so my 2006 350z base 100% stock has recently gotten some bumpsteer, i have only had the car for a couple months and it FEELS worse than before. also the steering wheel has recently been vibrating a lot more than usual when aimed straight and when doing more than 60mph.
the steering wheel feels really solid and tight when turned but has a brief looseness right when you turn the other direction. there is a slight bit of play in the steering wheel that i think is causing these problems its annoying the crap out of me. do your cars have play in the steering wheel? could it be my alignment? suggestions on how to fix play and bumpsteer?

 

That doesn't sound like bump steer, it sounds like a bad Tie Rod end. I would start with looking at all suspension components for wear.

 

There should be no vibration in the steering wheel.

The looseness in the steering when going straight could be caused by wear in the rack and pinion assembly. There's an adjustment to control the pressure between the pinion and the rack, but adjusting it to get rid of the looseness at center might make it too tight off-center.

Bumpsteer can also be an alignment issue. Sounds like you may have more than one problem going on, and need a really good mechanic to check the car out.

How many miles are on the car? Is there any unusual wear on the tires? How long has it been since the car was aligned and the tires were balanced?

 

thanks i hope i dont have worn out rack and pinion those things arent cheap. 45k miles on the car. no unusual wear. ive never checked the alignment since i bought it two months ago. I think i will take it to precision z later n the week, they pretty much work on z's exclusively and have a great shop, smart guys, dyno and alignment. thanks for the help i would not have guessed to check the tie rods right away.

 

Bump steer is associated with end links and tie rods as well as compression rod bushings. I have changed both lowered control arms/compression rod bushings/ tie rods inner/outer with Tein ones and still have some most likely caused by end links which need to be changed since it is past due. I wont do it because I plan on selling the car or parting out if I move.

 

make sure there are no clearance issues with your "manifolds" (since your stock). that shouldnt be an issue, but that would most definitely cause a problem. my headers rub against my steering shaft and its exactly as you described it. when im going straight, its fine, when i turn its almost like it hits a "bump", when it gets over the "bump" its fine, then steering back it hits again. and it vibrates the wheel like hell.

 

Are you talking about a "bump" (momentary tightness) in the steering system as you turn the wheel?

The term "bump steer" usually means the car heads to the right or left when you hit a bump in the pavement. That's completely different from the steering shaft hitting the manifold and causing the steering wheel to get hard to turn.

 

I'm talking about a "bump" idk exactly what OP is talking about.

 

my car only vibrates when the wheel is NOT turned AND at high speeds. second it has 1/4 inch of play when not turned. third, when i hit a bump in a turn, the wheel jerks and the car can get squirley.
fourth, any change of direction gets the same 1/4 inch of play and feels strange and a little loose. one of my wheels feels like its loose. and i checked my lugs.

 

That sounds like a bad (really bad) wheel bearing along with other problems. You need to get the car to a good shop pronto.

 

^ +1

 

Three issues...

1. vibration = Wheel balance
2. bump steer = alignment
3. play in steering = tie rods

FYI I typically 'need' an alignment and re-balance every 15-20k miles. And my tie rods just got replaced at 50k miles, they were loose as hell. The rest of the suspension components showed wear but were still 'OK'.

 

taking the car to the shop monday or tues. how much you pay for the tierods djamps? ballpark?

 

I just had to replace the rear control arm, traction arm and traction link (if that falls into your category anywhere) and all together was only about $300ish. If your going OEM, get the part # and go to www.oemnissanparts.com

They sell oem parts 30-40% cheaper than the stealerships.

 

If your car is lowered, pay the $$$ for http://splparts.com/store/product-info.php?pid223.html SPL. They let you correct the goemetry for bumpsteer.

 

if its not lowered now but i plan to be in the future. should i just go with spl if that part needs to be replaced? or do i need to be lowered first?
i appreciate the tips and repies guys thanks.

 

Fully adjustable for bumpsteer, can be set up for any height.

 

hell ya man, thanks. i will definately be upgrading to these when my tierods are worn. price not too steep, like 100$ more than stock correct?
edit. Are you running the spl's? do u run em at the track? or are you more setup?

 

I have the SPL parts catalog installed on my car.

 

very nice, i wil have to checkout some of their other stuff.