Hi all,

My series 3 has a bit of a shimmy above 80kph and a vibration through the steering wheel. It also dosnt feel all that solid on the road and clunks when going over bumps. I have replaced all the ball joints some time ago and have noticed the main front sub frame mounts under the radiator are pretty shagged. It has had a full wheel alignment recently as well. The tires are good quality and have plenty of tread but are probably ten years old by the look of them.

Im tipping it is the subframe mounts but thought ide better seek the opinions of the good people of the jaguar forum before I dived into anything. The rest of the bushes arnt great but arnt terrible either.

Thanks,

Jay

 

Sub-frame mounts front and rear, and maybe the wishbone bushes. The bottom wishbone bushes are a PITA to replace, the Slipflex top ones very easy. And, of course, there is the rollbar with its link and mounting bushes. Rear radius arm bushes too.

Have you checked the front wheel bearings and the stub axle. The bearing inners can wear away the stub-axle on the lower side so it tends to be missed. Have a read..........

Jaguar World Monthly Forum - wheel bearings

Jag Front stub axle wear, replace or reclaim?

 

And possibly out of balance.

Or perhaps even a bent wheel.

You may have a stack-up of various problems but for a shimmy felt thru the steering wheel I'd begin with wheels and ires, personally.

Cheers
DD

 

Thanks guys,

I swapped the tires from back to front then nipped up the wheel bearings ( there was a fair bit of rock but not excessive) and its like a different car. My bets are the tires are starting to separate internally with their age or something. I will put some new ones on when money permits.

Thanks,
Jay

 

Meanwhile, no more 80MPH's, please. Olf tires and heat can go boom. Can be very difficult to control and bring to a safe place tpo stop!!!

Decades ago, a RR rear tire on my then fairly new 49 Mercury blew at 90 +. Whew,
luckily, on a straight Texas road. Me and my passengers, car nuts as well, learned a lot!!!!

Well, my budget was exhausted by the purchase of the Mercury, but, I started gathering bucks for new skins all around.


And, remmber the Explorer/Firestone debacle!!!

Apologies for the sermon.

Carl

 

Scraping up cash to do all four at once is hard but be sure not to skimp on the temperature rating as fluctuations in either direction can be the tipping point on an old tire. It may seem expensive now but it's nothing compared to a new paint job - I had a blowout on my older 86 jag and it marred the paint all over the wheel well as the fragments of the tire flapped against the side at 80mph.

 

Im sorry, I come from a different part of the world where we drive upside down on the wrong side of the road in kilometers per hour, not miles. So the shimmy was from 50-60 mph and above. I should be more specific.

As to tires, a decent tire rated for the weight and size of a jag is anything from $200 up! makes for an expensive exercise changing tires. But tires do make or break a car.

Thanks,
Jay

T

 

More apologies. I missed the kph after 80!! Better, but still risky. Especialy if sustained driving on ah t day on a hot road!! but, inflation at the top range will help dter the deadly sidewall and tread flex.

Carl