[986 Boxster]

Originally Posted by chromecarz00

Hello all,

I have read through every thread that I can find about suspension refresh, struts, drop links, control arms, alignment, etc etc and I just can't seem to figure out what is going on with my suspension.

Symptoms:

-Bad wheel wobble sporadically between 50-75, most common between 65-75 on imperfect roads. Lightens after.

-Over bumps, clicking sound from front and rear

-High speed not a lot of confidence in steering - partly because of wobble, but occasionally after a road imperfection it doesn't feel stable

Solutions tried:

-Road force balance. Helped a bit seemingly.

-Alignment. Helped a bit seemingly.

-Bounce test for shocks - also had a mechanic look at them, but wasn't super in depth. Rears were replaced ~60k ago and feel like they have some life in them, not that easy to push down. Front have not been replaced and seems to go down more easily, but doesn't bounce much and stabilizes after 1 rebound. I can hear mild creaking from front and rear when doing this, but nothing crazy.

-Visual inspection - no leaks or cracks in any of the rubber that I can see, but haven't been able to get on a lift yet or under the car to take a close look. Mostly have looked through phone video.

At first I was certain it was control arms, then drop links. Then I thought it may be the struts. To be frank, I'm an OK wrench but not great at diagnosing issues.

Can someone give me some definitive direction here? Feeling like a mouse in a maze, just need to find the cheese. Eventually, I want to do a full suspension refresh, but I need to start with what needs to be done first...

Cheers.

Ps - 98 5 speed with 105k

It could be a lot of things. The vibration could be from your tires, how old are your tires? Wheels, have you hit any curbs lately?, it could be drive shaft vibration, etc. Creaking is worn out struts or mounts. If your tires are fairly new and wheels are straight, from what you are describing with your high speed wobbling your struts are most likely your problem. It looks like you need a suspension refresh but your looking for a simple solution, Good luck