My son has had a cracked exhaust manifold on his 87 for over a year, now. Just a week ago he found a crack in the "S" pipe right below the manifold. His XJ runs just fine. I think you can put that one off until you get some more cash in your pocket.

 

She runs top notch now. That's the report. I hope this thread helps those with vibration problems

 

vibes are back from 60-80mph wtf...naturally i called the shop and they said to bring it in and they'll see what the underlying problem could be. (They also assured me that the previous work done was required and WAS contributing to the vibration) I can say that they are correct because the vibration is not nearly as nasty as it was...could it be the rear drive-shaft u-joints? Rear differential gears?

 

anybody got any other ideas?

Here is what can be crossed off:

1) front u-joints
2) front driveshaft
3) tire balancing
4) alignment

I was told today that my front end bushings are pretty worn and showing their age. Could this be contributing to this highspeed vibration? Gears? How does a driveshaft (rear) get out of balance?

 

get a new steering damper. replace the rod end's. and replace the control arm bushings. these could all be the cause of vibrations. i would also check the rear u joints just do them your self though. they are about 10 to 30 bucks at auto zone and you only need pliers a vise and hammer to do it.

 

ok, rear U-joints didn't solve the problem, but were definitely contributing because the whole thing could wobble. But the vibe is still there

This is SO frustrating!

 

SO, it looks like the original shop did shoddy work. I really like the guys, so I was just as surprised as they were.

On the front: The bolts they used to hold the driveshaft to their respective ends unthreaded causing the entire shaft to be loose and vibrate while driving.

Rear end: They used bolts that were too long and covered it up by using washers to be able to make the bolts tight.

So I took it back to the original shop stating that this was unacceptable (especially for the price I paid!) They are going to take a look at it today and I think the shop owner is gonna kick someone's *** for doing a crappy job. I'd understand if it was something done trailside, but in a shop with tons of bolts and tools...no reason for stuff to come undone.