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Infiniti QX4 Shakes Violently

thyllthyll Member Posts: 2
edited January 2016 in INFINITI
I have an 02 qx4. At certain speeds (45 or above) the car begins to shake/sway/rock back and forth. Sometimes it feels like the vehicle could flip over. I have replaced all the shocks and struts. I inspected for any broken sway bars/bolts etc and nothing seems to be wrong. Has anyone else had a similar issue? If so what is the fix?
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  • steveistevei Member Posts: 4
    My car shakes, wobbles and all sorts of stuff from speeds at 49 on up I am taking it to my mechanic this friday but they seem puzzled. will let you know,
  • thyllthyll Member Posts: 2
    I have an 02 QX. The problem you are having is the rear sway bar bushings. There are 4 of them. The cost to replace (local mechanic in Greenville SC) was about $500 and takes a few hours. Unfortunately for me, I have some mechanical abilities and replaced the rear shocks (didn't fix the problem) then the front struts (did not fix the problem) before I had to have a mechanic replace the bushings. They knew right away what the issue was because they have a pathfinder with the same issue in there a week prior.
  • jackv2jackv2 Member Posts: 1
    Thanks for the responses. Just joined the forum. Didn't even get to post a question. Local mechanics tried various things with no fix.
  • mlindymlindy Member Posts: 2
    I have a 99 QX4 with swaying. Did you get your's fixed and do you know if there is any recalls about the problem.
  • jiaminjiamin Member Posts: 556
    A few months ago after tire rotation and balance at Costco, I have vibration at 65 ~70 MPH. It is not really bad but my hands on steering wheel can easily feel it. Costco rebalanced the tires and vibration is still the same, not better not worse. Since it is not very bad I kind of got used to it.

    Today Midas told me if vibration is like what I described, it is either the tire, or the tire balance, very very unlikely caused by something else. I will rebalance them one more time and see what happens.

    I never had this vibration before, at any speed up to ~ 100 MPH.
  • steveistevei Member Posts: 4
    I think it is a waste of time, I did all of that and nothing. I finally found out...sway bar bushings and lower control arm. fixed me up and have had no problems since.
  • jiaminjiamin Member Posts: 556
    Thanks Steve.
    Did you have it fixed or did you fix it yourself? I'd like to know how difficult it is for a DIY. I am afraid the shop will "find" other problems and I have to pay unnecessary money...
  • steveistevei Member Posts: 4
    I paid to have it fixed total was $300. it is sometimes cheaper to uae nissan pathfinder parts as they are the same vehicle in many respects.
  • jiaminjiamin Member Posts: 556
    I replaced front sway bar bushings myself with Pathfinder parts. Still the same vibration, no difference before and after. Will replace other parts later.
  • steveistevei Member Posts: 4
    look to the rear, the lower control arm. i am curious at to the problem with the infiniti does the pathfinder have the same problem?
  • mlindymlindy Member Posts: 2
    Rear bushings need to be replaced. Got it fixed 2 weeks ago and no problems since.
  • jiaminjiamin Member Posts: 556
    Thanks for the good advice. I only replaced the front bushings just to isolate one by one. Is the rear more difficult than the front? I asked one mechanic for the front bushing replacement and his labor cost is $45. I like to do it myself if it is easy and safe.

    My vibration is only felt on the steering wheel, not a entire car, and it's only a little. Will bad rear bushing affect the steering wheel only?
  • jiaminjiamin Member Posts: 556
    I replaced the rear sway bar bushings. Same vibration. My front two tires are approaching their end of life so I replaced all four tires with Michelin Latitude Tour at Costco. Vibration is all gone.

    By the way, Michelin Latitude Tour is so quiet just as Tirerack and Michelin websites states.
  • crazyzcrazyz Member Posts: 1
    Hi guys, I have a 2001 QX4 and regardless of the speed it's shaking and rocking side to side. We changed the shocks, tires and it is still doing it. Today we changed the sway bar bushings and no result. What else it can be? Please help, because I am going crazy :mad: Is it possible I have to change the control arms? or someone has any other idea? Thanks
  • princess_princess_ Member Posts: 1
    my 99 started shaking and it was my brakes/rotors they werent releasing my father in law fixed it and its been 6 months or more and its starting to shake again. Took it to the shop bc it needed a tune up bad. the mechanic looked at the tire and drove it but nothing. i go pick it up and it shakes but on if your going around a curve at or above 60 mph. it doesnt shake ALL the time. any ideas?
  • einsteinjseinsteinjs Member Posts: 10
    I know i need new shocks and struts but dont have the money to replace them. a lot of you have posted how this doesnt fix the problem anyways. My issue is the same, rocking back and forth... I have a 1999 QX4. I have found that the only time mine rocks is when the rpm's start to decrease (Somewhere between 2000 and 3000 rpm's, depending on my speed). its when im trying to slow down without taking my foot completely off the gas. I have had my transmission replaced from a pathfinder in a junk yard. Could this have something to do with it? I want to stress that it only happens at a certain point of the gas pedal or rpm's. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
  • aj_laaj_la Member Posts: 7
    Wow seems very similar to a problem that started with my 1997 QX4, with only 115,000 miles on it. It starts to shake really bad on turns, specifically turning to the left at speeds above 50. Sometimes on the freeway like the 405 at slight turns at 70-75 it shakes so usually it stops if i reduce speeds a mere 5-10 miles an hour. But recently at 120,000 miles its getting a lot worst.

    Any ideas friends? I really apprecaite you guys and this forum. Could it be a balance, shocks, or front bushings (is there such a part or just rear bushings)?
  • t2relt2rel Member Posts: 1
    edited July 2011
    I came to this post for the same reason guys back in March 2011. I read that the problem could be bad bushings in the rear. I spoke with several different shops that suggested I should check my shocks. Before I had any work done, I took it to the Infinity dealer for a recall inspection I found out about pertaining to rust in the front strut area. (Thats a FREE inspection for you 99-02 QX4 owners) While there, I persuaded the service manager to check for anything else that could be causing the swaying. In the report/quote, there was a suggestion that the bushings in the upper and lower control arms were worn. Just to be certain, I took it to NTB to have the rear suspension rechecked (THIS IS FREE ALSO). The mechanic there was a cool guy, so he showed me exactly what the problem was. He was able to twist the lower control arm back and forth with his hand, telling me it should not be that loose. He stated that it was a special order because they could not replace just the bushings because of the task difficulty. I would have to order all four control arms. Dealer $850 parts only; Online- upper 2@$175/ lower 2@$125 At that time, I found someone to do the work of replacing all four of the bushings. I bought the bushings at NAPA auto parts(only local store that carried them) about $15 each. Spent $125 for labor and also had him to replace the shocks for KYB's just for extra ride comfort. QX4 rides so much better now. Problem fixed. 194,000 miles and counting; runs perfect-still looks great; still get compliments on how nice it is. This is only the second major maintenance since purchasing at 78,000miles. The first was a leak in the radiator which I replace myself.
  • flatlinzflatlinz Member Posts: 1
    I am having the same issue with my 2001 Infiniti QX4, I really don't want to buy a new vehicle or used, but it is hard to find a trustworthy mechanic locally to fix things on my vehicle. The mechanic you mentioned just replaced the bushings for you or did you also have him replace the control arms? I found Control Arm Kit - Left and Right Control Arms on carparts warehouse.com for $128.25. I could not find the uppers that you mentioned on their site. The one they show in the kit is for Front Lower Control Arm Pair - All Models. So my question is, if I buy the control arm kit I listed here, will that also include the bushings you spoke about that you bought from NAPA? Or did you only have your bushings replaced?

    I also want to mention that my check engine light came on about a month ago and when it would come on, I noticed the car would idle rough, the codes mentioned spoke about a misfire in the coil and another code that mentioned there could be a slew of other stuff needed to be replaced. I am unsure what to do as the dealer said $800 bucks to replace all the ignition coils.

    My mechanic also mentioned I needed to get my rack and pinion replaced. I am wondering if the rack and pinion is causing the car to rock from left to right. Either way, I have found the parts on the same website, but my problem is finding a mechanic that knows what he is doing.

    Any feedback would be great.
  • 01infinityqx401infinityqx4 Member Posts: 1
    I own a 2001 infinity qx4 
    at 155k miles replace #3 coil, oxygen sensor 2bank 2 sensor, 4 new struts and shocks (parts $155 shipping included from a manufacture from Florida) at 175k miles rear control arms lower and upper bushing and fixed the wobbling at lower and higher speed
  • mahnaztmahnazt Member Posts: 1
    Hi, I had the same problem, after 40 or 45 miles car was bouncing from left to right, spent more than $2500 changing right and left shocks , front Suspension Set, problem still exist , nobody could fix it, until last week one of our local mechanics found that the problem is not in the front all four Trailing Control Arm in the back was changed and my problem is fixed.
    I hope this info can help
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