Speedo/wheel balance?

[Garth]

Had my first reasonable drive this week *smile* . Couple of things need attention..

At motorway + speed there is a 'shake' in the steering wheel, I am on new 15" CR500 - came from CC all fitted and balanced! Seems like a balance issue to me so will get them to the local tyre shop and checked. Could it be anything else?

Speedo also stopped working. 'jiggled' the wire coming out of the sessor on the rear wheel and this got it working again a couple of times, but now dead. Will check the sensor, but is there anything else I should be checking?

Thanks

Garth

 

atlast

[Tony Whitley]

Wheel bearings need adjusting? Track rod ends worn?

[Stuart McGill]

Garth

 

Worth bearing in mind that if this is your first 7 then the steering wheel wobble MAY be the norm and could be more the road surface as opposed to wheel balancing/ bearings/ rod ends/ anything problematic.

 

My current 7 and the previous one had slight steering wheel wobble but I was told it was okay

 

On the other hand something may be wrong so don't rely on this... mine gets bobbly at about 70ish but on some surfaces there is no wobble.

 

Stuart

[Garth]

Car is new, so unlikely to be worn track rod ends? Not sure how one adjusts the bearings?

will keep an eye on it thanks

Garth

 

atlast

[jeffi]

Garth - re the sensor - take the rear wheel off, turn the hub by hand with the ignition on (engine not running) and you should see a yellow LED flash as the toothed wheel passes the sensor. This will prove the sensor is ok. Sounds like the speedo unit itself - is the mileage showing in the LCD or has this gone blank? I had this and it was the speedo unit itself.

 

Re the wobble - you could try swapping front with back wheels to eliminate the tyres - also have you got the directional orientation correct? Re-check all the bolts for correct torque... Also, is there any play on the steering rods - test by trying to pull them up and down - there should be no movement felt in the track rod ends. One of mine was slightly clicking when I did this and was the TRE nut not tight!.

 

Jeff

[Garth]

Thanks Jeff.

If the light on the sensor is working would that mean that there is not likely to be any problems with the wiring (broken/loose connection)? The LCD display on the speedo is still showing a reading - as it was when it stopped working! I can flick between the odometer and trip meter.

Will check out the steering as suggested, I am pretty sure the wheels are rotating in the correct direction, but will double check this too. Cheers

Garth

 

atlast

[Tony Whitley]

You didn't say it was new 😔

 

Checking the bearings is a simple matter of jacking the front of the car up and then pulling at the top/bottom of the wheels to see if there is any play.

[Garth]

Sorry 😳 and thanks

 

atlast

 

Edited by - Garth on 3 Aug 2010 07:55:25

[jeffi]

Hi Garth - if the sensor LED flashes then there must be 5V and Earth getting to it, however, that doesn't guarantee that the signal output is getting through the loom to the input pin on the speedo connector, or the speedo itself is kaput. Check the sensor gap too as it won't flash if that is too big! The speedo needle can stop at some point around the dial and 'stick' there as they are stepper motor based, but I think they initialize and return to zero if working correctly. Pity there isn't a donor nearby to swap them around and see what happens. I presume you have removed the connector plug and reseated it? If you're feeling ambitious you could see if there is a signal reaching the speedo end but you'd need a DVM, steady hand to avoid shorting things out and an assistant to turn the hub - may be easier to box it up and return to Sean for a replacement if the sensor flashes and seems OK. I got my replacement within a few days. Are all the other instruments OK otherwise there could be a fuse out. Good luck!

 

Jeff