Why does my stering wheel shake at low speeds? I can take hands of wheel and you can see wheel going back and forth. Also steering not as responsive as it was before. Is this bad and or expensive fix? Joeyfv

 

First, CHECK YOUR LUG NUTS.

If that's not it, and it smooths out the faster you go, you may have a tire out of balance.

If it's a new thing, you may have broken a belt in a tire making the tire bulge (had this happen once, started on the highway, had to change the tire).

 

in addition to what he said...

bent front rim(s) is another cause of shakey wheel, especially at lower speeds (wheel balance comes more into play at speeds above 45MPH).

my 92 740T came to me with a pair of badly bent Aries rims... since all 4 had bald tires, I scored a set of Hydra rims and slapped new 16" rubber on them, happy ever since.

 

BTW, an unbalanced tire which is passable to drive on (for me anyway) can loosen your lug nuts if you don't torque them down enough.

Better to get them balanced properly, and if it still vibrates too much for your liking, put it on the back instead of the front.

edit: If you have a bulge because of a broken belt, discard the tire. Not safe.

 

bent rim is pretty easy to check for. jack up the wheel you want to check, spin the wheel, and hold something stationary near the edge of the rim, see how much it moves side to side or if it has any dips in it. drop that wheel back down, and jack the other side, repeat.

also, if/when you bring your car in to have the tire balance checked, ask them to double check the rims for straightness, their wheel balance machine is a good test stand for that. A good tire changer will check this as a matter of practice, but it never hurts to ask up front to double check it and verify when you pick it back up.

I've driven some cars, Volvos included, with pretty dodgy suspension, and not experienced low speed wobbles. vague steering? sure. sloppy wandering around the road? definitely. but not shake-the-wheel-wobbles, unless something is actually bent.

 

Thanks for all the input guys.

 

NP, keep us posted!