. Try this. Start the car and pop the hood, with it running flick the throttle on the engine (standing in front of the car so you can watch it). Make sure you rev it fairly hard. Now be careful, but if it is a mount it may jump pretty far. If it just rocks back and forth a little like it should, probably not it. In that case I would check your tranny mount too. Do these first before spending money on the drivshaft. Like I said, not saying it isn't the driveshaft, but I'd check that stuff first.

[93formulalt1]

I have not noticed the shaking at all unless the car is moving, so I don't think it's the engine mount. I already torqued the bolts and inspected for damage to the tranny mount, and there is nothing wrong with that. i'll try what you said about the engine mount again tonight, and i hope it's just a loose bolt that I may have overlooked. Thanks, I'll post again at about 3pm today.

[Orange Terror]

At idle while the car is still, the engine wouldn't move much, but under acceleration it would. Like I said, just try it, might save you some money.

[wezeles]

ya thats true i had a bad mount on mine when i bought it just gave me a loud bang when it shifted gears though from reving down.... but ya could be the 25 dollar mounts too.... you could fix thouse yourself pretty easy... dont even need a cherry picker just a jack under the engine then toss the new ones on like 4 bolts all together per engine mount maybe less.. and the trans mount is just as easy... to check that just put a jack under your trans right behind the cross memeber... "the bar underneath the trans" see if when you jack on the trans... lightly very lightly... if the trans moves or if the whole bottom of the car moves...if its just the trans moving then you need a new mount.. also not bad to replace a couple bolts kinda tight but not bad....

[93formulalt1]

I'm going to check that tomorrow. My dad is going to finally take a look at it after he gets off of work. I think we can fix it. If we don't, it will probably fix itself after the LT1 swap. I'll post what I find out tomorrow.

[93formulalt1]

Here is another update. . .
Today, after I got home from school, I put the rear end of my car in the air, with jackstands under the rear axle. I got in, put it in first, and drove it as I normally would, and the shaking started completely unprovoked. I called my dad and told him that the driveshaft was shaking, and that is what was wrong with it. He immediately replied, "Universal Joint" I said, "How do you know? Are you sure?" He said it's a cheap part and easy to change. He is getting off of work at 5pm today, and he is bringing home his creeper and a large screwdriver, and hes gonna stop at autozone to pick up the $10.99 U-Joints (front and rear, 3 month warranty), and were changing them both today. If that's not whats wrong, then I am going to say that the drivshaft needs to be balanced. Just thought you would want to know! It looks like I'll be at the Meet and Greet thing later this spring after all!

[DETROITMUSCLE]

Thats good to hear, we need all the frequent posters on this site to be there at least.

[phoenix_rising]

Heyyy Nick... I've got a new tow strap!!!

Were on our way!!!!


Muwhahahaah!

*thud* (hey, Nick, this is Jen...smacking Ben for the pic--your poor car...f-bodies aren't supposed to be disabled!

[93formulalt1]

It's not disabled. The good news is that it is going to be in perfect running order for the get-together in may! I looked again, and the center support for the driveshaft is one thing that is wrong with it, and that the U-Joints may be fine. The center support is a hard-to-find part (actually, I only checked with Autozone lol), so I don't know when I'm going to have it fixed. Should be today if all goes well!

[phoenix_rising]

Dam Nick your fast! I just posted this!

[93formulalt1]

I am fast! I have nothing to do until Dad gets home, so I guess I'll just keep whoring it up. . . lol

[93formulalt1]

Okay, yet another update on the condition of my baby:
Yesterday, I called all of the local parts stores looking for the carrier bearing for my driveshaft, and none had it. The dealership can't repair the driveshaft. As it turns out, there was actually a recall on the early 4th gen F-Bodies to replace the faulty driveshaft, but my car did not get taken in, and the recall campaign is now expired. To have the stock driveshaft replaced with one of similar design, it will cost me well over $1000 through the dealer. I could opt for a single peice Steel driveshaft through the dealership for $300 (That's including my dad's discount, he works there), or I can buy a 1-peice aluminum driveshaft from the internet for about $100. The aluminum one offers less weight, faster acceleration (very minute, but nonetheless). If anyone can tell me a better idea that is in my budget ($150), I'm all ears! If not, I'm buying one off of ebay tonight and having it shipped via the fastest available means, maybe have it by Monday, and it will be all set. I hate having to drive my car like an injured puppy. The guy at the dealership, very nice man, very smart, said to avoid any high speeds, like above 35mph, and it should last until then and not cause any further problems. Thanks for your help, and I hope to return the favor soon!