Bent stub Axle?

[TomoHawk]

People are yelling at me in the last week or two that the one rear wheel (left rear) is loose/wo, and it wasn't. I just got two rear tyres on, so I had the tyre guy check the tyre & wheel for true-ness. He tells me the wheel & tyre are right on, so we even tried turning the brake drum 1/4 turn twice to see if the drum was funny. Apparently, that was not the reason for wheel "wobble."

Is it common for the wheel hub to be bent? The drive shafts were recently R&R'd, so could that throw the wheel off if it wasn't installed right? The other side is just fine, and it got a new stub axle & bearing.

The only thing left would be to replace the one bearing (which wasn't replaced over the winter) or to true up the hub/axle.

thxZ

Edited August 2, 2011 by TomoHawk

[zKars]

Should be easy to check run out with the tire/wheel mounted. Jack it up so you can spin the wheel by hand. Rig up a stationary stick with a pointy tip that is sitting on the ground (fixed point in space) that JUST touches the outside of the wheel rim at one spot (not the tire), then rotate the wheel by hand and watch the spacing between the stick tip and the wheel. It may take a few attempts with the tip starting at different spots until you find the "high" side, but it will become obvious if that space doesn't stay constant all the way around that you have a bent axle.

It might also be a very bad bearing that is not supporting the axle allowing it wobble as it turns. THe above measurement may not show that up.

Take care, if the axle is bent, it may be close to breaking.

[SteveJ]

Are they in your car and yelling at you, or are the following behind you? Do you feel a vibration or hear anything? Have you tried having a friend drive your car while you follow behind to see what's going on?

[TomoHawk]

The comments are from people that were following. I don't feel anything inside the car, and from what wee saw, the wobble is very small. I will look into replacing the bearing as it was supposed to be done with the other side.

[ezzzzzzz]

I doubt it is a bearing as it would be horribly noisy if this much play were present. It is remotely possible for the flange to separate from the stub axle. If the axle were actually bent you'd have a lot more problems! I'd pull the wheel and look for hairline cracks around the inner perimeter of flange. By your avatar it appears you are running alloy wheels. These bend less easily than steel but be sure it is fully seating on the flange. If your wheels are actually old aftermarket alloys that use a shanked lugnut be sure the lugsnuts aren't bottoming out before the wheel is tight. Lastly, it could be your tire is starting to delaminate causing the tread to shift giving the appearance of wobbling. That can cause some terrifying seconds if it decides to let go at an inappropriate moment. Maybe you should let someone else drive the Z while you follow to get a visual of the problem.

Edited August 3, 2011 by ezzzzzzz

[TomoHawk]

The tyres are a week old. Since there was no wobbling before the new tyres went on. I think there might be a rock or something stuck in-between there. I will get the wheel off myself and see what the wire wheel can do to the hub. Otherwise, it goes to the restoration shop Monday morning.

thxZ

[FastWoman]

I'd do what Jim (zKars) suggested. It should be easy to see the runout if there is any.

[Zed Head]

Have you checked the transverse link (LCA) bushings? Inside and outside, and the spindle pin and nuts? Maybe the transverse link, hub assembly and wheel are moving as a whole unit. Or the hub and wheel are rocking around on the end of the transverse link.

Edited August 3, 2011 by Zed Head
Added, and fixed spelling.

[TomoHawk]

The entire rear suspension has been &R'd with new bushings, spindle pins, and paint. Only the bearings weren't replaced.

[TomoHawk]

Is there a place where you can order a stub axle that is more-or-less guaranteed straight at the hub, like a brand new one would be? The first one I got from the Z salvage guy had the hub bent just as much as the old one. He was nice enough to send another at his expense. Hopefully that will be good.

I just can't figure out how it was bent or got bent in the first place? The most aggressive thing I've done all year is one autocross? IMO, the front wheels take more beating than the rear. I haven't hit any curbs or big chuckholes either; just the usual freeway bumps or some rough road patches. Nothing I haven't driven my DD over a hundred times...

[black gold man]

over-torque could cause the wheel, brake rotor and/or brake drum to distort.

http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/tech/techpage.jsp?techid=107

[TomoHawk]

That's not possible when you use a torque wrench to tighten the wheel nuts, which is what we do.