First post (I think).

I purchased a used 2002 Lancer ES for my teenager as she's going off to college this summer. A few weeks back she came in and told me the car was shaking at highway speeds. I had the tires balanced and rotated, then drove the car on the highway. Sure enough, under acceleration, it vibrated. BUT, when I took my foot off the accelerator, the vibration disappeared. I also noted that the front end 'clicks' when the car is driven at low speed around a corner.

Took the car to the dealership and asked them to check the car out. They told me the motor mounts were bad and that a chunk was missing from one of the rims. They said the CV joints were okay. Since I recently had the tires balanced and rotated (and I *knew* the vibration only occurred under acceleration), I asked the tech to show me the bad motor mount AND the rim in question. He was unable to show me either. This prompted an interesting conversation with both the tech and the service writer. To summarize, I didn't pay them and won't be going back.

I'm a mechanical engineer by trade, and I have no problem troubleshooting and replacing damaged parts. However, my knowledge of Mitsubishi Lancers is limited.

Can you please offer some suggestions on how to best troubleshoot the car and find the root cause of the vibration? Or recommend a trust-worthy shop in the Charlotte area?

Thanks in advance.
Kevin in Fort Mill, SC

 

I'm no Mitsubishi technician, but a technician I am. What you described definitely sounds like a possible axle joint concern. It could also be a control arm issue, allowing the tire to move out of proper alignment under acceleration (think of the wheel trying to get away from the car under acceleration). The clicking under slow speed turns is indicative of an axle joint having play. Are the CV boots okay? Is the inside of the front wheels dark from grease and dirt accumulation? If you can move the axle shaft forward and backward, not in and out, it's likely damaged. Not sure if you can just replace the joint or need the whole axle assembly, but if you want to do it yourself, the whole shaft is an easier option. You should be able to get one aftermarket, and turn your original one in as a core. That is, if the CV joint/shaft is indeed the issue. Let me know what you find, if anything.

 

drive955i, thank you for the reply and insight.

Just spoke to my daughter - clicks only occur when turning left at low speed. I will confirm left side only when she gets home. I will also jack up the front end, inspect boots, grease on the wheels, and attempt to move the axle shafts in/out, fwd/back. I'll report back what I find.

KW

 

Just remember that the shaft should move in and out (away from and toward the wheel, for suspension height movement over bumps. If the shaft moves toward the front of the car and the back, it should not. Also, you should not be able to twist the shaft (like trying to turn the wheel by the axle shaft). That is good sign that the CV joint is worn out.
If it's another suspension component, check for play in the lower control arm bushings at the subframe end, that's the most likely suspension component failure to allow the wheel to move forward or backward in the wheel housing.
Check tie rods by turning the wheel to a position where you can hold the tie rod in your hand, and have someone else rock the steering wheel back and forth a few degrees. You will be able to feel the play in your hand if it's worn out.
Good luck.

 

Reporting back with information.

Only clicks when turning left at low speed, accelerating. Not a continuous click nor is it repeatable every time you turn left and stomp the gas. She make it click 3 out of 6 attempts...FWIW

Removed the left tire and inspected. No grease or moisture inside the rim. Outer CV boot looks good. Inner CV boot looks greasy. Unable to rotate or push/pull the CV fwd or aft. I was able to pull the CV towards the rim a TINY bit (1/16 of an in?). Sounded very dry - metal to metal click.

Pictures attached - inner CV, outer CV, inside of rim.

I did not check the lower control arm bushings or the tie rods. Will check that next.

KW

 

Are the bolts tight that hold the upper portion of the knuckle to the strut? Just thinking of other possibilities. How about the top of the strut where it mounts to the body? Can you move it at all(should not be able to). It twists, of course, but if the top hat is worn it could cause some odd behavior when accelerating and turning. Keep us, or at least me, updated. If the inner CV joint is dry, it won't necessarily click when turning, but could cause vibration on acceleration.

 

I had the same problem when driving at 60 mph in my 02 Lancer ES.

When I changed my tires, the shaking went away.

Another guy on Youtube changed the rims on his lancer and it worked fine.

 

try rotating the tires, although I don't think it is your issue, sometimes, it can be.....

 

I am having the same issue with my 2002 Lancer LS. So it is unfortunate that this conversation was never finished on this post at least. If either of the two who started the conversation know how the issue was resolved and could share that info. it would be much appreciated.

My car shakes pretty bad (has steadily gotten worse) at highway speeds. But like was stated here only when accelerating or when the car is under a load (going up hill) on the highway (60-80) But I also noticed sometimes if while accelerating I really put the accelerator down it stops vibrating or doesn't vibrate as much until the car starts to catch up with the accelerator.

Its like it is just that sweet spot of just the right amount of load at those speeds that it shakes. But under those circumstances it shakes a good amount and every time.

I am going to jack up the car tomorrow and check out the things suggested by "drive955i" (Thanks to drive955i btw for the informed advice)

If anyone knows of other posts about this issue and how it was resolved please let me know.

Thanks:t humbup:

 

Bent rims and tire balancing are the most common cause of vibration. I have also had an outer tie rod that was so bad, almost ready to break, and it caused some serious vibration

 

To RyanD3 to close and or complete this thread. I had the same problem with my Lancer ES and to my surprise the "new" passenger side motor mount which was less than three months old had begun to fail. This was the third motor mount I had installed in the same position... Needless to say once I replaced it again, the vibrations, loud noises that occurred at acceleration and deceleration went away and the lancer was quiet again. Good feeling too... I spent over $70 for that passenger side motor mount at Autozone with the warranty, but instead of replacing that poorly designed mount every three months, I decided to institute my own fix by placing a piece of "hard" rubber from another motor mount I had in between the frame and the engine mount bracket. The mount is clearly visible when you open the hood on the left side, and you can see for yourself how the mount is structured, it holds the engine in a "floating" stationary manner. The mount simply cannot hold that amount of weight for an extended period of time, so placing a piece of rubber in between it holds the engine at the proper position thus allowing the correct angle of the CV axle to hub preventing that annoying noise. Hope this helps... I decided to write this post because after doing years of research for various projects I had going on, these forums have saved me thousands and I figured it was time to lol take the time to contribute and let others know how to solve these types of problems.