Steering Wheel Violent Shake

K

KillaBeeSwarm

New member
Driving down the highway the other day and my steering wheel started to violently start to jerk to the right...pretty sketchy. I was able to take a video of it, see below. Keep in mind, it started doing this while I was driving highway speeds...

https://photos.app.goo.gl/7VENX8wvas9LrsCD2

However, once I got off the exit ramp, I turned the steering wheel all the way to the right and then all the way to left and it stopped! I was able to drive back roads to my mechanic who looked at it, but isn't quite sure whats wrong with it. Does anyone have any ideas ?

Alignment, balance were all done about two weeks ago....
 
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You lights were flickering on your dash. Your problem is electrical IMO unless that was from putting your warning lights on?
 
IMO I wouldn't call that "violent", I had a pathfinder and the right front caliper would stick and THAT was violent shaking at highway speeds, I thought it would hop off the road lol It would also happen randomly. It only shook a handful of times and then all the front brakes got replaced, it still wasn't releasing all the way all the time and you could tell after 2 weeks of driving the left caliper looked brand new but the right one looked 20 years old and discolored from the heat.
 
Inv4drZm said:
You lights were flickering on your dash. Your problem is electrical IMO unless that was from putting your warning lights on?
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It's clear to me he was in the emergency lane and going slow and had his Hazzard lights on.

Juicy said:
IMO I wouldn't call that "violent", I had a pathfinder and the right front caliper would stick and THAT was violent shaking at highway speeds, I thought it would hop off the road lol It would also happen randomly. It only shook a handful of times and then all the front brakes got replaced, it still wasn't releasing all the way all the time and you could tell after 2 weeks of driving the left caliper looked brand new but the right one looked 20 years old and discolored from the heat.
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As stated above he was obviously in the emergency lane and only going 25/30 MPH, I'm very sure at "highway speed" he had a very violent shake!!

blind squirrel said:
I agree something electrical. How old is your battery? I've seen some off the wall stuff happen due to low voltage.
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I don't see any indication of any electrical issues, he had his hazzrads lights on.

I think Juicy hit it on the head with a stuck caliper causing the shaking, but it could be some other issues at the root of the shaking, my first inspection would be the calipers and then go to other possible causes.
 
AuSeeker said:
It's clear to me he was in the emergency lane and going slow and had his Hazzard lights on.



As stated above he was obviously in the emergency lane and only going 25/30 MPH, I'm very sure at "highway speed" he had a very violent shake!!



I don't see any indication of any electrical issues, he had his hazzrads lights on.

I think Juicy hit it on the head with a stuck caliper causing the shaking, but it could be some other issues at the root of the shaking, my first inspection would be the calipers and then go to other possible causes.
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The hazards cause the "D" and "Cruise" indicators to flicker on the dash? Seems unusual to me but I've never used hazards before.
 
Your mechanic should have checked tie rods and bushings on the front end. Could be something to do with your steering shaft, check that for any play. Check steering rack for any leaks. You could try disabling your vsc/abs by locking your center diff and seeing if it goes away (drive in mostly straight lines when locked).
 
The hazards are flashing normally, but 3 other instrumentation lights are flashing intermittently, and that does not look normal. Also, the fact that it was corrected without doing anything mechanical makes it seem like an electrical problem. Not sure what electrical system could cause the steering wheel to pull. Maybe the ABS or VSC system pulsing or locking up the brakes? Stuck calipers are a common problem on these trucks, but wouldn't cause those 3 lights to flash like that.
 
Inv4drZm said:
The hazards cause the "D" and "Cruise" indicators to flicker on the dash? Seems unusual to me but I've never used hazards before.
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Geologist said:
The hazards are flashing normally, but 3 other instrumentation lights are flashing intermittently, and that does not look normal. Also, the fact that it was corrected without doing anything mechanical makes it seem like an electrical problem. Not sure what electrical system could cause the steering wheel to pull. Maybe the ABS or VSC system pulsing or locking up the brakes? Stuck calipers are a common problem on these trucks, but wouldn't cause those 3 lights to flash like that.
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I agree, (I watched it again and could tell they're flashing, didn't notice it the first time), there's an issue and ABS could very well be a causing factor if it's malfunctioning, but if there's is/was an electrical issue I would think it would throw a code.
 
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I was chalking up the light flicker to a camera frame rate issue and LEDs. Aside from that it looks like a pretty clear case of a stuck caliper. Wheel shaking and pulling to one side. I'll leave it to the OP to confirm if the lights were really flickering like that.
 
Lights do not flicker, it is my camera.

My tpms is flashing becuz i replace my tires without getting tpms monitors.

There are no lights flashing or on besides the tpms, which is not related.
 
Update:

Front area, sounds like right front, is making a pretty loud growl. Thinking it may be a wheel bearing issue...having my mechanic look at it today...will update when I hear back from him.

If it is the wheel bearing that caused it to do that, I had no idea. Didn't realize it would jerk the wheel.
 
KillaBeeSwarm said:
Update:

Front area, sounds like right front, is making a pretty loud growl. Thinking it may be a wheel bearing issue...having my mechanic look at it today...will update when I hear back from him.

If it is the wheel bearing that caused it to do that, I had no idea. Didn't realize it would jerk the wheel.
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IMO, it looks to be a stuck caliper on the RF. If you drive down the street for a mile or two, get out and touch the RF wheel it'll be hotter than the LF if you have a stuck caliper. Or you can roll the front windows down and drive down the street without the brakes on, and if you are hearing a oscillating noise it's probably the wheel bearing.
 
Not a caliper. My mechanic drove it home, long ride on highway and he check the caliper. Neither was incredibly hot. So not that.

Turns out it was a bad wheel bearing, i hope. As it start to whine really loud and he replaced it yesterday afternoon. He drove it home last night and back in today, waiting to hear from him to see if it was fixed.

The mystery of the jerking steering wheel!...weird image just popped in my head :lookout:
 
Hey OP, I was just seeing if the wheel bearing replacement fixed your issue. I just had a similar thing happen to me a few times intermittently today while driving, and couldn’t trace it back to anything I could immediately see. I know my drivers side wheel bearing is bad, and that just happens to be the side that was giving me issues today while driving and turning the wheel.
 
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