Steering wheel shake and chrome rims

[Trexx]

I brought this up in the post about the wandering front end.

Many years ago (when I actually drove my car) I had a steering wheel shake that came when the speed got near 50mph. The car seemed to behave fine but the steering wheel would get a harmonic sorta deal going on. It wasnt hard to hang onto or anything but it wasnt right. I took the car to a tire dealer and they sold me new tires and balanced them. Still I had the shake. I took the car to an alignment shop and again they said the alignment was fine. Still the shake. I was in a local foreign car repair place one day and told the owner of my problem. He told me that he heard that the wheels I had were rumored to not be of the highest quality (Rivieras). The car has been in a garage and only wheeled out to be started every few months for the last 10 years or more so it hasnt been much of a problem LOL. But know Im ready to put the girl back on the street and Im going to have the same problem. Money is also in short supply. I was thinking about puting on chrome rims and the porsche nipple type hubcaps. Can someone tell me where I can get these for a reasonable price? Thanks

[Alfred1]

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[Will98D]

Alfred, that's an odd post to his question... sort of like answering "You salt it and cook over hot coals 6 minutes a side" to the guy who asks where to buy a good steak.
At least I enjoyed seeing the '72 Lincoln Mark IV in Fig. 32-85... I had a '73 in college, but always preferred the cleaner look of the '72 with the non-5mph bumpers and fully exposed grille.

For the wheels there are a lot of swap meets out there, often posted in this forum. You could get a cheap set of 914 steelies if you want to definitely nail it down to the wheels. Also, after so many years I assume you're in line for new tires.

[Alfred1]

His problem with shaking may be tire or wheel runout. The diagrams show him where to measure and the acceptable specs. I have also heard that on-the-car tire balancing can sometimes correct a tire and wheel imbalance when the usual method of tire balancing doesn't work. I figured it was easier to scan and post the info rather than to try to explain it.

[Peter_Hinkle]

What you describe sounds allot like cowl shake secondary to bump steer. Is the car lowered? How are the torsion bars? Have you checked the rims for straightness? How about when you go over small bumps such as railroad crossings and such, do you get a small side to side shake in the wheel then? /peter

[Trexx]

Alfred, Will, Peter, thanks for your responses/ideas. Peter, no I havent checked the wheels for straightness. Its been along time since Ive had the car on the road. If I can get some insurance in the next week or two I'll take her out and get a refresher course on what the problem was.

[914turbo]

You may want to check the amount of play / runout on your front wheel bearings. Most mechanics tend to leave them a little too sloppy / loose, which can cause steering wheel shake. You might try having the wheels rebalanced as well. Any chance the tires may be flat spotted from sitting too long?

[914gem]

Try rotating the front wheels to rear and rear to front. If the shake is still there check your struts.