SiNNERZ34 Posted April 13, 2006 Report Share Posted April 13, 2006 OK...here's the deal. My new motor arrives next Monday, so I decided to beat the piss out of the one that's in it now. So, me and my room mate took it out to the warehouse complex I used to work for a little torture. After several 45+ mph turns (mostly just going WOT while whipping around the building) and some good ol' FWD smoke shows, I noticed a few...things. First, my rear tires were fighting so hard to stay in one spot, the tread blocks tried to pull off the tire rather than just get dragged around and make a flat spot. Neat, but kinda bumpy. One of em is probably shot. Second, well, this is the one that has me stumped. Ever since, my front left tire is always trying to turn left a bit. Plus, the same tire spins a little when I step on it more than maybe 1/3 throttle from a dead stop. Also, there is occasionally a little pop when I turn the wheel, again from the front left. It also feels a little jinky, like it has a teeny-tiny shimmy in the front end. I'm (assuming) something got fubared during the little torture session. The rack, hubs/bearings, shocks, tie rod ends, and hell, the front brakes are all brand new (i've only had the car since Dec. 2005) as are the tires. The car was aligned about 2 weeks ago. Everything still seems solid down there, and I've run out of ideas what it could be. I could just try and get it re-aligned, but it would be a waste since if something IS broke, i'd have to fix it and align it again. Just wondering if anyone has any ideas...i hate "diagnostic fees" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
19Cutlass94 Posted April 13, 2006 Report Share Posted April 13, 2006 Im kinda leaning towards you need an alignment, since you say your tire is trying to turn left when the wheel is straight, means your "toe" is out of adjustment. Id start out with that and see if they find anything else wrong during the alignment. BTW, why would you go WOT around corners at 45mph for smoke? Now that your hurting your tranny better look into that as well. You dont smoke the tire around a corner because its bad for the tranny, differential, cv joints etc. If you going to smoke em at all, do it in a straight line, but even then its not good for the tranny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regal_GS_1989 Posted April 13, 2006 Report Share Posted April 13, 2006 OK...here's the deal. My new motor arrives next Monday, so I decided to beat the piss out of the one that's in it now. So, me and my room mate took it out to the warehouse complex I used to work for a little torture. After several 45+ mph turns (mostly just going WOT while whipping around the building) and some good ol' FWD smoke shows, I noticed a few...things. You may have thought that its just gonna beat the piss out of the motor, but what you did there beat the piss out of almost everything on the drivetrain, except for the motor. I wouldn't be surprised if there is internal transmission damage the shows its ugly face sometime after the motor gets replaced. First, my rear tires were fighting so hard to stay in one spot, the tread blocks tried to pull off the tire rather than just get dragged around and make a flat spot. Neat, but kinda bumpy. One of em is probably shot. If you dragged the tires long enough, you flat spotted them. Nuff said. Second, well, this is the one that has me stumped. Ever since, my front left tire is always trying to turn left a bit. Plus, the same tire spins a little when I step on it more than maybe 1/3 throttle from a dead stop. Also, there is occasionally a little pop when I turn the wheel, again from the front left. It also feels a little jinky, like it has a teeny-tiny shimmy in the front end. Well, i dunno what all your little "tourture session" involved, but you could have bent a tie-rod, or maybe when you got the car aligned, they didnt tighten up the lock nut for the tie-rod end, and it worked its way out of alignment. As for the pop, and the shimmy in the front end, it could very well be a CV joint on its way out (Possibly damaged by the one wheel wonders). I'm (assuming) something got fubared during the little torture session. The rack, hubs/bearings, shocks, tie rod ends, and hell, the front brakes are all brand new (i've only had the car since Dec. 2005) as are the tires. The car was aligned about 2 weeks ago. Everything still seems solid down there, and I've run out of ideas what it could be. I could just try and get it re-aligned, but it would be a waste since if something IS broke, i'd have to fix it and align it again. Just wondering if anyone has any ideas...i hate "diagnostic fees" Have you learned your lesson now?? It sounds like you put that car through a lot of torture, and now you are paying the price for it. Like i said before, what you did beat the piss out of pretty much eveything drive train related, except for the engine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
19Cutlass94 Posted April 13, 2006 Report Share Posted April 13, 2006 These engines will take more abuse than anything in the drivetrain. Wouldnt surprise me if when you get the new motor put in, you find more problems like cv joints and tranny troubles down the road. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chadz34 Posted April 13, 2006 Report Share Posted April 13, 2006 OK...here's the deal. My new motor arrives next Monday, so I decided to beat the piss out of the one that's in it now. So, me and my room mate took it out to the warehouse complex I used to work for a little torture. After several 45+ mph turns (mostly just going WOT while whipping around the building) and some good ol' FWD smoke shows, I noticed a few...things. First, my rear tires were fighting so hard to stay in one spot, the tread blocks tried to pull off the tire rather than just get dragged around and make a flat spot. Neat, but kinda bumpy. One of em is probably shot. Second, well, this is the one that has me stumped. Ever since, my front left tire is always trying to turn left a bit. Plus, the same tire spins a little when I step on it more than maybe 1/3 throttle from a dead stop. Also, there is occasionally a little pop when I turn the wheel, again from the front left. It also feels a little jinky, like it has a teeny-tiny shimmy in the front end. I'm (assuming) something got fubared during the little torture session. The rack, hubs/bearings, shocks, tie rod ends, and hell, the front brakes are all brand new (i've only had the car since Dec. 2005) as are the tires. The car was aligned about 2 weeks ago. Everything still seems solid down there, and I've run out of ideas what it could be. I could just try and get it re-aligned, but it would be a waste since if something IS broke, i'd have to fix it and align it again. Just wondering if anyone has any ideas...i hate "diagnostic fees" What the hell is wrong with you. All of the shit you did had nothing to do with the engine, you should have just let it hit the limiter for hours, that way no tranny or steering components get wrecked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calvin Posted April 14, 2006 Report Share Posted April 14, 2006 Don't listen to these guys who keep making unsubstantiated claims that everything you do to your car "is bad for it" and you are an idiot or abuse your car. Most of these guys will drive a car for 225,000 miles and then think their car "suddenly broke" because they "floored it" and it was "real hard on the engine". Shit wears out! Even if you think driving slow is "nice" to your car, don't honestly believe that making a hard left turn "blew" your 16 year old balljoint that has never been greased, or that the "one wheel peel" caused your CV axle with no grease to start clicking. If you think about the friction conditions present, launching hard without spinning subjects the axle to more force than spinning the wheel does. Believe it or not, OEs dyno engines at WOT for benchmarking purposes for hours, days, and weeks! That being said, I suspect based on your symptoms you have a bad balljoint. Incidentally, you also probably did also use up some transmission in your fun, but cars (especially domestics) are intended to be used up and thrown away (the whole idea behind GM guy Alfred P. Sloan's "planned obsolecense"). Next time you go out to do this type of stunt again, make sure and leave the shifter in 1, or at least make sure the trans is not shifting while you have the pedal down, since most tranny wear occurs using up the clutches trying to shift under WOT load. Stuff will wear out somewhat faster if you work it harder, but stuff will wear out anyway, and we are talking about cheap cars. Live and learn. Kurt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiNNERZ34 Posted April 14, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 14, 2006 Well that was interesting. That's what I get for posting past my bedtime I guess. You may have thought that its just gonna beat the piss out of the motor, but what you did there beat the piss out of almost everything on the drivetrain, except for the motor. I wouldn't be surprised if there is internal transmission damage the shows its ugly face sometime after the motor gets replaced. Have you learned your lesson now?? It sounds like you put that car through a lot of torture, and now you are paying the price for it. Like i said before, what you did beat the piss out of pretty much eveything drive train related, except for the engine. Yes, I learned my lesson. Never again mention how I think I broke something Torture involved many things...including trying to hold 7k rpm coasting down the straights and romping about in the turns, preceded and followed by front-wheel tire carnage. Tranny was in 2nd most of the time...too much lack of balls in first. That torture session ate a good half quart of oil and it's developed a little tick. Idle is rougher, and the smoke clouds even bigger. I would video tape a cold start for ya so you could see it, but at cameraphone resolution it wouldn't do it justice. And flexing the car like that made one hell of an exhaust leak...but the flange on the downpipe was already bent, so the exhaust sealer goop probably fell out. Kinda cool, tho, when blue smoke comes through the hood vents at startup lol. The transmission is, afaik, still factory parts, never rebuilt. It, too, already had it's problems. It slips bad in 4th, randomly happens while cruising on the highway, and the 2-1 downshift is way rough. And that was before I beat it up. I am WELL AWARE of how shitty 4t60e trannys are. Not really worried about it, since it needs a rebuild anyway. The Lumi's temporary nickname is "Maypop" since you never know...it may pop. That's not the point, though. I'm officially not going to be in town for the motor swap, which sucks. I learned a lot last time around, and was hoping to use some of what I learned. So, unless I have time to get under there this weekend, I'm not going to know what broke in the front end till I get back. As for the tire, it doesn't have a flat spot, it has a lump. Really, it's strange, and much worse than the 'bumpbumpbump' of a flat spot. Oops. I'm not going to go through and respond to each "you're an idiot" comment, since I was asking about suspension and steering, not my IQ. Although I had 2 w-bodies before this, I didn't work on them beyond bolt-ons and basic repairs. Now, I've learned how to break down and rebuild an LQ1, and learned a bit more about how different parts of the car interact. All I have to say is I thought the reason we were here was because we all enjoy a certain type of car, whether we enjoy them by aesthetic customization, adding gobs of horsepower, driving them like show queens, or beating the piss out of them. After I pay my bills, I spend money on my cars. I'm not afraid to break things, since it just gives me an excuse to learn how to fix them. Stuff will wear out somewhat faster if you work it harder, but stuff will wear out anyway, and we are talking about cheap cars. Live and learn. Amen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CowboyBilly9Mile Posted April 15, 2006 Report Share Posted April 15, 2006 As for the tire, it doesn't have a flat spot, it has a lump. Really, it's strange, and much worse than the 'bumpbumpbump' of a flat spot. Oops. Sounds like a seperation (chord) in the tire. This has the potential to make the tire shread to bits, without any further warning than your current observation that it exists, and it usually occurs at inconvenient times such as at freeway speeds. I hope you catch my drift concerning safety; please address it responsibly and in a timely manner. This lump (bulge?), plus the more than likely goofy wear patterns you put into the tires (front) can/will cause a vehicle that is perfectly aligned to pull to one side. Tire defects like we're talking here don't show up on an alignmant rack. I would like to suggest you rotate front tires to back and back to front, but since you said you ground flat spots into the rear tires you will probably just put a new feel up front. Sounds like it's time for a set of new shoes on all four corners. *A heads up, if you got wheel hop here and there during this adventure, this opens up a new can of worms concerning possible damage. I'm also curious....what kind of numbers did your speedometer show? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digitaloutsider Posted April 15, 2006 Report Share Posted April 15, 2006 You know, when I saw this post, I thought for a second that maybe I accidentally stumbled upon some ricer forums. I feel dumber now, having read it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiNNERZ34 Posted April 15, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 15, 2006 You know, when I saw this post, I thought for a second that maybe I accidentally stumbled upon some ricer forums. I feel dumber now, having read it. So nice to know there's so many nice people out here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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