Steering wheel vibrating at high speeds


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Old 06-06-16, 10:34 AM
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Steering wheel vibrating at high speeds

Hey guys. I've been having an issue with my Lexus RX 350, which is AWD by the way. First, got new tires because of this issue and after leaving at around 65+ I would still get a shake in the steering wheel. Took it back, and they said it was a bent rim. Okay, so I went to my regular mechanic and was going to have them get a new rim, but they found all the tires were off by up to one ounce, and put new weights on but put off getting the new rim. They said they got it to "true up" as well as it could with a bent rim.

Well, it started vibrating again at around 65 to 70, but the bent rim is on the rear. Mind you it's not a violent shake, but it's enough to annoy me. I'm having my mechanic order a new rim, because that's the only thing they think it can be at this point. My big question is, if the rear wheel is bent, thus the tire is out of balance in relation, would that be able to cause the steering wheel to vibrate? Or could it be something else entirely?

Any insight would be helpful. Thank you.
 
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Old 06-06-16, 10:39 AM
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Was an alignment performed?
 
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Old 06-06-16, 10:57 AM
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Yes it would, not as much as o the front, repla ing wheel is the first thing
 
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Old 06-06-16, 11:11 AM
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FWIW, I had similar symptoms after a particularly bad winter for pot holes a while back and it took balancing three of the rims and replacing the fourth.
 
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Old 06-06-16, 11:24 AM
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Yes, I had the rack and pinion changed recently and it was done then. Also, during all of this there was an alignment check a few weeks ago.
 
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Old 06-06-16, 11:46 AM
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Also, just to clarify , all three of the rims that are not bent were just balanced by my primary mechanic who said the wrong weights may have been used by the tire place I purchased them from, so it is very unlikely that the front tires are out of balance.
 
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Old 06-06-16, 04:28 PM
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Don't bother with new rim.
Every alloy rim I had does this.
DO NOT USE RIM EDGE MOUNTED WEIGHTS ON ALLOYS. They simply do not stay on. Lexus for some reason is super prone to this. Learned this off wife's RX300. I was paying for rebalancing about twice a month until Mr Friendly simply told me to start using sticky weights - that was it. Done.
Ever since, alloy rims=sticky weights covered in sticky tape for me.
 
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Old 06-06-16, 04:38 PM
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Shoot. I already had the mechanics order a new rim! In fact, I remember talking to the guy and the place I purchased the tires from used the adhesive weights, but their balance was all screwed up, so my mechanic put the pounded on weights on. Maybe the place I got the tires from used the wrong size or something? Granted, I didn't notice anything until today, and the shake was very slight and intermittent, but it's enough to vibrate my hand a little bit and it bugged me. I certainly shouldn't have to deal with it. I never had a problem before all of this. It just seems like it shouldn't be so complicated for them all to figure out, between two shops and the four times I've brought it in between the two.
 
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Old 06-06-16, 07:58 PM
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Because they do not care. Russians have expression - saving drowning one is in the best interest of the drowning one.
Beauty of this country is that anything can be canceled. yes, it's awkward. But alloy cost what, 300-400 a pop? Sure, it may be a bent rim, but we had several bent AND cracked alloys in our history and they did fine.
Simple example. I went to a corner station to have wife's infamous RX300 rims balanced and requested sticky weights. Guy told me he does not has them, so I was to be on my way. He asked me why, I told him my story. He swore that his weights do NOT fall off and I fell ofr it.
Sure enough, few months down the road one was off and I was on my way to Les Schwab to have sticky ones installed.
It is, to me, always a cheaper fix than forking for a new alloy. Usually, if they find that a wheel does not need to be balanced, they do not charge for it.
It's your call, brother. Never forget, I am only expressing my opinion. Based on school of hard knocks and I might as well be wrong.
As I said - your call.
 
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Old 06-07-16, 04:00 AM
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Well, I do trust the regular mechanics I go to, even if they are making a mistake. I don't trust the place I got the new tires from though and I don't think the shop I've been going to uses adhesive weights. They are getting a rim from a junkyard and making sure it's in good condition, so it's only $120. However, if this keeps being an issue, I'm going to have to have a long conversation with my mechanic about all of this.
 
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Old 06-07-16, 09:19 AM
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Take the wheels and tires somewhere that uses a Hunter GSP9700 road force balancer if you want it done right. Here is the webpage. Click on the locate button to find a shop near you. Hunter GSP9700 Wheel vibration Control System solves wheel vibration and tire pull problems that balancers and aligners can't fix

BTW, there are several other things that can cause a shimmy other than a tire. For instance, I had a seized control arm bolt that could not be tightened (mechanic didn't bother to tell me) and I drove my truck around for over a year with a loose lower control arm and a shimmy in the steering wheel. I spent hundreds replacing suspension components and nothing helped. It was only later that I found out what the problem was (while getting an alignment done at another shop).

Why don't you replace the suspect wheel with your spare and see if the shimmy goes away? If not, it's not the wheel.
 
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Old 06-07-16, 11:21 AM
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"Take the wheels and tires somewhere that uses a Hunter GSP9700 road force balancer if you want it done right. Here is the webpage. Click on the locate button to find a shop near you. Hunter GSP9700 Wheel vibration Control System solves wheel vibration and tire pull problems that balancers and aligners can't fix

BTW, there are several other things that can cause a shimmy other than a tire. For instance, I had a seized control arm bolt that could not be tightened (mechanic didn't bother to tell me) and I drove my truck around for over a year with a loose lower control arm and a shimmy in the steering wheel. I spent hundreds replacing suspension components and nothing helped. It was only later that I found out what the problem was (while getting an alignment done at another shop).

Why don't you replace the suspect wheel with your spare and see if the shimmy goes away? If not, it's not the wheel. "

Yeah, but it got better after they re-balanced the tires. I have a suspicion that it's more to do with the wheels and tires than anything else.
 
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Old 06-15-16, 01:52 PM
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Still having an issue

Hey guys. I got the rim changed out with a new one, and I'm still getting a vibration in the vehicle, and I feel it in the steering wheel at around 70-80 MPH. My mechanic is putting me off until next week, so I'm assuming they're reluctant to figure it out. Any other ideas of what it could be?
 
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Old 06-15-16, 04:34 PM
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1. question number one I have is - are all the wheels balanced properly? I know it sounds real dense but we do not know if the rest of them is or not.
2. Vibration into steering wheel comes firstly from steering components. Those are tie rod ends and tie rods. On conventional steering systems there will also be pitman and idler that can cause vibration.
3. But, they often are being forced into vibration by failing suspension components. That being hub bearing or strut. Think how steering works outside of the body - long levers moving parallel to the ground. So, whatever moves levers in same direction, will kick into steering. Basically, suspension parts have to move in side to side manner to influence steering rods. Which failing hub bearing can do this easy. Wobble.
4. Worn out power train suspension components may cause this. Power train is actually moved by steering when turning. Same happens when power train moves - it will influence steering.
5. VIBRATING ENGINE will cause vibrating steering. I know this for 100% as that was part of reason I sold my Ridgeline - vibration in steering wheel unison with engine vibration.
I don't think I missed anything.
 
 

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