Steering Wobble While Returning To Centre/Straight

[TRDORmike]

Hi Guys,

So I have dealt with the steering wheel shake on my 2017 4Runner already that a tire balance and alignment have solved.

Now, I am experiencing something I have felt since putting on my 275 70R17 BFG K02s..

This happens on any road surface phasing out the possibility of it being the road. When I am driving straight and then start to make a turn at speeds between roughly 70kmph and 90kmph (45-55MPH) the steering wheel will wobble when turning back to centre. This has gotten very annoying and have almost just figured this is a part of having the bigger tires but would like to hear your guys opinions on this and if you are experiencing this yourselves.

I have done multiple balances and multiple alignments on Hunter machines and both are near/at the best they can be.

Driving straight I have zero wobble or shake in the steering wheel this only happens when returning to centre from a turn. I do not notice this while making the initial turn as I am guessing due to the force being put on the wheels upon the turn. Is this just something with the stiff E rated tires. I have all tires set to 40PSI and have messed with the pressure +/- a few with no changes.

Please let me know if you guys have any ideas on this as it is definitely an annoyance and one of the last "issues" I am having with my truck.

This is a 2017 TRD Off Road W/KDSS and have roughly 9,000kms (5500 miles).

Thank you,

 

[nglayton]

Hi Guys,

So I have dealt with the steering wheel shake on my 2017 4Runner already that a tire balance and alignment have solved.

Now, I am experiencing something I have felt since putting on my 275 70R17 BFG K02s..

This happens on any road surface phasing out the possibility of it being the road. When I am driving straight and then start to make a turn at speeds between roughly 70kmph and 90kmph (45-55MPH) the steering wheel will wobble when turning back to centre. This has gotten very annoying and have almost just figured this is a part of having the bigger tires but would like to hear your guys opinions on this and if you are experiencing this yourselves.

I have done multiple balances and multiple alignments on Hunter machines and both are near/at the best they can be.

Driving straight I have zero wobble or shake in the steering wheel this only happens when returning to centre from a turn. I do not notice this while making the initial turn as I am guessing due to the force being put on the wheels upon the turn. Is this just something with the stiff E rated tires. I have all tires set to 40PSI and have messed with the pressure +/- a few with no changes.

Please let me know if you guys have any ideas on this as it is definitely an annoyance and one of the last "issues" I am having with my truck.

This is a 2017 TRD Off Road W/KDSS and have roughly 9,000kms (5500 miles).

I have the same tire and I believe the same wheels on my 2011 Trail w/KDSS. It's hard to tell without a pic, but since you have the TRD Off Road I assume they are the same wheel.

I have zero issues with what you describe. No wobble or shimmy at any speeds that I drive. Turning is smooth as well. I have approx 30,000 miles on these tires and they have been practically perfect for me. They are wearing quite nicely and I expect to get another 30k on them before I need to replace them.

I originally had been running them with no lift, but just recently had mine lifted for the last 2k miles or so and still no issues.

Even when rotating the tires/wheels, I have no issues.


Have you had any suspension work done?

It would be my guess, If you are running the same wheels, with new rubber, it's has to be the new rubber.

 

[st723]

I definitely have the same issue going on on my 16' Trail, ko2 275 on stock trail rim. It happened before and after my 5100's. The shop I went to said that the tires balanced fine. I'm interested to see what others on here say.

 

[4Rman]

I understand your frustration. I put stock sized Falken AT3W tires on my 16 SR5 and had the same exact symptom. It would shake at 60 plus. After several balancing attepmts and even replacing two of the new new tires, nothing!

In addition to the vibration at highway speed, I also experienced a shake when centering from right or left. It was brief but was contributing to the frustration. I finally gave up and went to Yokohama Geolander GO15... a much narrower tire but smoother than the factory Bridgestones.

I think it is most likely something in our truck's suspension that is very sensitive. One thing I tried that helped a bit was airing down to 35 PSI cold. It took away some of the shake. Good luck.

 

[TRDORmike]

Sorry guys.. I am also running Bilstein 5100s up front at the .85 setting and have Fuel Vector wheels.. There were also installed the same time however did not think those would attribute to anything.

 

[Sauce839]

There have been a few threads about the tire shake. I have it, its intermittent. Its almost like the power steering gets out of phase. When it starts to shake, it can be fixed by driving over the rumble strips on the side of the highway. It is irritating as hell.

I noticed it a bit on my 2012 SR5 when I put on 275 KO2's and I notice it more on my 2017 TE... same rim and tire combo I ran before.

Dealership won't do anything since I'm not running the stock tires anymore.

 

[good2go]

I have similar issues with my lifted 4Runner: 5100 shocks, aftermarket UCA, lift spacers, wheel spacers. My ride just recently was wobbling on the front driver side after the UCA installed (285 tires), speed at 40-60 MPH. However, there was no steering shakes. Upon inspection, I noticed the bushing on lower UCA ball joint was crushed/cracked/totally compressed (due to the lift and raised angle). The passenger side lower ball joint still looks ok. However, I've ordered some new replacement Lower Control ATM to save the labor hassle. I've already got new front/rear sway bar bushings and en rods. Will install all at the same time. It's a 03 SR5 V8 2WD with about 189K.

So basically, consider checking your lower ball joint and bushings. IMHO.

 

[GreyLife]

Here we go again with this confounded shake and vibration.Its a characteristic of the vehicle. Its not going to go away and Toyota is not going to fix the actual problem. They will band-aid it with balancing and alignments and such, but it will always come back until you replace the power steering rack yourself. The only vehicle they fixed this on is a Lex GL or GX450. And that was with a spring change in the preload.

To be quite honest, there should be a class action lawsuit about this.

 

[probos]

I have the same issue. I just got new tires (BFG's KO2s), alignment, the works. Nothing for a little while after but came back. It's intermittent. Never thought about the power steering. Makes sense.

 

[nglayton]

To be quite honest, there should be a class action lawsuit about this.

:wtf: So because aftermarket gear doesn't work correctly on some T4R's you think there should be a lawsuit?

This is why we can't have nice things.

 

[C runner]

My 2017 4runner had a slight shake with 10 miles on the odometer. Completely stock while driving home from picking it up at the dealer. Happens around 60-65 mph.

 

[DesertCanyons]

LCA Replacement

I have similar issues ... Upon inspection, I noticed the bushing on lower UCA ball joint was crushed/cracked/totally compressed (due to the lift and raised angle)... However, I've ordered some new replacement Lower Control ATM to save the labor hassle. I've already got new front/rear sway bar bushings and en rods. Will install all at the same time. It's a 03 SR5 V8 2WD with about 189K.

So basically, consider checking your lower ball joint and bushings. IMHO.

You should look at getting a better aftermarket Lower Control Arm (LCA) from Dirt King, Total Chaos or whoever makes one for your vehicle. They come with better bushings. The Dirt King does not widen your track, which I prefer.

 

[TRDTommy]

Sounds all too familiar. I have also have a 2017. And when I still had the stock wheels and tires, it had a slight wobble around 55-65. I didn't think much of it and honestly didn't bother me too much. But after installing the TRD wheels and 275 KO2's. The wobble is a lot more aggressive and I can feel vibration through out the whole vehicle. I've had them balanced and road forced balanced about five time now and it's still the same. The weird thing is that sometimes there is no wobble at all, sometimes its just a slight wobble, and sometimes it's full on wobble lick it is possessed or something. I swear this thing is picky!

 

[DesertCanyons]

Wobbly metric wheels

Sorry guys.. I am also running Bilstein 5100s up front at the .85 setting and have Fuel Vector wheels.. There were also installed the same time however did not think those would attribute to anything.

I think its the metric thing. You're driving in kilometers, not miles. That metric measurement throws off the whole Imperial number configuration. :hat:

I hope you can solve it. Let us know how it turns out.

 

[GreyLife]

:wtf: So because aftermarket gear doesn't work correctly on some T4R's you think there should be a lawsuit?

This is why we can't have nice things.

Either I misunderstood you or you missed my point. What I was getting at was, Toyota should be replacing or repairing the Power Steering rack, regardless of any aftermarket gear put on the 4R. Thats what I meant by a class action lawsuit.

2 things: people here have replaced EVERYTHING on the front end and it still has the wobble. The only thing not changed was the rack. The reasons being is that it was not considered or what it takes to replace it. In order to replace the rack, you have to lift up the engine, remove the original rack and have it replaced with an aftermarket rack that YOU paid for. All of this is pricey between the part and the labor. So far no one has gone that route. But everyone has changed everything else with no change to the vibration and wobble. And it always happens at around the 60mph mark.

My second point is, I have owned various SUVs, cars and trucks and added aftermarket parts, including non OEM tires and not one of those vehicle has EVER had this issue. I expect better from Toyota, especially considering the cost of a 4R and the quality from Toyota Motors. This is just not acceptable. If my 4R was older and far out of warranty and I had the resources to change out that rack, you bet your last dollar I would change the rack. This problem is just too widespread and so very annoying, especially from a new 4R.

I hope this clears up what I meant.

 

[eroy2]

I think its the metric thing. You're driving in kilometers, not miles. That metric measurement throws off the whole Imperial number configuration. :hat:

I hope you can solve it. Let us know how it turns out.

Seeing as how the truck is built in Japan I think you've got your units of measurement backwards...

But having said that I've had the same thing even with winter tires of stock size. and no mods. I didn't buy my truck expecting it to drive like a car. I take it places that require after factory upgrades so I just deal with it. I find that driving at 80mph through the states gives me no shakes. I had this in my miata that I tracked. It was just the chassis dynamics for that car.

 

[cd4pro]

Thanks for confirming Im not crazy.

I have a 2016 TPE. I have installed the following 5100 Bilstein on the non-lift setting with wheelers 2.5" lift springs on the front. Also, have JBA upper control arms. In the rear wheelers 1.5" lift springs with 5100 Bilstein shocks. On the stock Trail wheels with BFG k20 275/70/17.

I want to start off saying I do really like my 4 runner but I'm dealing with same issues you all are. It has been driving me crazy. I have had the tires balanced a few times helped a little. Had few alignments with not much gained from doing that. I had Toyota look at the truck before lifting it to see if there were any problems. I lifted the truck because I wanted it higher and to rid the brake diving. But the front end wonders around the road allot. Around town and city driving, I don't have much problem with it. But I do not drive any highway driving with the 4runner (we drive wife's 15 highlander). Just driving a few miles down the highway is a fight. I have never driven any vehicle where you're always correcting the wheel left to right so often. If this is a steering rack problem lets all take this up with Toyota so they will fix it. I currently getting ready to go look at 3rd gen tacoma. I don't want to sell my 4runner but a $40K suv should not drive like a tank on the highway.

As a side note, I did install custom rear sway bar end links. A fellow member on here makes them. I found they firmed up the rear and fixed some to the fight in the steering. It made it better but not perfect. I don't know if getting firmer better swaybar endlinks for the front would help fix the wonder in the steering or not. What do you guys think?

 

[plasticsnaks]

I have a 2016 TPE. I have installed the following 5100 Bilstein on the non-lift setting with wheelers 2.5" lift springs on the front. Also, have JBA upper control arms. In the rear wheelers 1.5" lift springs with 5100 Bilstein shocks. On the stock Trail wheels with BFG k20 275/70/17.

I want to start off saying I do really like my 4 runner but I'm dealing with same issues you all are. It has been driving me crazy. I have had the tires balanced a few times helped a little. Had few alignments with not much gained from doing that. I had Toyota look at the truck before lifting it to see if there were any problems. I lifted the truck because I wanted it higher and to rid the brake diving. But the front end wonders around the road allot. Around town and city driving, I don't have much problem with it. But I do not drive any highway driving with the 4runner (we drive wife's 15 highlander). Just driving a few miles down the highway is a fight. I have never driven any vehicle where you're always correcting the wheel left to right so often. If this is a steering rack problem lets all take this up with Toyota so they will fix it. I currently getting ready to go look at 3rd gen tacoma. I don't want to sell my 4runner but a $40K suv should not drive like a tank on the highway.

As a side note, I did install custom rear sway bar end links. A fellow member on here makes them. I found they firmed up the rear and fixed some to the fight in the steering. It made it better but not perfect. I don't know if getting firmer better swaybar endlinks for the front would help fix the wonder in the steering or not. What do you guys think?

I have a very similar set up suspension wise.5100's front and back but instead of wheelers t1 front coils I have ome 2883 coils with 10mm trim packs (2.5" lift). Same t-13 coils on the rear. For UCA's, light racing. 265/70 Fakken Wildpeaks on aftermarket wheels....No wandering at highway speed. Have yet to encounter steering wheel wobble.

What #'s did you end up with on your alignment?... the wandering sounds more of an alignment issue. It's very important that whomever is aligning your T4r, especially after your suspension lift/upgrade, knows what the heck they are doing. A lot of techs just do the minimal needed (if even that) to get it close to spec....I went through the same bs with 2 tacomas. Found someone (local 4x4 specific shop) who did know wth they were doing and routinely deal with aftermarket UCA's and all was good. I know it's been mentioned many times but get someone who knows their stuff to get your alignment not just in spec...but get it dialed in to your specific lift/suspension. I have my caster at 4.1 and camber near 0. Tow is in stock spec. Drives fantastic.

Also, highly reccomend an extremely long test drive multiple times if you do consider a 3rd gen Tacoma. I could only take a year of owning mine before I traded it in on my 4Runner. 3rd gen Taco new Engine/transmission combo to me, no bueno...toyota dropped the ball big time on that one.

 

[cd4pro]

I have a very similar set up suspension wise.5100's front and back but instead of wheelers t1 front coils I have ome 2883 coils with 10mm trim packs (2.5" lift). Same t-13 coils on the rear. For UCA's, light racing. 265/70 Fakken Wildpeaks on aftermarket wheels....No wandering at highway speed. Have yet to encounter steering wheel wobble.

What #'s did you end up with on your alignment?... the wandering sounds more of an alignment issue. It's very important that whomever is aligning your T4r, especially after your suspension lift/upgrade, knows what the heck they are doing. A lot of techs just do the minimal needed (if even that) to get it close to spec....I went through the same bs with 2 tacomas. Found someone (local 4x4 specific shop) who did know wth they were doing and routinely deal with aftermarket UCA's and all was good. I know it's been mentioned many times but get someone who knows their stuff to get your alignment not just in spec...but get it dialed in to your specific lift/suspension. I have my caster at 4.1 and camber near 0. Tow is in stock spec. Drives fantastic.

Also, highly reccomend an extremely long test drive multiple times if you do consider a 3rd gen Tacoma. I could only take a year of owning mine before I traded it in on my 4Runner. 3rd gen Taco new Engine/transmission combo to me, no bueno...toyota dropped the ball big time on that one.

I forgot to mention I do have a trim pack spacer also on the front driver side to correct the lean. When I bought my 4runner it was out of state. I did this because the of the deal I put together. When I picked it up on that Saturday it was a 3-hour drive each way. Anyway, the 4runner alignment was majorly messed up brand new 5 miles on it. Their service department was closed. I had to drive it home and get my local Toyota dealer to fix it. I had to have the factory tires rebalanced 3 times and 2 alignments. Even after all that I did not think it drove perfect. For one last time before lifting and switching tires. I had Toyota check everything telling them it wander on the road. Thier service manager and head tech drove it. They told me they all drove like that and everything was in spec.

After having lifted other trucks I figured lifting and getting a tire shop to do the alignment would make it better. It did somewhat but still not to my liking. But I could see that this problem I have is still an alignment issue. Time to throw more money at it.

Thanks for the heads up on the Tacoma. After comparing for specs online I'm not going to look at one now.

 

[Argyle Edison]

I have a 2016 TPE. I have installed the following 5100 Bilstein on the non-lift setting with wheelers 2.5" lift springs on the front. Also, have JBA upper control arms. In the rear wheelers 1.5" lift springs with 5100 Bilstein shocks. On the stock Trail wheels with BFG k20 275/70/17.

I want to start off saying I do really like my 4 runner but I'm dealing with same issues you all are. It has been driving me crazy. I have had the tires balanced a few times helped a little. Had few alignments with not much gained from doing that. I had Toyota look at the truck before lifting it to see if there were any problems. I lifted the truck because I wanted it higher and to rid the brake diving. But the front end wonders around the road allot. Around town and city driving, I don't have much problem with it. But I do not drive any highway driving with the 4runner (we drive wife's 15 highlander). Just driving a few miles down the highway is a fight. I have never driven any vehicle where you're always correcting the wheel left to right so often. If this is a steering rack problem lets all take this up with Toyota so they will fix it. I currently getting ready to go look at 3rd gen tacoma. I don't want to sell my 4runner but a $40K suv should not drive like a tank on the highway.

As a side note, I did install custom rear sway bar end links. A fellow member on here makes them. I found they firmed up the rear and fixed some to the fight in the steering. It made it better but not perfect. I don't know if getting firmer better swaybar endlinks for the front would help fix the wonder in the steering or not. What do you guys think?

IMHO The stock wheels are your problem. You need wider wheels to allow the tire to flatten out. 7-7.5" wheels are too narrow for the tires.

See my thread below