serious wheel wobble jimny

If it starts up after hitting something rather than being speed related it sounds as if you have damaged something that contributes to steering damping, and the only things that do that are the Kingpin Bearings and the rubber seals on the back of the hubs. When you say that there is no detectable play in the wheels you did check this with the car jacked up didn't you?. I suppose it could also be a knackered shock absorber - have you tried bouncing the car?

Wheels out of balance tends to show up at a single speed any faster or slower then it goes away.

Whichever way it is not worth scrapping as any garage worth its salt would be able to diagnose it for you

Martin

If it was the Kingpins I would have thought any garage worth its salt would have picked it up straight away.

Perhaps you need to have someone watching from outside the car, perhaps from another car when it happens. Its a shame you do not live closer as we could get together and investigate further.

(a possible cheap way of getting it investigated is to put it in for an MOT!)


Martin

If there is enough leakage for you to notice then there is something wrong. The knuckle joint has a small amount of grease in it which is to lubricate the internal mechanism. If the grease is leaking out then it has been diluted by either oil or water. It is most likely to be diluted by oil. The oil is leaking from inside the axle through the oil seal. This is because:

1. The oil seal is worn allowing oil to seep past the seal
2. The KingPin bearings are worn, allowing the knuckle to wobble and permitting oil to seep past the seal.
3. The axle is bent or the wheel bearing is shot. Again the wobble caused by these are permitting oil to seep past the seal

If it is water then the large rubber seal on the knuckle is letting water into the joint and then its leaking back out.

It it is axle oil based leakage then it smells real bad.

Martin

Hi there,

Looks like you just need to give your steering knuckles a good overhaul as you say there's no play in the bearings.

My Jimny needs the same, there is a noticable amount of grease coming out through the seals onto the swivel ball on mine too.

It should go without saying that the oil seal in the axle should be replaced when the rubber and felt seals are replaced. Just take your time and keep everything in the order it came off, clean it all up and put it together with some gasket sealant in it to stop water getting in. Pack your bearings and CV's in CV grease and all will be fine.

Be careful removing the oil seal in the axle tube though as you don't want to damage the axle tube.

I've not done this on a Jimny yet but I assume it's the same as an SJ, which i have done both mine and a friend's now.

Yes you do need a bearing release tool and a small torque wrench to get it all torqued back together nicely. I have guessed with my SJ but will do it properly with this car.

You might want to replace the wheel and kingpin bearings and their runners whilst you have the steering joint in bits. The kingpin bearings have shims though and these can be removed to make them a little tighter. You'll need a spring balance to get them right with the new seals on.

The bearing tool can be got from Bits4Vits ebay shop for just under £44.00 delivered or twice the price at Suzuki's.

I've ordered my tool this evening and have to do my axle seals when it's warmer and I have to fit my fixed hubs soon too.

Kirky