SHAKE, RATTLE & ROLL

[drifto]

At 15 years old my r32 gts is getting a little loose.

I have a bad vibration thru the driveline that no one can pick, squeaks, groans and clunks from all corners of the car & most interior parts like air vents, sunroof, door trims etc, all rattle to the tune of the car.

Obviously running around Sydney streets and now bad country roads on coil over bilsteins doesn't help, nor the urathane bushes on the adjustable castor rods or the solid aluminium spaces in the rear sub frame.

But has anyone begun the task of sorting all their annoying squeaks and rattles and what have you found?

What are the common parts that need replacement, and who can do it?

Any comments are appreciated.

[ENTYSU]

shit man i hate that when that starts too happen ... yes mainly due too hard suspension and soilid mounts cause the problems ....just spoils a nice looking car... ok what i have found too do is , im not sure if your mechanicly minded or not but i do a thurer check every six months all over my car yes it takes me nearly a whole day too do this check but its worth it ....... i check all ball joints, bushes diff slap, caster rods, strut braces, lower and upper control arms, panels, interior plastics and dash, seats , also head light supports , its amazing how many times ive had too change clips from interior covers due too hard suspension...also check your sub frame for any fractures due too stress from adjustables after a while they do tend too form small fractures..... its a long and painfull process mate but in the end it will pay off . i recomend doing the check up your self just for reasurance and peace of mind cause the owner of the car will always do a thurer job not like other ppl ..... good luck with the squeeks....

P.S.......Being a mechanic for a while now ive had a commen experience with driveline grones, NO1 check you uni joints at either end of your drive shaft .... its the most commen part for this grone, also check your weel bearings and diff Lash, if its not that well then go too gearbox , EG what gear does it grone in and or what speed....

[drifto]

Cheers Daniel,

I can do alot of mechanical stuff myself but never seem to have the right tools and always get stuck half way thru a job with the car in pieces and no way to get to Super Cheap!

However, it's a start.

As for the driveline probs, I swapped the locker diff it had in it for the original when it became really noisy. Now the original is as noisy and keeps throwing a leg out of bed when things get twisty.

I had the diff mechanic inspect the driveline for possible causes of vibration and he told me the rear uni was rooted. I had the tailshaft sent to Spies Hecker engineering in Wollongong to have a new uni put on and the whole thing balanced. They sent it back saying there was no imbalance and the uni was fine, and they didn't charge for it.

I recently had an engine swap and one mount was broken, but a new mount didn't fix the vibration.

It's irrelavent of what gear i'm in, but generally at about 45-50km/h and worse under load.

The only thing that it might be is I first began to feel it when one of my rear cradle bushes collapsed, the other went aswell at which point driving the car was interesting. You can't buy new cradle bushes for skylines, only a whole new cradle that includes the bushes.

You can fit the pineapples to tighten things up or change the inclanation of the cradle but only when the original bushes remain intact. I had to install the alloy cradle spaces from JMS and that basically locks the subframe to the car without the cushioning of the original bush.

I have been told that the vibration is inherent and that a stock setup is designed to minimise this. Having a solid mount just transferrs the vibrations through the car and shakes everything to bits but there is actually nothing broken or umbalanced therefore just live with it.

Sound correct ????

[ENTYSU]

yes indeed if you have those mounts solid now i have the same thing in my 180 it feels like your on a rail track ... you will think everythings stuffed but its just the transfer of every lil bumb from the road through the solid mounts .....

im just a bit concerned about when your under load it gets worse ... i realy reckon its your uni joints .... just get under your car with the handbrake on and what u need too do is too see at each uni joint check if there is any sideways movment or up and down if there is more than 1 mil there stuffed and need too be replaced if not your gonna get a drive shaft coming throught the floor too say hello too you .....

but as for the vibrations through solid mounted bushes well you cant do squat about it just change them back over too rubber but then whats the fun in that .....

[Guest INASNT]

You will have those problems with any 15 year old car.

Hence dont buy an old car

[ENTYSU]

still when u have your heart set on a car it dont matter how old the dam car is ... my one is a 1990 model and it still looks the part

[drifto]

Had a service and they found a cracked chassis bolt, one of the concerning creaks and groans from the car has gone and the vibration is not as bad.

[ENTYSU]

good stuff ....

[benl1981]

If you figure out the suroof one then please let me know.

If I have the shutter open (but not the roof) there is a ratle and you can move the bracket upa nd down a bit.

Cheers