Q: Nissan Altima rumble

asked by on May 06, 2016

My car is in prime shape, and is well maintained, but sometimes I notice a "rumbling." At around 55 to 60 miles per hours, the vehicle feels a bit shaky. The shakiness is similar to when the tires are due to be balanced, but I had that done recently, and it didn't fix my problem. If I speed up or slow down a little, the rumbling stops. What could be causing this?

The rumbling is caused by an imbalance problem with one of your axles or one or more of the tires. Even though you had the tires balanced, that does not mean your tires do not have a balance issue at a certain speed. Your transmission may also have an internal balance problem when at the exact speed. A road test by an experienced mechanic may help to isolate the rumbling. I have experienced this on several different types of vehicles, and most of the time it turns out to be an imbalance with an axle inner joint. The problem is only found through trial and error of replacing possible components until the problem is solved. I would suggest rotating the tires and see if the noise moves, before you start replacing components only to find out the CVT transmission is causing the noise. If you need help with this issue, a certified technician, such as one from YourMechanic, can help diagnose your car’s rumbling sound for you.

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