Recently my srt has started to handle very weirdly. I notice it on freeways the most, though it happens on streets too. If the road gets bumpy my whole car starts vibrating very hard, and i am getting a lot of side-to-side movement. it feels like its trying to fishtail but with all 4 tires.

Its getting to the point where its almost scary to drive on the freeway because its hard to stay in my own lane.

Any ideas? Thanks!

 

I would look first at the steering damper. Cheap replacement, and describes the wandering your getting. Not out of line that it's perhaps bad at even around 15000 miles. Otherwise look at wheel balance, I had that issue with ice buildup on the wheels this past week. Cleaned them off and the car handles just fine. Otherwise could be a tire problem, or maybe tie rods/control arms.

 

My car will do that on the interstates in the trucker lanes. No shaking but it will dart back and forth in the groves made by the trucks, very unnerving. Now I recognize it quickly and change lanes quickly.

 

check your inflation. Ours acted odd when the rear passenger tire was several lbs low.

 

I too have noticed that these cars like road grooves. These cars are also very sensitive to tire conditions as noted before.

I need to replace my dampner too as I hear the creaks and pops at low speed driving in parking lots and such.

 

replacing the steering damper definitely improved the handling on my car.
as for the tracking the grooves in the road, that is usually caused by using mismatched tires in the front from the rear.
i know a lot of you say it doesn't matter, but when you get uneven wear between two different types of treads and compounds, it DOES effect handling and 'balance' and when tires have different weight and distribution of weight and shape, it can throw a car off.
i can remember how much more treadwall i had on a set of michelins i had on the same car that originally had pirelli's in the EXACT same size and type. same size, totally different amount of treadwall. some tires are just 'meatier' sometimes.

 

awesome. thanks for all the input. My rear passenger tire was very low, I filled them all up to spec but I'm still noticing it.

The car has followed grooves in the road since I got it, but it has never been a problem until now. Now its really moving across the lane and in all the lanes.

 

The style of tire you have on the car can also contribute to its tendency to follow the grooves. Some are more likely to track than others.

 

Well, it definitely isn't normal.

If it's only caused by bumpy conditions, I would check:

1. Tire wear to quickly verify wheel alignment
2. Rear sway bar - is it still connected to the chassis?
3. Rear shocks - are they still working? Test this by opening up the trunk and pushing gently up and down on the trunk sill. If you push and the car still moves up and down, you may have a shock issue.
4. Wheel bearings or suspension bushings. Jack up your car and firmly grab one wheel at a time. Try to shake the wheel in a twisting motion. It should be rock solid. Try all four wheels.

 

so i drove on the freeway a bit more today.. it happens on rough pavement of any kind (whether it has potholes or the deep trowel marks), and its a pull to the left from the rear wheels. the back wheels pull to the left then the fronts pull them back into line (thats what it feels like anyways).

I was told tire balancing. That doesnt seem right to me, but i'm no expert. Any thoughts?

 

If it is tires then swapping sides should alter the symptoms and give you a different feel. Try this before going to more expensive efforts.
Also, try grabbing the top of each wheel and shake HARD in and out on all 4 wheels to see if there is a difference(s). I had a loose rear strut bolt that took me a month to locate, drove me nuts and I could tell that there was something not nice.

Party Hardy, Woody

 

I would say steering Dampner. It's only $19.99 plus shipping. Very easy to replace and you'll see a noticeable difference.

 

sonoronos and Woody have given you sound advise. Do you have a trusted tire dealer, one that has been in business for many years? If so thoes guys have seen it all and their knowledge is amazing.Years ago I had a corvette that was acting very similar to your car. Tires were out of round. He trued them up, speed balanced the wheels on the car and all was corrected. This guy is a true professional. Good luck I hope you find the problem soon.

 

Turns out it was the suspension. I'm getting new shocks put on as soon as they come in..

Thanks for the help everyone!

 

Can you clarify? When you say it was the suspension are you refering to just the shocks and nothing else. Were all 4 bad?

 

The rear driver-side shock was blown. Nothing else. The mechanic was explaining to me how one shock can cause odd body movements that cause sway.

 

hurrah mousegu!