other than wheel balancing and warped rotors while braking...

 

theres a really small vibration when cruising at least 60 mph.

 

i dont think its just the road...

 

and isnt that a sympton when axles are going bad?

It can be a symptom of a crook axle, although in my experiance, the axles tend to be set off by something like a pothole and then they vibrate until you either change the throttle setting, speed changes, or the axle just aligns itself again after a few seconds. Wheels out of balance tend to be much more regular and vibrate once you hit the critical speed.

 

If you suspect an axle then have a look at their cv boots, grab the axle in the cantre and check for play. It is, in my experiance, the inner axle where it fits onto the gearbox that causes the vibration so check there too. There is always some play where the axles join the gearbox so compare the two sides and if possible check some other cars that don't have vibrations.

 

To test the axle on a road test try and hit a pothole with one wheel at a time and see if the vibration is set off. Often it only happens at certain throttle settings so try it with light throttle, heavy throttle and backed off throttle.

Generally when the inner axle joint is a problem, it's when you are accelerating that you feel the vibration, and it disappears instantly when you let off on the gas. It can be a very light vibration that a mechanic who's not used to your car will not notice. Or it can be so bad you think the transmission is about to fall out of the car.

Agreed, the axles are very sensitive to throttle, which wheel balance isn't.

Axles and wheels all turn at the same speed. The driveshaft to the rear can also vibrate but it is a lot faster than the wheel/axle.

If you stick a large piece of sticky tape to a tyre you will probably be able to hear it hit the ground as the wheel turns. If the vibration is at that speed, suspect wheels or axles. If the vibration is at about four times the frequency of the tape, it could be driveshaft.

OP needs to post how many miles are on this car.

 

Inspect your inner tie rod ends, outer tie rod ends.

 

nipper

just about 158k miles..

just about 158k miles..

 

 

Thats a little early for inner tie rods, but check ball joints, inner and outer tie rods, as well as the universal joints in the driveshaft.

 

If it makes you feel better Blu has the same thing right now. Some roads make it worse then others, and sometimes its not there at all, so i am going to replace the tie rod ends and go from there. He got new balljoints 2 weeks ago.

 

He needed them.

 

nipper

+1...My 96 Legacy (201k) has the same thing going on now...around 55-60....vibration in the steering wheel and such...shook down the front end the other day and turns out Ive got a bad D/S inner tie rod...Nipper is always on the ball...

It could also be crud buildup on the wheel-hub interface, especially if you have alloys.

 

I had to take a few hours and fight that battle, recently.

 

Dave