Cause Of Vibration?

[rwallican]

About 7 months ago, I had the dealer replace my power steering system (rack & pinion, pump, lines). Ever since, I get a vibration in the steering wheel at highway speeds (60-65mph). It was fine before I took it in. Granted, I do have 20" wheels, but they are very classy, high quality and they were on about a year before the steering system went out. Anyway.....I was told by the dealer that I needed new strut rods and rear knuckle bushings and the shaking would go away. Did that. Then i found out that I bent a rim.....Got that fixed. Just had my 120k service done and the dealer rebalanced and rotated all 4 wheels. Still getting the vibration Could the rack/pinion be the culprit? I'm tired of trying to get this problem diagnosed and really don't want to spend anymore money doing so.

[aarman4]

About 7 months ago, I had the dealer replace my power steering system (rack & pinion, pump, lines). Ever since, I get a vibration in the steering wheel at highway speeds (60-65mph). It was fine before I took it in. Granted, I do have 20" wheels, but they are very classy, high quality and they were on about a year before the steering system went out. Anyway.....I was told by the dealer that I needed new strut rods and rear knuckle bushings and the shaking would go away. Did that. Then i found out that I bent a rim.....Got that fixed. Just had my 120k service done and the dealer rebalanced and rotated all 4 wheels. Still getting the vibration Could the rack/pinion be the culprit? I'm tired of trying to get this problem diagnosed and really don't want to spend anymore money doing so.

Check the play in your front lower balljoints ;) Just an idea, best of luck, hate to have wheels like that shaking like a gogo dancer ;)

[nc211]

rwallican, I'm assuming you had the car aligned, and rechecked by the dealership a few times during your search to find the problem. If not, you need to start there first. If so, my guess is that your tie rods are showing their age in comparison to your new rack. It's much like the suspension parts; they all wear together from day one, and seat themselves in concert as they age. When you replace a part with a brand new one, the old parts show their problems. Kind of like replacing the drummer in a band with a new one; you quickly realize just how tired the others are when the new guy constantly is a beat ahead. Your outter tie rods, if original, are certainly getting tired at that mileage. Over the years, the slack in the tie rods have probably been masked by the wear and tear of the rack, and the slack in the two played in concert, which led you to have the rack replaced. The tie rod ends are easy to replace as a DIY process. it just takes a pitman to pop them out of the control arm, unscrew them, screw new one on, and take it to the shop for an alignment. I recommend marking where the thread is on the old one, and screw the new one on to that mark. My wife's old Honda Civic had wornout tie rod ends that were causing a vibration at those speeds, and would clunk a bit when going over bumps. I've replaced my outter tie rods myself, it's not hard. Total cost for both left side and right side tie rod ends are probably $100.

Although I don't disagree with aarman4's suggestion, I would think though that you would of noticed the balljoints going out before the rack was replaced. But, he could be right, as everything ages together. If you already have new tie rod ends, then I would definetly follow his advice, as the slack in the ball joints is the only other spot slack could come from in your steering. You basically want to work from the newest part, out. So follow the rack to the balljoints. Any clunks on small bumps felt in the steering?

And one more thing....be cautious of the dealership at this point, and insist the senior technician take over with your service. You're now in a spot where they can basically tell you whatever they want, with no recourse if they're wrong. I've had this happen to me, until I barked and insisted the #1 guy be the mechanic. From there, it was all gravy. Some of these "kids" don't know the difference between a rear carrier bushing and a turbine blade. A good mechanic will listen to you first, realize it started with the new rack, and start from there. How in the world a rear carrier bushing has anything to do with a steering rack is beyond me, and I've taken apart my 95' from bow to stern. Your front strut rods would normally only show the need for repair with a very noticable clunk throughout the car from gently going over bumps or potholes.

[rwallican]

Wow! Thanks nc211. The alignment is perfect. I was thinking that maybe the rack was bad. I'm not a big DIYer so I might just get all of that replaced. I hate taking things back over and over again. I'm definitely going to ask for the senior tech. I've had an indie doing work for me but came to realize that I wasn't saving much money and it was inconvenient because i didn't get a loaner. My Service Advisor at Lexus is really fair. He throws in extras all the time and they're pretty honest. If I have to put a few hundred $ into the car, so be it. It's paid off and in immaculate condition. I know that all of this stuff is made to wear out and when it does, you either buy a new car or replace it. I haven't heard any clunks going over bumps. Those strut rods were gone. The car wouldn't hold an alignment because the rubber in them was eroded.

So, I'll talk to my service guy about the outer tie rods and lower ball joints and go from there.

Just for my knowledge, what would be the chances of having a defective rack?

And it does suck having these nice wheels and that wobble at high speeds.