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Bouncing Betty - 03 Buick with strange ride HELP


PaulBennett

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Sorta steady bounce ever so slightly. But the ride is otherwise so nice, quiet, smooth that something must be wrong. I'm not familiar with newer FWD cars to know what it could be. Not a noise but a feel. Thought bad tire but it doesn't get worse with speed as tires do. Starts to become noticeable at 20-25 mph, about 1/sec, seems maybe a bit less after warming up. But always that slight pulsation like subtle washboard in the road. If I had to guess, I'd say right front corner. Was thinking half-shaft / cv joints but hard low speed right or left turns show nothing new for symptoms. Riding on passenger side the pulsing bounce is less noticeable.

 

So what do bad struts do? Other possibilities? Just bought the 2003 Buick Century, 112 kmi, engine has been changed, pristine, but just not right.

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is it more like a vibration from a certain wheel? maybe the tire is out of balance

 

Out of balance wheels isn't this strong at low speeds and gets worse at higher speeds, particularrly specific speeds. This doesn't at all match which is why I ruled it out.

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No, it seems only to have the slight galloping sensation (imagine a pulsating speed like a horse's gait) when on smooth straight level and steady speed. Noticeable when any romping should be absent. Thanks for those driveline symptoms...adding them to my knowledge database of things not to wish for.

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Nice choice of car daily driver btw.. :thumbsup:

I'd suspect a bad/blown strut. If the strut is gone you will get a constant bounce... A simple way to check this might be to park the car on level ground, then bounce the front driver side up and down and then watch and see if the car settles within a couple bounces. Then bounce the passenger front corner and see if it bounces and bounces and bounces several more times than the other.etc...

 

Remember, replace them as a pair even if only one is bad. Also the Buick is known for its ride. These cars tend to "float" more and ride super soft. They are good for people with Osteoporosis... :lol: but if a strut is gone, even slightly imperfect road conditions will cause it to start its bouncing.

Edited by Jssuper
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