Vibrations After Hitting a Pothole

[iaflynn]

I was driving about 70 mph and hit a pothole in the Interstate and it felt like I was driving on rumblestrips. The truck continues to vibrate until I come to a complete stop. I can drive at 70 mph with no vibrations until I hit a pothole or any large bump in the pavement. The only thing that fixes the problem is coming to a complete stop. Having to come to a complete stop every few miles on the Interstate is a pain. I drive a 1998 Ranger 4.0 V6 4wd. Has anyone encountered this problem before? Thanks!

 

[ab_slack]

Bad shock absorber?

Or something marginally stable in the steering and it goes crazy.

 

[96firephoenix]

ball joint maybe...? how's it handle on braking? I'd expect it to pull a little bit to one side

I was gonna suggest a lost wheel weight, but if it goes away when you stop and lasts until you stop, that's pretty well ruled out... I got about 5 miles from getting wheels balanced to when I lost a wheel weight to a pothole... was not amused at all.

 

[iaflynn]

Brakes are fine. I cant seem to figure it out. I'm going to take it into the shop tomorrow and see what they say. I'll update when I have more information.

 

[straycat]

Does you 98 have the hydraulic steering assembly? If so this might be the problem. The system might need to be bled or something happened to it after the pothole smack. My 99 had it and I know it was on some 98 models. When my truck was brand new I had some funny vibrations from the front end and the dealer had to bleed the system. This stopped the issue but later it came back again and they told me there was a recall and Ford replaced the system for me. Never had any more problems with it.

Let us know what it turns out to be, Bro.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Something loose in the steering, would be interesting if you had a gopro...

 

[adsm08]

Hit a pothole at 70? You may well have bent the wheel or blown a cord.

 

[stmitch]

Hit a pothole at 70? You may well have bent the wheel or blown a cord.

My first thought as well.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

My first thought as well.

Mine too but you couldn't reset it by stopping and going again until you hit a bump, a bent rim or puckered tire would be consistent.

 

[96Indyram]

Sounds like a blown shock/strut. Lost all dampening force is my guess.
once the truck gets rolling and hits a bump the tire will bounce or dribble like a basketball until the truck is stopped again.

It could have broke a belt in the tire....but I say shock/strut.

 

[jeremysdad]

Hit a pothole at 70? You may well have bent the wheel or blown a cord.

Agreed.

 

[96Indyram]

Blown a cord in the tire? Ya'll still running bias ply's from the 60's?
LoL

 

[adsm08]

Blown a cord in the tire? Ya'll still running bias ply's from the 60's?
LoL

So your knowledge modern radial of tire construction, on a scale of 1-10, is somewhere around 1/2?

I just replaced a radial tire yesterday with MULTIPLE blown cords. In the last year I have probably done 3 or 4 more for that issue. It's just as common on radials as it was on bias ply.

 

[gw33gp]

The cords in radials just have different orientation than bias ply.

I am thinking bad shocks possibly along with some loose suspension parts.

 

[det107]

Loose lug nut(s)-