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240 Wobble in Front Wheel

VolvoScout

Member
Joined
Jun 4, 2012
Location
Upstate, NY
After replacing my strut cartridge this week, I am noticing sound coming from the front right of the car.

It's a minor sound, but rather annoying to hear over bumps.
The sound seems to go away at speeds higher than 30mph.
Seems to be more prevalent over small bumps in the road rather than large bumps.

I checked my control arm bushings, ball joint and tie rod (new as of last Winter) and they seem stiff and secure.
The passenger side anti-sway bar bushing is a tad worn and could use replacement, but I don't believe that's the source of the noise.

I did notice, that the brake disc (rotor) itself has some play, up and down & side to side.
Is this a sign of a warped rotor, bad bearing, hub or something else?

While swapping the strut cartridge, I did inadvertently jack the assembly by the center of the rotor/hub, could this have damaged one of the components?

I gave the rotor a few taps with a soft mallet and double-checked the set screws.
The face of the rotor and the back of the wheel seem smooth and without defects.
 
From your description. I'd check the wheel bearings for play. Jacking the strut by the rotor hub isn't going to hurt anything. That's all made to take the weight of the car, so it should be fine.
 
RE: checking the bearings for play
Do I have to remove the hub to check all the bearing components or is it only necessary to remove the cap, pin and nut and then check the outer bearing? Will it be pretty obvious if there is play in the bearing?
 
Lift the front end of the car and place it on jack stands. Grab the front tire at 12 and 6 o'clock and see if there's any play in the wheel bearing. If not, grab it at 3 and 9 o'clock and check for steering rod/rod end play.
 
Lift the front end of the car and place it on jack stands. Grab the front tire at 12 and 6 o'clock and see if there's any play in the wheel bearing. If not, grab it at 3 and 9 o'clock and check for steering rod/rod end play.

Yes, there is play in both axes, but more so along the Y Axis (12 & 3 position)
If I tap the tire with the car floating, I can hear metal on metal.

There is no play in the ball joint, tie rod, etc...
All the play seems to be limited to the wheel/brake rotor.

If the bearing is the problem, should I leave the car parked until I can get around to replacing it?
 
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If there is significant bearing play the bearing is probably bad and I wouldn't recommend driving the car. If it's just a little play you can probably just adjust it and be on your way. The only way to know for sure it to remove, clean and inspect both bearings and races.

That is the correct bearing kit for '80- with the larger bearings.
 
If there is significant bearing play the bearing is probably bad and I wouldn't recommend driving the car. If it's just a little play you can probably just adjust it and be on your way. The only way to know for sure it to remove, clean and inspect both bearings and races.

That is the correct bearing kit for '80- with the larger bearings.

:nod:

If it was set too tight, you've heated it up and spun a bearing you'll need a replacement hub too.
 
I replaced the front bearings this weekend.
The grease didn't look to dirty, but had a burnt smell (not sure how normal that is)
Bearings seemed to be intact (made in Germany, so I'm assuming they were original?)

Car is still experiencing sound over bumps.

To diagnose, I had someone bounce the front of the car to reproduce the sound I get while driving.
I inspected the tie rod and ball joint while they were bouncing and did not see any play.
If I applied outward leverage at the top of the tire (pulling to towards myself), the sound disappeared.

Thoughts?
 
The castle nut was only hand tight, actually somewhat loose. (Which, to my understanding is appropriate)
I removed and replaced the races as well. They seemed to fit fine, with no deformations.

The rotor seems to have trouble fitting back onto the hub (its a tad finicky and takes some precise fitting...feels snug) due to rust on the back (Although the front of the rotor looks fine)
Could it be as simple as the rotor isn't as flat on the back as it needs to be to fit flush against the hub due to some rust?
 
Tightening the lug nuts should take out any slack.

Did you wire brush the hub so the rotor sits right?

Wire brushing the rust away is a good bet. Anything in between the two machines surfaces could definitely cause wobbling and a brake pulsation.

I need to rebuild the hubs on my 242, too. Between shot brake rotors and worn bearings, my steering wheel does quite the shimmy at speed.
 
So I think this may have been a "distracting injury," leading me in the wrong direction.
I sanded the backs of the rotors...same clunk.
I replaced the rotors with a new, spare set on my shelf....same clunk.
I replaced the anti-sway bar bushing...same clunk.

While replacing the anti-sway bar bushing, under the car, I pushed up the bar and tried to follow the sound of the clunk.
I think now, it may be coming from the strut housing.

A few years ago, I had a mechanic replace the worn struts with a new set of Bilstein B4s.
The other week, I swapped my Bilsteins for the OEM Volvo Struts (shorter and hydraulic only, non-gas)
I did not check to see if the spacer was still present at the time. (Mechanic may have removed it when installing the Bilsteins)

Would the lack of a spacer cause a clunk?
Is it a bad idea (potentially damaging) to daily drive the car for a bit without the spacer?
If this is the case, anyone have a spare set of spacers?
 
IIRC only the DeCarbon and Bilstein B6 struts require the spacer. Are you sure you got the strut retaining nut tight?
 
IIRC only the DeCarbon and Bilstein B6 struts require the spacer. Are you sure you got the strut retaining nut tight?

It's tightened it down as far as it will go.

I reused one of the older steel gland nuts for the side in-question because I ran out of the newer aluminum gland nuts. It's slightly shorter than the newer style.
 
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