steering wheel vibration

Nalgene

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 7, 2002
Location
Minnesota
I need the wisdom of the gurus here. OK so my car is not a tdi (yet) I am thinking of putting the z1 in it. Car type is a 90 vw gli 16v. I have been having a vibration through the steering wheel for several months. I have put new front oem rotors on it several months ago to try to take care of the problem. It did get better but the problem still persists. The tie rods have been replaced and I have checked them and they are solid. there is no pulsing or vibration through the break petal. the vibration can be felt in all conditions but seems to be not as bad above 80 mph. it is not the wheels I bought new steel 15' ones for the winter and put them on a few months ago too. again the feeling got better but I know my regular BBS' need some attention to be taken care of by the wheel collision center in PA. My cv boots are new and ball joints are new (both w/in the past 2 years). this past weekend I rotated the tires put the front ones on the back and the back on the front. I took a 4 hour drive after this and for the first 2 hours or so there wasn't any vibration and then it slowly crept back so I know something is off which is then creating wear on the tires which in turn just makes the problem worse! oh yea when i did rotate the tires the front left one had more wear on the inside and the front right had more wear on both outsides. I have not checked the tire pressure but will later today. I have heard people talk about an adjustment screw in the front? what is this about? whould this help/does it need adjustment if so how/where is it? since I was experiencing this with the BBS before and with the new wheels now what do you guys think?
I am posting this here because I do have a modified suspension it is lowered with eibach springs and koni shocks which together give it a 30mm drop and please somebody don't tell me to go to the vortex I have come here because I have been following this sight for about 2 years and like and respect the thoughts and opinions here
thanks and sorry for the long first post!
 

Nalgene

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 7, 2002
Location
Minnesota
I wanted to add that there is no snow/ice or anything on the car or under it and I checked the lug nuts before I rotated the tires
can somebody help?
 

Michael Moore

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 21, 2001
Location
Toronto / Zürich
TDI
2004 Phaeton W12, 2015 Golf Highline (gas)
Nalgene:

I'm no expert on mechanical stuff (heck, I take my car to the dealer to have the oil changed), but when I had the steering wheel off a few weeks ago to put a new control stalk on the car, I noticed that there was a big lead weight in the middle of the steering wheel to absorb vibrations.

Apparently this weight is only installed on TDI's (diesels). But maybe you could get one, and put it on your steering wheel, and see if it helps. Don't laugh at me if this is a bad suggestion, my specialties are electrical and trim, not mechanical.

Here's a photo:

Lead Weight on TDI steering wheels
 

pkagel

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 12, 2002
Location
DFW, TX 02 Jetta GLS TDI
TDI
02Jetta
putting the tdi weight in a gas car is only going to mask the problem, not fix it. it could be a bunch of different things, steering dampner, bushings, wheels out of alingment bushings worn, ect.
 

Nalgene

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 7, 2002
Location
Minnesota
thanks Michael for the suggestion but the next post is correct this would only mask the real problem. I just thought someone on here might have some suggestions. I'll ck back tomorrow to see if anyone else has chimmed in with their superior knowledge

Keep em comming folks!
 

Nalgene

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 7, 2002
Location
Minnesota
Man I did it again! Wanted to add the true feeling is as if there was snow in the wheels (on one side) to cause an imbalance. it is like a womp womp womp type of thing
 

comsult

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2002
Location
Terrace, BC. Canada
TDI
02 Dk. Blue
I had the same problem crop up on me last week. Found out the problem. It was a chunk of ice on the Passenger side wheels. Both of them. The effect was a slight vibration in the steering and and some in the seat.

There was a thaw up here in the Great white north. I washed the car. Then a quick overnight freeze - down to -20 C. When I realized what the problem was, I took the car to my Firehall, (I'm a volunteer firefighter, and left it in a spare bay for a few hours. then took it for a fast spin. No vibration any more.
 

Nalgene

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 7, 2002
Location
Minnesota
Thanks for sharing, I know it's not snow though. I guess I'll just call my old mechanic and explain like I did here.
On a related note. does anyone know of any good independent mechanics for vw's around Royal Oak, MI area (burb just north west of Detroit)??
let me know!

Thanks again
 
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