Shigun

Looking for some insight from anybody that might be able to help. Suspension has about 125k on it, I got some Swift Spec-R lowering springs and just got them installed (maybe 10 miles on them, total. Not 10k, 10). On acceleration I feel the vibration in the rear that makes me think it's the CV cups, however I don't know if that is normal. From my understanding, the pitting of the CV cups came after having the car lowered for a while and the cups pitted.

Anybody know if you can get the vibration immediately upon having lowered the car (IE, the cv cups have already pitted from stock suspension) and I just need to swap the cups, or should I look into the spring install themselves?

Also, which is generally recommended for the long run, spacers or cv cup swap, or will it really just be the same thing in the end?

freq

You put the Swift Spec R on shocks that already had 125K on them? Hmm.

Bucket swap will be an almost zero cost (grease only) attempt at a fix.

The usual pros will chime in with recommendations.

Shigun

Yes, I've had no issues with them thus far, so I decided to keep them until I need to replace.

I understand that the cup swap is cheapest, I just want to be sure that the vibraton immediately after the change is normal on older cups.

realblag

Your CV cups have 125k miles of pitting on them now. When you lowered the car, you moved the bearings on the axle slightly out of the pits they have slowly been wearing into the cups. As you drive the car down the road now, the bearings are trying to move from their new location in the cups back into their old one, which has the pits. This causes the vibrations. Swap your cups.

Shigun

That's what I was curious about. Thanks for the clarification!

vtec9

Absolutely the CV cups. Swap them and it will go away immediately.

S2K_Vtec

Is it easier to just throw axle spacers in?

Shigun

Yes, assuming they are 2 piece axle spacers. With the cv cup swap you have to (on each side) undo the axle nut, remove the wheel, undo the tie rod, remove the 6 bolts connecting the flange to the differential, loosen the abs cable, remove the axle, remove the cup, swap it with the other side (and, preferably, replace the cv fluid).

With the 2 piece axle spacers you remove the 6 bolts connecting the flange to the differential, push the axle back a little, put the spacer halves in, push the axle back against the spacer, bolt it back up.

With a 1 piece axle spacer, you have to do almost everything for swapping the cv cups except remove the axle all the way. You have to remove it enough such that you can put the spacer between the axle and differential, but because you have to get it over the shaft, the axle has to come out farther.

Shigun

New development.


I swapped my CV cups, all well and all, went to take it out and now it feels like something is wobbling around or so on the passenger rear. I jacked the car up, checked to make sure that everything was tight, made sure the wheel had no play, and brought the car up to speed (about 20mph) with the rear lifted to see if there was any vibration, all with no results.

Anybody have any insight on what it could possibly be?

Shigun

Another drive and listen and I've determined that there is also a clunking sound coming when at speed, but oddly it will stop if I apply brakes, regardless of speed, but when I let go of the brakes it starts up again.

EDIT: Disregard, figured out that the axel hadn't been seated all the way so it had some in and out play, which is curious given that the axle nut itself was torqued down