The average age of a scrapped car is around 155 years, while the average age of vehicles on the road is around 12 years.
Owning a car for a long time will make it impossible for your vehicle to keep its original perfect function. And one of the most common and annoying problems is the car rocking back and forth.
Disgustingly, the inconvenience comes to you gradually, slowly, until one day, you ask yourself why this bothers you.
Diagnosing car problems in the early stages can seem a bit complicated, but don’t worry. This article will help you find the root causes of this issue and suggest some feasible solutions.
Why Is My Car Rocking Back And Forth When Stopped?
Faulty spark plugs and fuel intake usually cause car rocking since the motor and transmission internals might be the only components of the car that are working when you are stopping.
Other culprits include brake issues, broken motor mount, bent shaft, and tire balance issue.
Brake Issues
Your car rocks side to side when you have an aggressive brake pad. If so, there’s a good chance your vehicle suffers from a faulty brake pedal.
Brake discs are shiny silver disc-shaped components on cars with a disc brake system.
These parts can be bent from their original shape due to intense wear, essentially from overheating during heavy braking, beyond the disc’s handling capacity.
Instead of being flat on all angles, a deformed brake disc will have a raised, lowered, or convex surface.
The brake calipers and brake pads tighten the brake discs to stop the vehicle, but they cannot clamp the deformed brake disc.
The car rocks back and forth more frequently under the emergency brake, resulting from warped brake rotors.
Dirty Or Worn Out Spark Plugs
Spark plugs that are unclean or worn out won’t ignite smoothly, so they will not spark the gasoline in each piston cylinder when needed. This will lead to a misfire.
Dirty spark plugs may occasionally be cleaned, but they are often affordable and should be replaced instead. A skilled mechanic can guarantee that they are properly fitted and calibrated.
Faulty Fuel Intake
A defective fuel injector can either restrict fuel from being injected into the vehicle entirely or will cause the intervals at which it is meant to be sprayed to be messed up.
Either way, your car will not run properly or be undrivable.
If the engine does not receive enough fuel from a blocked injector due to a problem with the fuel pump circuit, it will misfire while driving.
When you step on the gas pedal, your car will struggle to accelerate or will halt. Changing a fuel pump could help to solve this issue.
Broken Motor Mounts
Increased vibrations when driving is one of the most typical broken engine mount symptoms.
If you start your engine and notice that it makes more noise and vibrations than normal, this indicates that an engine mount is worn and needs to be changed.
The engine mount’s ability to resist vibration deteriorates when it is defective or broken.
An increase in vibrations explains why the engine makes more noise than normal, which definitely harms a motor if it continues for an extended period.
Tire Balance Problem
As a tire’s tread wears away, it becomes lighter and requires rebalancing. Balancing is attaching weights to the wheel’s edges in order to prevent tire vibrations.
Although uncommon, if your car pulls back and forth when braking, you possibly have bad tires. When an issue with your wheel alignment happens, you should go to the tire shop for a check.
Bent Shaft
A related issue is checking the drive shaft. This rotating unit transfers engine power to the rear axles and wheels in rear-drive vehicles. If the axle is bent, the vehicle may shake.
Worn synchro couplings fall under the same category. If the inserts, such as – the rubber gasket, and the cover around the ends of the drive shaft, are intact, and the clamps and the lubricant are not leaking, they are most likely not the problem.
But if the inserts are torn, dirt, dust, and road debris will get inside and damage the joints. The synchronous couplings heat up for cars with front-wheel drive, so you need to buy a new driveshaft.
How Do You Fix A Car Rocking Back And Forth When Stopping?
The following are ways to handle and fix the problem of cars shaking when starting the engine according to the causes. You can refer and apply to fix your car.
Handling Engine And Cockpit Problems
With the cause of the engine and the cockpit, you can handle it yourself without a mechanic. The steps to check and repair are as follows:
Step 1: Check and clean spark plugs. If the spark plug gap size is too small or large, you should gap the spark plug to avoid a malfunctioning combustion chamber.
Step 2: Check the high voltage wire for broken or open if the spark plug is still good.
Step 3: Next, check the air filter if too much dirt makes the engine’s air poor.
Step 4: Remove and clean the car’s filter to solve the shaking problem when starting the car’s engine.
Fixing Cars That Are Rocking Due To Engine Shafts
Suppose the car is shaken and the cause lies in the engine shaft. You should take the car to the repair center to check and replace the cross ball.
Or if it is heavy, you will have to replace the shaft – the new one. Ask the mechanic to install the correct shaft because even a slight deviation from the vibration can still not be controlled.
Fixing Car Vibration Caused By Bearings And Wheels
If the cause is determined to be the bearings and wheels, you must take the car to the shop to fix the bearings and align the rims accordingly. The calibration is complicated, so you can’t do it at home.
Conclusion
Car rocking back and forth can be attributed to a host of reasons. When starting or moving, all causes of vehicle shaking.
All causes that make the car rock when put in park must be overcome immediately and thoroughly.
Otherwise, you will face more serious damage and exorbitant maintenance costs to repair it in the future.
Above is all the information about the car’s condition when starting the engine and how to fix it.
Hopefully, this article will help you soon determine the cause and offer the most thorough treatment method for your car to operate stably.