ZUKIWORLD Online | Suzuki 4x4 Editorial and Forum

ZUKIWORLD Discussion Forum => Suzuki 4x4 Forum => Topic started by: nighthawk801 on August 01, 2004, 08:25:27 PM

Title: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: nighthawk801 on August 01, 2004, 08:25:27 PM
Both of my Sidekicks suffer from this and it has gotten on my nerves a lot lately.

Basically whenever I'm going over 55 MPH or so the front doors shake a lot as air must be getting inbetween the door and the body frame or something, pushing the doors out. On windy days it seriously feels like the doors will just suddenly be ripped off the car.

What could be done about this? I've thought the ventshades things might work but then I realized they attach to the door, not the body, so they wouldn't prevent the air from getting in behind the door and shaking it. Does everyone else have the same problem? Anybody done anything to fix it?

Between this and the super disgustingly weak engines these things have, I really don't like driving on the freeway very much, which is the pits, because I otherwise love the little things!
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: jerryp58 on August 01, 2004, 10:50:42 PM
I believe what you're talking about happens with my '90, or at least it's something similar.

I would describe it as the doors getting pulled out though.  Like there's less air pressure outside the door than inside the cab and the top of the door pulls out (kinda like burping the old tupperware bowl :-/ )

I have the Ventishades on mine (which I like given the likelihood of thunderstorms in this area), but it still happens.  I don't know if it happens as much, but it does still happen.

Oh, I forgot to mention, mine only does it on the highway if there's a very heavy crosswind or if I'm going above 70 MPH and then, it's just every now & then.
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: nighthawk801 on August 02, 2004, 06:54:41 AM
Yeah, that sounds like what I'm trying to describe. And it's similar, usually only at 60 - 80 MPH (if I ever hit that speed, haha).

Anybody have a cure??
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: explosivo on August 02, 2004, 07:02:36 AM
So... what's it like going 60 in a Tracker? :p ;D

I haven't had that problem in either of my Trackers (90 LSi and 91). :-/
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: nighthawk801 on August 02, 2004, 07:12:48 AM
Really? So the doors stay nice and stable and relatively quiet at highway speeds?

I wonder if something is loose or something...

BTW, what gearing do you have while running those huge tires? That must be insanely slow!
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: SpinalTap on August 02, 2004, 07:25:06 AM
My doors don't do that either and I run it on the hwy every day at 70-75mph.
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: explosivo on August 02, 2004, 07:28:50 AM
Quote
Really? So the doors stay nice and stable and relatively quiet at highway speeds?

I wonder if something is loose or something...

BTW, what gearing do you have while running those huge tires? That must be insanely slow!

Quiet? What's that? :P

My doors might do it now, since I can't hear anything over the radio, tires, and engine, but they didn't when I first bought it. They don't shimmy around at all, I know that much.

Stock gearing with 33x13.50's. It's actually pretty tolerable. Better than driving my Festiva :o ;D
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: Zukipilot on August 02, 2004, 08:05:39 AM
It's probably the hard top compared to soft tops. Watch your friends/family climbing in and out of the ride. Mine pull out a little at the top even with most of the air excaping through the soft top. It all began after a wheeling trip with rear seat passengers. I thought nothing about it at the time, but they were climbing out holding onto the top of the door to keep their balance. They must of been putting quite a bit of weight on them because ever since they have been bent out at the top a little. You may be ably to adjust a little of it out by adjusting the door latch to hold the door tighter to the frame.
Zig
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: 99Trackerconv on August 02, 2004, 08:21:17 AM
My 99 does it too. Its always on the highway doing 65+ that it does it. I have the hardtop on now and I don't remember it doing it with the soft top on.
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: explosivo on August 02, 2004, 08:28:43 AM
Quote
It's probably the hard top compared to soft tops.

Yeah, that could be it ;)

Forgot to mention both mine are tintops :)
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: jerryp58 on August 02, 2004, 10:41:27 AM
Quote

Yeah, that could be it ;)

Forgot to mention both mine are tintops :)


Same (tin-top) here.

I thought these things had some kind of flow-thru ventillation.

I need to notice if it happens with the air control set to either internal or external.
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: nighthawk801 on August 02, 2004, 12:14:11 PM
I have a soft top and a removable hard top though. Happens on both of them just the same.

I may try adjusting the hinges or something then... I'm actually surprised that few of you have had this problem. Hmmm... Keep the replies coming :)
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: hcgalvin on August 02, 2004, 12:30:19 PM
Yeah...

mine does it too...

::)

Hey, even with the SAS I can crank her up to 80!  :o

Heather
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: Mike71 on August 02, 2004, 02:02:34 PM
mine does it but it might have something to do with the thousands of hours with the 15s compressing the cabin
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: steveofrost on August 02, 2004, 02:04:36 PM
I have a four door as well and the window used to do that to me... looked as if the wind would pull it right off. Surprisingly the ventshades will make a difference and will cut some of that wind down when going top speeds. The only other thing to do is to tighten where the window meets the top of the frame. I just put in some thin metal right at the top of the frame and it secures it much better and doesn't pull as much. The only thing though is sometimes when I roll up the window (p/w) it gets stuck and I have to push out the window a bit so it slides snugly. There is not much you can do about the door tugging from the wind, it's just a vacuum in that pocket of the vehicle when driving.

steveo
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: wildgoody on August 02, 2004, 02:10:55 PM
Mine only does it on the drivers side,
has since it was new, I think the body
is a little out of alignment, even with
the new red replacement door, it does
the same thing, so I think it's in the
body or the way the hinges attach to
the body, I got the hinges from the other
Kick too, so I think it's the way the body
was made

Wild
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: Zukipilot on August 03, 2004, 04:27:01 AM
Quote
I think the body
is a little out of alignment,


What, I could not imagine someone on this BBS having a tweeked body :P
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: waltc on August 03, 2004, 10:33:29 AM
I just got my '89 softtop 'kick running and ran into the same problem. I noticed driving on HWY 1 in Monterey that the driver door  was shaking like crazy. I also noticed the weather stripping outside of the kick near the top was loose.

When I got off the freeway for gas I pused the rubber back in place and never had the prob. Maybe you have a leak in the stripping.

Scared the sh*t outta me since this was the first ride over 60mph and I was headed camping in Big Sur for the week.
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: wildgoody on August 05, 2004, 01:37:43 PM
No, the weather striping is in there, but
don't stick your finger into the gap, it
kinda pinches and hurts

Wild
Title: Re: Front doors shaking on highway
Post by: DirtDevil on August 05, 2004, 05:00:46 PM
my girlfriends 89 2 door doors shake like your describing, only since putting on the ghetto swamper bias plys tho lol  ;D.. also hers is a tin tip so if your doing over 110 KM/h the top goes BANG and pops up and then pops back down at 80 lol.. scared the crap outta me first time i heard it