Vibrations at speed, grinding, light steering, etc.
Vibrations at speed, grinding, light steering, etc. 1998 Trans Am, A4, completely stock, 75000 miles
I have what might a few seperate problems, or maybe all related.
1. At between 60-75 mph, I get a pulsing vibration through the steering wheel. If I hold it tight I can barely feel it, but when holding it lightly there is a fairly significant wobble. Doesn't do this all the time (and some days are worse than others). I thought this was wheel balance, and so had them re-balanced a couple of times, including once after replacing the rims with another (standard 16x8) set. Tires are BFG KDWS 245/50 and these were also replaced to no effect. When this happens the interior visors can sometimes be seen wobbling. This was worse to the point that I could feel it through the seat before I replaced the rims.
2. At above 40 mph there is a quiet grinding sound from what sounds like the wheels. This happens whether the car is under load or in neutral. Seems to get louder with more speed.
3. The steering sometimes feels light.
4. If I look at the car on a level surface from the front, it does not appear to sit straight. The passenger side appears a little lower than the driver side.
The first problem has been present since I bought the car a year ago. None of these are big problems right now but I'm concerned that a problem may be starting to appear and if it's suspension related I'd rather catch it now before a catastrophic failure!
Would appreciate any clues as to what might be the problem or problems here.
Thanks.
Keith
I have what might a few seperate problems, or maybe all related.
1. At between 60-75 mph, I get a pulsing vibration through the steering wheel. If I hold it tight I can barely feel it, but when holding it lightly there is a fairly significant wobble. Doesn't do this all the time (and some days are worse than others). I thought this was wheel balance, and so had them re-balanced a couple of times, including once after replacing the rims with another (standard 16x8) set. Tires are BFG KDWS 245/50 and these were also replaced to no effect. When this happens the interior visors can sometimes be seen wobbling. This was worse to the point that I could feel it through the seat before I replaced the rims.
2. At above 40 mph there is a quiet grinding sound from what sounds like the wheels. This happens whether the car is under load or in neutral. Seems to get louder with more speed.
3. The steering sometimes feels light.
4. If I look at the car on a level surface from the front, it does not appear to sit straight. The passenger side appears a little lower than the driver side.
The first problem has been present since I bought the car a year ago. None of these are big problems right now but I'm concerned that a problem may be starting to appear and if it's suspension related I'd rather catch it now before a catastrophic failure!
Would appreciate any clues as to what might be the problem or problems here.
Thanks.
Keith
you say you swapped rims/wheels, did you also swap to different tires or the the same tires on different rims?
these cars get REALLY sensitive to worn tires i had vibrations on my car that i chased for EVER i swapped rims, brakes, suspension only to find that it was the tires being shot but they looked ok and balanced ok but on the road the vibrations came back i bought NEW tires and WHAM vibrations gone
these cars get REALLY sensitive to worn tires i had vibrations on my car that i chased for EVER i swapped rims, brakes, suspension only to find that it was the tires being shot but they looked ok and balanced ok but on the road the vibrations came back i bought NEW tires and WHAM vibrations gone
TECH Fanatic
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 1,316
Likes: 3
From: Dolla$ , TX
If your hearing a grinding then you could also have bad bearings in a wheel. The bearings in my 06 MCSS failed on me at 10 thousand miles. Bad bearings can cause clearance problems and make things loose also will make a humming noise at high speeds. To hear the bearings at slow speeds try driving around a parking garage. The concrete walls reflect the sound so you can hear things. Everytime i got a nail in my tire i could hear it in the parking garage. But never anywhere else. GL A way you can see for yourself if theres is to much play in the wheels is to jack them up and grab ahold of the wheel and feel how much play is in it. When you grab it you will know if its to much the wheel should not move at all also rotate it and see how freely the bearing spins. should be 0 resistance
Last edited by Sint3k; Jun 30, 2007 at 05:44 PM.
Thanks for the replies.
The tires were replaced with a new set in an attempt to fix the issue (actually, this was the first thing that I tried). At that time an alignment was performed. Tie rod end was replaced also (I'd have to check the bill to be sure but I'm pretty sure only one was done - which I'm not sure is right, now?).
I'm going to jack this thing up tomorrow to see if there is play in the bearings.
Thanks again.
Keith
The tires were replaced with a new set in an attempt to fix the issue (actually, this was the first thing that I tried). At that time an alignment was performed. Tie rod end was replaced also (I'd have to check the bill to be sure but I'm pretty sure only one was done - which I'm not sure is right, now?).
I'm going to jack this thing up tomorrow to see if there is play in the bearings.
Thanks again.
Keith
