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Front end shaking

23K views 34 replies 11 participants last post by  polman500 
#1 ·
The last two rides my 1000XP has developed a shake in the front end, starts at around 49 MPH and get worse the faster I go. I am going to pull the wheels and start with a visual inspection of the components I can see. I hope I can see something obvious.


Anyone have a suggestion as to what to check first if I don't see anything?
 
#2 ·
Before you pull tires ,,,rod ends, ball joints and wheel bearings wear fast. I had 800 miles when I needed to replace ball joints and 1 rod-end on each side.I just replace everything with aftermarket.And since I was in there I switched to GP bushing's
Jack up front end
Put both hands on each wheel in the 9 and 3 o’clock positions. Gently push the wheel to the front and back simulating turning the steering. You’ll be looking for looseness in the steering. If one wheel moves slightly before the other, you could have worn steering tie rod ends.

Placing your hand at the 12 o’clock position on the wheel while then pushing in at the top will reveal loose wheel bearings. If there is any movement to the slightest pressure from the 12 o’clock position, you might have a wheel bearing issue.

The last test is for the ball joints that hold the upper and lower control arms to the wheel hub or steering knuckle. Pulling out, then pushing in on the bottom of the wheel while observing the Upper and lower A-Arms will reveal loose ball joints.
 
#3 · (Edited)
Do you have stock tires? It's always a good idea to check suspension/steering components regularly but out of balance/out of round tires are usually the culprit for high speed shakes in my experience.
My brand new 1k with no miles would shake its head like a mad bull from 45 on up. Replaced the OEM tires with good ones and now its smooth as silk at all speeds.
I've got a new set of PXT's for sale cheap if anyone is interested. They will have to be balanced though.
 
#4 · (Edited)
I'm running a set of Interco Sniper 920s 8 plys. Had them balanced BUT I ride hard and take a lot of rock hits at speed so they may need rebalanced. I'm going out to the shop to take a look at the machine. I will report back with what I find.


Polman, what tires are you running?


Mike
 
#6 ·
Just finished up doing my inspection, looking at what Duse suggested. Sure enough the inner tie rod ends have about a 1/8th inch of slop on EACH. I am surprised they didn't just fall off. The rest checked good. Unreal for a machine I bought new in May.:sad Still going to rebalance the tires.


Mike
 
#7 · (Edited)
I am in the last month of the warranty. Dealer just told me the tie rods are not covered. Normal wear and tear he said.

Anyone know of a better than stock tie rod end?

Mike

EDITED TO ADD

Just found an upgrade kit from a company here in Utah. Here is a link to the parts I ordered in case anyone else is interested.


https://www.ebay.com/itm/352138047139
 
#10 · (Edited)
Got them installed, they are a lot more beefy than stock. Time will tell how they hold up.
 
#8 ·
Dug a little deeper this morning, pulled the wheels off to get them rebalanced and found the lower A arm bushings are shot. I know I ride hard but hell I only have 1600 miles on the machine. I lubed them every other ride and the machine has never seen any mud. We have been in drought with no rain for months. Getting kind of pissed, you would think a $12,000 plus machine would hold up better.
 
#11 ·
Were the others just loose or did they really need full replacement? I'd be totally shocked if those few miles would necessitate tie rods already. Hell, my 2001 Honda Rancher with ~8500 miles has factory suspension still intact.
 
#12 ·
The tie rods themselves weren't bad, just the inner ends were loose. The outer ends were fine. The OEM rods are 11mm. The new rods are 12mm for the heavier tie rod ends. As far as the A arm bushings, it was the lower arms mainly on right side. I ordered a complete set of new delron bushings, however they won't get installed till a later date. I went ahead and replace the worn ones with OEMs to get it back ridable sooner. The new OEMs were tighter but still have a little play. I am changing to a little heavier grease in the future.
 
#14 ·
Well, it's kind of coincidental I was doing maintenance on the machine last night. The inner joints were loose. I have just over 4k on the odo now. So I have to say the new rod ends are no better than the OEMs. Don't know what brand to try next:sad
 
#15 ·
Well that’s unfortunate. Sorry to hear it. Super ATV has ball joints but I’m not sure on tie rods. Maybe worth a call?




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#16 ·
I called American Star racing today and discussed the wear issue with the tie rods I purchase in Oct. They said depending on riding condition the tie rod end could wear out faster than normal. Kind of a generic answer, but I agree. I do ride very aggressively and in very rocky conditions most the time.

That said, the American Star folk are sending a new set of their racing tie rods to try. GREAT customer service!!! Below is a link to what they are sending.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/American-S...rentrq:000d57d416b0aaa321c123fbffd9a024|iid:1
 
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#17 ·
Damn, good to know! Too bad I just ordered the set you had prior!


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#18 ·
I truly think as long as I ride like I do and where I do, I will be replacing the tie rod ends, a-arm bushings and wheel bearings every six months or so. The price of having fun.:sad:
 
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#19 ·
That makes 2 of us. Oh well I don’t intend to change that! Keep us updated on how the new set holds up.


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#22 ·
By hard I mean, I am standing on the pegs at racing speed most of the time no matter what the terrain. As an ex desert racer old habits are hard to break:smile

I was setting up a poker run a couple of weeks backs, the route ran past a dairy. They had a scale there to weigh the milk trucks. I drove across them with my fully loaded 1000. To my surprise they said I was at 1380#s. 200 of that is me. The power of these machines mask all that weight. I could slow down and save a little wear and tear but like a said old habits are hard to break:|
 
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#25 ·
My old 800 spent most of it's life running the way you ride cutter. I ended up having to rebuild and reinforce the entire rear frame because I broke it pretty good. Also had to weld and reinforce the arm mounts on the front cause I broke them too lol. As for bushings, I got into a routine of alternating doing the entire front one season and then the entire rear the next. That's around 2500 miles per season though running really fast and jumping and such through extreme terrain as you do. I gave up trying to keep everything super tight after the first few years and just fell into my yearly routine to keep it reasonably tight.
 
#27 ·
Like many here, I have this issue as well. Drives me insane as anything 45+ is a gamble on when it's going to start wobbling all over. The front ends on these are pretty sensitive it seems.

One thing I've noticed. I have JCCapri bushings, and when I had installed those, the A Arm mounts had started to get ovaled out. The bushings are pretty tight because I installed the Cecco Braces on the a arm mounts, but I can't help but wonder if the ovaled out bolt holes are causing this.

I replaced tie rods, I replaced Ball Joints, and I replaced wheel bearings with NO CHANGE to the shaking. I even took it into the dealer to see if they could align it/get the shaking to stop and they couldn't.

Something I've learned to deal with but it's definitely frustrating. The worst is on pavement when I'm going from trail to trail. I can no longer go over 35-40 on pavement because it shakes so bad. Been getting worse with age too.

If someone figures out a fix, I'll be the first in line to try it.
 
#29 · (Edited)
I have had same problem at HMT this year. at the black top connectors ,shak'n around 30, 45? 60? left wheel was mounted little off. I did remove bolts mounted wheel again, tighten some more and is fixed now...
edit.
also I have had loosen inner rod ends[ i thought it was an issue], and thighten them didn't solve that issue. Then I took the wheel off.....
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#34 ·
Hey guys, wasted a lot of money to figure this one out, but really happy to say I have it solved! My PXTs were shaking like crazy. Bought Bighorns and it improved, but still shook above 40+. Put in sealant and only slight improvement. Took them off and went back to PXTs and put sealant in. (sealant and/or beads are supposed to balance the tires when moving) Once again they shook like crazy. Finally in desperation, had Goodyear remove sealant and balance the front. Some improvement...figured I had spent this much so had them do the same to the rears. BINGO!!!! Smooth as silk to 60+ and all the way up. It took 3/4 to a pound of weight for EACH tire to get them in balance but WOW how nice it is!

They had never balanced ATV tires before, but since they are 14 wheels they could do it. They said the machine would not work for 12s...so finally the 14s are good for something :)

I will mention I spent a lot of time getting my toe in/our left right perfect...that is important too...but without a doubt balancing all 4 is the key.
 
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