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Sloppy ride

8K views 12 replies 9 participants last post by  Vex Viper 
#1 ·
Hi,
I have a 2005 x35. The ride on this vehicle is so sloppy and ican't seem the figure out why. Just changed the original struts and NOTHING changed. When i steer it, it is tight but when i hit bumps, espeically in a turn, it seems wavy and out of control a bit. the sway bar links have been replaced as well as the fornt end parts and nothing seems to make much of a difference. Any ideas?
I have 225k on it and rhe engine still runs great and is very clean (change oil every 3k), I would love to put another 100k on this baby... but i hate the ride
 
#2 ·
I have 175k on mine, but I did put the strut bar on mine and i felt an improvement with the roll.

With cars going up in mileage it is not uncommon to look into bushings of the chassis. Inspect those or add more solid items like front strut bar rear lower chassis bars and maybe some sway bars, they do offer coil over options for our car if you don't plan to tow with it and you can lower it.
 
#3 ·
If you changed your struts to an aftermarket brand, that may be the problem. Not so much the shocks, but the springs on aftermarkets are often not as beefy as the originals and will lead to a mushy ride. If you don't replace with OEM struts, which are quite expensive, at least reuse the springs if possible.
 
#4 ·
I’m in a similar boat, I have 220k on my 03 fx45 and it rides like yours. On a lift, the wheels had a lot of play which were due to the lower control arm bushings. Replaced the arms, sway bar end links, sway bar bushings, tie rod ends and it still doesn’t ride tight! On top of that, I get a lot of steering wheel shake between 65-75mph. I feel like if I’m making a slight left at those speeds, the vibration goes away. I’m not sure what the issue is and if it’s all intertwined
 
#5 ·
How are your front wheel bearings? Very common problem with the FX. Vibration that is lessened or increasing when turning is usually related to the wheel bearings.

I changed mine out at 60K Km and 80K Km left and right respectively. I'm at 120K Km now so they may be coming again soon.
 
#7 ·
I replace the passenger side a couple months ago and the driver side a couple years ago. I’ll have to jack up car and check for noise but didn’t notice anything when I did brakes recently. I also replaced a brake hose as it was collapsed and the caliper was sticking.
 
#9 ·
I had the same problem, you change lanes on the freeway and the car would come loose a bit. Scary! I also had the vibration in the steering wheel. So I had the brakes changed and even replaced the ceramic rotors. Then I had the struts, springs and rear shocks replaced. The steering is a log tighter handles way better and the car sits about 2 inches higher. I still have a small vibration in the steering wheel. I think it could be from my worn out bushings. I posted the pictures. Tell me what you think.

Oh and my car is a 2004 FX35 RWD 97k miles.
 

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#11 ·
unfortunately i cant tell from a pic if things are worn out or not. In my case, i knew the lower control arms were wore because when i got it on a lift, the wheels were severly sagging.





I had the same problem, you change lanes on the freeway and the car would come loose a bit. Scary! I also had the vibration in the steering wheel. So I had the brakes changed and even replaced the ceramic rotors. Then I had the struts, springs and rear shocks replaced. The steering is a log tighter handles way better and the car sits about 2 inches higher. I still have a small vibration in the steering wheel. I think it could be from my worn out bushings. I posted the pictures. Tell me what you think.

Oh and my car is a 2004 FX35 RWD 97k miles.
 
#10 ·
I bought a 2004 FX35 with a whole slew of worn down problems.. Bare in mind that that they recommend that a tire alignment is suggested each time you change a suspension part.. Calculated risk may go nicely accordingly to the suggested tire rotation schedule..

4 Lower Control Arm Bushings: stabilizes the control arm movement from up/down side to side forces during braking, driving over bumps, cornering and acceleration..

With new tires, tie rods AND scheduled rotations/ alignments, - -be ready to accept the fact to discover you just suck in driving to care for a sleeper beast like this..
 
#12 ·
I just found out by looking through my old Infiniti inspection invoices that my left rear radius arm is bent, must of happened when I accidentally clipped a curb when turning at a light lol. So I'm going to purchase both the left and right side from RockAuto and they already come with new bushings. I might as well buy a torque wrench because I don't believe in (GoodenTight).

Also, replacing all four wheel bearings wouldn't hurt. This should take care of the slight vibration in the steering wheel at freeway speeds.
 
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