Slight wobble - but not the deathly variety

I've been putting up with, for far too long the steeering shaking under braking, and attributed it to warped discs.
Today I changed the front discs and pads, and included new sliding caliper kits.

(I was a bit dismayed to find the discs and pads that I removed had relatively little wear, and the sliding calipers seemed free to move, although the left side did show the inner and outer pads to have slightly different wear-rates. There was also no obvious run-out on the discs)

However a road test this afternoon shows that my efforts (and the expense) have completely cured the horrible shaking under braking, but now show up a slightly different symptom...

Just after hitting largish bumps, I am now aware of a momentary wobble felt through the steering-wheel which almost immediately settles down after the bump has passed and the suspension settled.
My question is this - having had the shaking brakes for ages - could that have caused a worn bush or track-rod end? Or is this more likely to be king-pin bearing? And/or is there something else I should take a look at too?

Any thoughts welcome

Hi Lambert.

I'd have said it could be a balancing issue too, but the tyres (Geolanders) were new on the car in March, and I didnt get these symptoms until after the brake cx yesterday.
I've not lost any balance-weights, but I'm wondering if putting replacement discs on and fitting the wheels in a different (rotational) position has done something to make this wobble noticeable.

I suppose I'm fishing for any 'known suspects' that might be causing this

I'd start with the panhard rod... bushes and or make sure the lock nut is tightened if it's an adjustable one.

If the bushes are aftermarket, SuperPro have been (allegedly) known to be a bit soft and have caused wobbles on other forum user's Jimnys...

IF you are running aftermarket steel wheels be careful when mounting them as the Jimny is stud-centric and not hub-centric, i.e. the wheels do not mount over a raised centre on the hub, they are positioned by the actual wheel studs themselves... when I mount mine I put one nut on hand tight and make sure it is centered in the (sometimes oversized) 'countersunk' hole, and then add another one "opposite" and make sure that too is centered in the hole, rotating the wheel to check and use it's weight to position the studs centrally in the holes too, before adding the other nuts and beginning to tighten working across the studs...

Then there's the track rod ends to check, and make sure the lock nuts are tight on each...

Hope that helps...

Dave

Thanks Dave!

Your descriptions are spot on and I knew straight away what you're describing.

My Jimny is standard with standard Suzi' five-spoke alloys. I have no iodea if any bushes have been replaced while with previous owners.

I fitted the wheels exactly as you described - not because I realised the Jimny is stud-centric but because its standard aircraft practice to bolt stuff up this way (I'm an aircraft tech).
I bought new track-rod ends a while back, but will now fit them on spec at the next opportunity, and I'll have a good look at the Panhard rod bushes too.

Thanks Kirkynut

When I bought the car about 12 mionths back I threw it at a Suzuki main-dealership for a thorough 'going over', - they took a look at the brakes and told me they had inspected and cleaned any corrosion under the discs, but hadn't found much, so I was aware crud potentially being a problem when I fitted the new discs.
When I had the discs off, I scraped off old dry copper grease, and cleaned the area up with solvent and a rag before refreshing the copper grease, but found no real corrosion.
I've yet to find time to look at the panhard but I think my vehicle is all standard. That said, I will cx the panhard bushes regardless, when I do the track-rod ends

Huge thanks again for your thoughts on this.

Good idea! - I'll get my lad to shake the steering wheel while I look/feel for any play in the joints.
I'm more than happy to fit stuff from the BigJimny Shop (particularly if this helps support the site) so your recommendation on the orange bushes over a new Panhard rod is welcome.

As a side note, since changing the discs and pads, the braking now seems far, far more progressive; there's certainly much more 'feel' which is very noticeable when braking really gently, this certainly wasn't felt before, and I can only put this down to replacing the sliding pins in the calipers.
I used the little sachet of grease provided on the pins and bolt shanks, (anti-seize on the threads) but would like to what the spec of that grease actually is.