Suspension.

[spongebox]

I'm in a 05 business class with the Mercedes engine, my front suspension feels as if it wants to come apart when hitting and kind of rough road, I has the shocks replaced the kingpins have no play but I get a wobble in the steering from low forty to mid fifty mph, I'm looking into replacing the tierods and possibly front springs as my driver side seems to be sagging a bit, hoping someone has had some work done and can advise of some possible repair ideas Ty

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[EASYTRADER]

Add a Donvel Air Bag system, I posted picks of mine on here abojt a year ago. It has done magic for our ride comfort, tire life and handling. I wish i knew about it sooner.

 

[spongebox]

I looked for pictures did not see them, what was the cost?

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[Deville]

Put some equal in you're front tires.

 

[zorry]

Search "Donvel" and you'll get the original thread. Named " Donvel Air Ride "

09/10/10

Truck rides so good he dosen't realize it's been two years ago.
Looks like a worthy investment.

 

[ATeam]

Tire balance comes to mind but it could be any number of things. Take the truck to a GOOD tire shop. McMahon Tire in Fort Wayne is our tire shop of choice. They know their stuff, actually align the truck instead of just going through the motions, and they don't throw parts at the truck. Diane and I have driven past many a tire shop to get to McMahon's.

 

[Bruno]

Sounds to me like your tires are cupping and may need to be replaced. Let me guess your steering wheel rocks back and forth from 40 to 55 mph. It feels like the tires are wiggling and the front end fills like the tires are about to come off. This is from tire cupping, bad tires, or tires that out of balance.

 

[Dynamite 1]

could also be the front springs or the spring bushings. freightliner has a taper leaf front spring. the half spring could be wore out and need replacing, this could be the source of your rough ride problem not your wobble. have you inspected your tires to see if there is abnormal wear as bruno pointed out. cupping will make tires shake between certain speeds as will out of balance.

 

[Deville]

Put some equal in you're tires.

It could be the cheapest & most simple option.

 

[purgoose10]

The wiggle is probably coming from a worn out idler arm. Easy to replace. It will also cause the tire to cup along with the alignment.

 

[BobWolf]

Here is my advice, you will have a bussy day.

Look at the front axle king pin bolts do they both run the same dirrection have the nuts on the front or back especialy Dana/Spicer. These axles are notorious for requiring machine work in fact most medium duty axles need to be machined even if they dont show play . You wont be able to determine out of round or wear of a couple few thousandths unless you have a set of mahinist standards or bore guages. If both kingpin bolts face front or rear you have to bore and sleave this style axle when replacing the pins, except for replacing the axles nothing else can be done just a bad design.

ALSO......
New or old and worn drums?, front brakes out of adjustment?, did they center the drums and wheels?, worn wheel bearings and are they prpoerly loaded or tightened, if sealed units are they worn? was the truck allinged when you had the work done, did you have the tires re torqued afterwards especialy with new hubs? Is there good quality lube and not the cheap crap. are the tierods and pitman arm and steering box in good shape? check the spring perches, bolts, bushings, and springs themselves. Did your steer or drive axle shift? This check typicaly requires an alignment rack.

Were the steer tires replaced?, matching tread and even depth? are they good quality branded tires or the cheap off brand and age? off brands work OK for trailers and drives but you realy want a good quality steer. Also check the engine and transmission mounts for wear, check the the U jounts and carrier bearing for wear, check the drive shaft for dammage or on a rare occasion a thrown weight, then, run the rear axle springs, check everything preches, shackles, bolts, brakes, wheel bearings, wheels, tires check every thing. remember rear end issues can, do and will travel allong the chasis and drive shaft and raise hell with the front end.

All these can cause vibration and and shaking. keep in mind you are driving a truck and it will not drive smooth like a rolls royce there will always be a suttle harmonic shake betwene 40 and 50 mph as the chasis flexes especialy if you have leaf springs both front and rear and loaded light or empty. Its somthing you can ignore or aclimate to, if its rough thats bad. If you give the truck a good rundown you should be able to find the problem. If you have any questions feel free to call me at 585 414 7732 8 AM to 9 PM Eastern time.

Good luck.
Bob Wolf

 

[ATeam]

Put some equal in you're tires.

It could be the cheapest & most simple option.

Equal would be the cheapest and most simple option if wheel balance is the only issue. Indeed, some tire shops use that in lieu of wheel balancing new tires.

But the problem is due to something other than wheel balance, Equal is not a solution. It would only compensate for the vibration, thereby covering up the problem that caused the vibration in the first place.

It never pays to think about what is cheap when it comes to truck maintenance and repair. Think first about identifying the problem. Then think about doing what it takes to get it fixed right the first time. That may mean spending money to obtain a complete repair instead of a temporary patch job, and finding a mechanic who actually fixes trucks instead of rotating them in and out of the bay.

 

[highway star]

It never pays to think about what is cheap when it comes to truck maintenance and repair.

Actually, it can make good sense to start cheap and work your way up when troubleshooting a problem. Often it involves replacing parts that are considered routine maintainence items, and therefore still money well spent even if that part didn't solve the problem. In this case, if there is no other balancing solution being used, Centrimatics as an example, Equal would still be money well spent.

 

[BobWolf]

What A team says is right if you have a problem you only have less money in your pockett I know me previous write up was long but in most cases we wont find a mechanic in a bottle, bag, box or or packett.

Bob Wolf

 

[highway star]

Replacing front end parts can get expensive and mechanics won't always agree on what's worn out and what's within tolerance. It can be very frustrating to spend a bunch of money and still have the same problem. I can assure you there are folks out there that have dropped a bunch of money on this sort of problem, only to find out it was something simple. It's always best to eliminate the cheap and easy first.

 

[BobWolf]

Been there, done that. Yeah I try the basics and its tough to find good compentent mechanics and not parts installers.
I wasnt happy but had to resign myself this spring to the fact
$ 2,500.00 to bore and bush the front axle, new king pins, included replacing the brakes, tierod ends, and pitman arm starting to wear out. But after plowing the tread off the steers in less than six months at a grand a set I had to bite the bullett.
Thats why I prefer to run local and regional so I can have good contacts if needed. I feel blessed that I have the know how to do the repairs or be able to call somone on thier B.S. if I think Im being ripped off.

Bob Wolf

 

[jelliott]

I am a big fan of equal. We run it in all of our company trucks.

 

[BobWolf]

It dose take the road vibration out. I run it myself and dont need to reballance the wheels every time I hit a pothole.

 

[Slo-Ride]

I'm in a 05 business class with the Mercedes engine, my front suspension feels as if it wants to come apart when hitting and kind of rough road, I has the shocks replaced the kingpins have no play but I get a wobble in the steering from low forty to mid fifty mph, I'm looking into replacing the tierods and possibly front springs as my driver side seems to be sagging a bit, hoping someone has had some work done and can advise of some possible repair ideas Ty

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Not sure if you got in the shop or doing work yourself.
First thing I would do is raise the F/axle off the ground (with some cribbing in place) check wheel bearings and steering column,,looking for any movement that should not be there and listen for any parts hitting. Get a bar under the tire and try to move it..
Lower the truck and with a assitant shake the steering wheel (just like the DOT guy has you do) and again look for any movement.
Check your springs & bushings, U bolts, etc etc.Make sure those new shocks are still tight and in place.
I agree on the centering the wheels and brake drums.With the Acur-ride wheels we are running I understand this the only way to mount them. Most tire shops just throw em up there and hammer the lug nuts tight. (Mr Moose here carries his own set of centering lug nuts, something I have not been able to find yet)
No telling what kinda a proplem you maybe devolping so if you are unable to locate proplem yourself dont play around with it and get it into the shop ASAP..After a failure on the f/axle or steering it maybe to late to even stop the truck. What ever you do dont delay fixing it.

 

[EASYTRADER]

I think the donvel kit I bought was around 1k, After all this time I can honestly say it is the best money i spent on improving our comfort on the road.

I would give up my refridgerator, tv, sat dish (lol its broke anyway), internet connection, freely if i could just keep my Donvel Airbags.

Having said that, Hinos ride like crap so if you drive one with spring front ends, or any other spring front truck, you dont knlw what youre missing. Monroe truck shocks are a nice improvement as well.

The pictures are still there on the original post. Installation was easy except drilling the frame, lots of drilling fluid and good sharp bits.