GottaAllroad

I have a shaking (not smooth) front end that I'm trying to debug:

- 100k miles
- shake/shudder is mostly felt at 65+ MPH - highway conditions.
- it happens during driving and also seems to be there during braking.
- tires are 20k Contis w/plenty of tread, recently rotated and balanced and w/proper pressure.
- alignment done 12 mo ago.
- h-sports installed and set to hard
- airbags replaced long ago (should have done a coilover?).
- new rear discs; new pads front/back

I've had two mechanics give input saying the front end needs work. Specifically, the 'upper ball joints and control arm bushings followed by an alignment' said one. The other said pretty much the same thing but also suggested new front discs.

Est: $1500 (front end) + $400 (front discs/pads).

Am I on the right path here?

I've put way too much money into this car already (air suspension; oil leaks; misc.), so I'm trying to measure my costs moving forward.

At some point, I will delay things and upgrade to a 6MT rather than fixing my current Tip AR. My end goal is a 6MT w/full mods as a car I'll run for 5+ more years, so my investment in repairing this particular AR needs to be measured against my real end goal.

This is NOT a cheap car once you need to replace parts and you cannot do the work yourself. But I'm in love, and true love is anything but cheap...

TIA - steve

girlroad

thought of control arms would not be out of the question...I have replaced both my upper and lower now and the lower were just done at about 100k...my tech is only $60 an hour though so much lower cost...I suppose you could hope no one notices if you want to sell it...to be honest these cars aren't worth much whether they are in excellent shape or not so I would also measure that factor. Good luck.

SKIroad'r

is there any play if you move the wheels from side to side or top to bottom? That would be ball joints or control arms.

Is the vibration more pronounced when braking? These cars are infamous for warped rotors.

Hit any curbs or large potholes? Possibly a bet rim, may try putting front on th back and vice versa.

Does the car pull to either side?

kingfishgrapejam

wanted to be safe and do both uppers on each side it should only be $360 for OEM parts. genuinevwaudiparts.com is a great source for parts. You wouldn't necessarily need an alignment. Parts for front brakes should be in the $250 range some labor does overlap so it would having it all done at once would make sense. $1800 seems real high though maybe find a better indy or a tech that does work on the side. Pinch bolt trouble is the only variable here everything else is simple, straight forward nuts and bolts.

25strait

Was the problem solved and what solved the problem

samm

Check inner CV joints.