why is my car shaking n smells like burnt rubber/plastic???

Question

my car...89 jaguar xj6/vanden plas..........vibrates/shakes when i go about 70 mph. it didnt do it before......................i noticed it when i took it on the freeway and was going fast(around 90-95 mph) and then it started shaking/vibrating out of nowhere. it does it every time i reach about 70. then sometimes when im at this speed it smells like burnt rubber/plastic. what are the possible things that could be wrong??? it runs perfecty fine when im below 70...i dont have problems below this speed

Answer 1

You have a bad tire, not balanced properly or out of round or cupped. it could be a bad rim as well, or a weight has come off. Check tire pressures too.The burning I don't know but those jags that age are known for wiring problems.

Answer 2

It could be a balance problem with your tires. There is a slight possibility and I've seen this happen a few times that a rotor on your car may have lost it's balancing weights.
Yes a cars brake rotor needs to be balanced too. No you can't get them balanced...You'd need a new rotor if this were the case.
. I can't tell you about the smell though.
Is the shaking in the steering wheel or the whole car? If your car is equipped with a steering dampener and it is bad it will cause the whole car to shake.
A steering dampener is like a little shock absorber for your steering linkage. I can't remember if Jags have them. Just thought I'd throw that info your way because it is over looked when shaking symptoms occur.
PS... It didn't do it before what? Was it fine one day...Like you went 70 plus and nothing? Then you get in your car and it did it and would do it ever since?

Answer 3

Have you tires balanced! Replace any bent ar damaged wheels! If once you get that fixed there is still a vibration then you may need to find a shop that "MATCHES" tires. This is done with a machine that places the wheel under pressure and rotates it while measuring the Footprint of the tire as the widest part reaches the buffing wheels they move into the tire and buff off some of the width so the footprint is completely even all the way around.
I had to do this on a small car I owned ! Nothing else fixed the problem except Tire Matching!

Answer 4

The high speed probably made a tire start coming apart, and is now unbalanced! Also the tire may have a bulge in the sidewall, and its rubbing on the fender well!
Also, be forewarned--Lucas electric systems are based on the "Smoke" principal. The wires have smoke inside their plastic coverings, and if you damage the wires, the smoke will come out!! Which usually means an expensive wiring harness replacement! ;o)

Answer 5

Warped brake rotors, or a break caliper hanging up causing the breaks to get hot causing the burning smell and the shaking, it sounds like you need to take a look at the brakes or better yet get the car to a good break shop.

Answer 6

jack up tyres and rotate have a look at the round of tyre you may find a bolge or a tread pulling away this is quite a serouse topic as more driving may cause a blow out causing a crash which may hurt another thing have a look and check the tightness of all wheel nuts

Answer 7

sounds like you lost a wheel weight causing ballance problem
i have a 1994 Jaguar XJ6 and it loves going fast and so do i

Answer 8

You may have thrown a wheel weight try getting your tires balanced
If I recall correctly I do believe your parking brake is separate from your regular brake system, get your parking brakes checked they may be rubbing.

Answer 9

Your best bet is to take it to a dealer or an auto repair shop and have them check out your front end.

Answer 10

have your tires re-balanced at a shop that knows what they're doing and let a mechanic diagnose the smell part.