Lincoln/Mercury Repair: 97 Mercury Villager shake, cv shaft, mercury villager

Question
Steve- I appreciate any advice you may have.  My 1997 Villager LX Van has the 6-cylinder Nissan engine.  When I'm on flat highway with constant acceleration, I get an intermittent strong shake in the vehicle (not really in the steering column, most vibration is in the body).  Through trial and error with different things, I found that when I click the Overdrive button off, the problem immediately quits.  It will also quit if I accelerate a bit harder or let off the accelerator.  If I leave the OD off, it will still shake, but not as often and at lower intensity.  It will stop again immediately if I kick the OD back on.  Once it quits, it will start again every 30 seconds or so.

I think I've ruled out any tire or alignment problems, since it only occasionally has the problem at slow speed in town.

I thought I would check here first before I took it into the dealer.  Please let me know if you need more detail to give me any leads.  THANKS!

Rich Fischer

Answer
i appreciate the quality of information you have provided. it is a difficult question. the first thing i can think of is diff bearings. because of the way it changes when you shift it rules out engine vibration of lock up shutter. i dont know how mechanical you are but grab the CV shaft knuckel at the transmission and move it up and down looking for excessive movement or signs of leaks at that seal to the trani. these are signs of the diff bearing. other than that some experienced hands on testing would be needed.