Nothing good about vibrations in '98 Rogue

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February 11, 2012

Auto Scanner Larry Rubenstein The Salem News Sat Feb 11, 2012, 04:34 AM EST

Q: I own a 1998 Nissan Rogue that I have brought back to the dealer three times relating to a vibration in the steering wheel. It has new tires, balance and alignment. This only happens between 20 and 40 mph and stops during acceleration or deceleration. I was told this was normal with this type of transmission. The vehicle has only 24,000 miles on it. I can't believe a vibrating steering wheel is normal on any vehicle. Do you have any advice?

A: The fact that it stops on deceleration or acceleration tells me it's either in the transaxle or in the constant velocity shafts. What we would do at my shop is try to isolate it to which side was making the problem, and make the needed repairs. In any case, this is not normal.

Q: I drive a 2011 Silverado. It swaps from eight to four cylinders and back seamlessly, but rarely stays on four. If I'm on the highway and in no hurry, why isn't there a manual switch that would enable me to keep my engine running on four cylinders? Wouldn't this give me significantly better mileage? Please don't tell me it's a safety issue.

A: It's a safety issue. Should you pull out into traffic, and can't get up to speed and it results in a collision, then there is a potential lawsuit. So GM in its lawyer-like wisdom said "leave the switching to them."

Q: My friend and I have an ongoing dispute. I say one can place an automatic transmission in "Park" even on a slightly sloped driveway or hill and not apply the emergency brake and come back to the car, restart the engine and then move the shift into any other position (i.e. move it out of "Park" and, say, into "Drive" and such can be done unassisted). My friend says no way — if you place the shift into "Park" to hold the car then to get it out of "Park" one will need a tow truck to shove the car forward (or backwards, as the case may be) in order to disengage the "Park" transmission position in order to move again. While it may not be the safest thing to do (i.e. park the car without applying the emergency brake) if you do so (i.e. not apply the emergency brake) would a tow truck be necessary to get the car operational again? My position: Have been informed recently by a California Department of Motor Vehicles Drive Test examiner that in reality most drivers do not apply the emergency brake when parking and such is not correct, however, it is also well known that tow trucks do not become necessary to get moving again. If such were the case, thousands if not hundreds of thousands of tow truck calls would be initiated yearly in California for just this one "problem" and such is not occurring. Who is correct?

A: The emergency brake should always be applied when you are parking your car. However, your friend from the California Department of Motor Vehicles is correct. Therefore, you are correct. A steep incline may give you a bit of a problem however, and therefore, I will usually turn my tire into the curb when parking to take the pressure of the transmission parking pawl.

Car Care Tip: If your car has a full-size spare tire, consider using it during your tire rotation which should be done every 6,000 miles.

nnn

Larry Rubenstein is a master technician who owns a North Shore service station. His column appears every Saturday. Write to Larry at The Salem News, c/o Auto Scanner, 32 Dunham Road, Beverly, MA 01915, or send an email to scanauto@aol.com.

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