Steering wheel wobble over 60mph

dave1814

Member
 Sheffield
Hi Guys,

Has anyone experienced steering wheel wobble on their Z when going above 60+ mph? It seems to have occurred after I got my front bushes replaced (Meyle HD). Since then I have replaced the run flats to standard and had 4 wheel alignment done. I have had the car up on a jack and tried to see if there was play in the front wheels but there was nothing.

Ideas?

Many thanks,
Dave
 
buckled rim, out of balance wheel/tyre, dirt on mating surface of wheel/disc. All the things I'd start with.
 
I had this some years back and it was down to a rear broken spring - only wobbled when over 70mph
 
Oh my this is familiar, I have Meyle HD FCABs fitted a while back and they are VERY stiff, they pick up even as much as 4 grams out of balance on a wheel (fine balance on a hunter balancing machine) - my friendly tyre tech got pissed off with me complaining and decided we'd see just how little weight was needed to throw it out..

I'm probably getting mine switched for Lemforders because they are just too stiff, infact I think they spoil the car.
I found lots of people in the states complaining about this as well...
 
If its incorrectly balanced wheels, you should be able to test for ot by 'driving through it'. Ie, when you get above or below certain speeds it disappears. Give it a go to rule it in/out.
 
thanks for all your replies.

Parlivus, i'm glad there are other people that think the Meyle's might be causing the problem and not just me!

I had the car done on a hunter machine as well and he had issues aligning the car correctly.

Zed Five, ill give that one a try!

thanks,
Dave
 
I have fitted meyle HD bushes on mine along with wishbones and droplinks and have no such issues at all.

I really doubt they are the cause of the problem as even if they are hard, you don't hear of people with wheel wobble from fitting poly bushes which are much harder.
 
Thread exhumation - sorry but I was about to open a new one for the exact same problem reported by Dave:

My steering wheel starts wobbling at 60-70 mph right after I've fitted Meyle HD wishbones on the front.
Although I can attest the car's general handling and feeling at lower speeds as improved from the previous OEM wishbones (play in the RH wheel with 50K miles on them), it is just not feeling right for the steering to move like that.

Car is now booked for its inspection 2 and I've requested alignment to be checked by the Dealer tomorrow.
I had a little chat with them on this matter and of course they went straight on pointing finger at non-OEM parts' bad quality or being non appropriate.
I am already getting prepared to hear them complain on the alignment being impossible without the wishbones replaced again... And to be honest, I would not be happy to pay for that now.
But in another hand, if alignment doesn't get the steering sorted, I will not leave the situation lasts any longer as I feel unsafe driving on motorway (leave away the german Autobahn non-restricted speed just 20min away from my place :thumbsdown:).

Would you guys recommend any thing to check? I haven't touch the droplinks.
Or should I just let the Dealer get more of my money?
I have small hope as said the alignment fixes the issue.

Thanks!
 
Your new bushes and wishbones will simply have taken the alignment out of true.
Needs proper 4 wheel alignment doing.
I would have a specialist do it, not the dealer.
 
So dealers aren't the best qualified to do proper alignment? I know a lot of you guys in UK are only referring to "hunters" alignment, but I thought the dealer would equally be able to do the job?
Could a bad alignment only interfer at higher speed? I find the handling below 60mph pretty good.
 
I'm sure dealers can do a decent job, but just my opinion is to leave it to specialists who take the time, test drive it and of course cost a lot less.
Generalisation of course...
 
Car is back from inspection, without the alignment bring performed for the reason that the RH wishbone arm is not properly engaged in the lolipop rubber part anymore! See the pic taken by the mechanic.
FullSizeRender_zpser1ngs1o.jpg
While the wishbones were just out of the box, they've seemed alright to me, I didn't notice anything weird like that.
I ordered them on ebay (B&B components UK), then fitted them myself without too much assle...
I guess the lot I received was somehow defective and I will see what part warranty can do for me.
Well at least the wobble feeling has found its origin, just not quite sure I will by Meyle over OEM again!
 
Zeddicus said:
Car is back from inspection, without the alignment bring performed for the reason that the RH wishbone arm is not properly engaged in the lolipop rubber part anymore! See the pic taken by the mechanic.
FullSizeRender_zpser1ngs1o.jpg
While the wishbones were just out of the box, they've seemed alright to me, I didn't notice anything weird like that.
I ordered them on ebay (B&B components UK), then fitted them myself without too much assle...
I guess the lot I received was somehow defective and I will see what part warranty can do for me.
Well at least the wobble feeling has found its origin, just not quite sure I will by Meyle over OEM again!
Is it the rubber bush that is not fitted into the metal sleeve or is it the metal sleeve that is not in the outer bush holding or is it that the wishbone arm is not in the rubber bush?

I too have fitted Meyle HD which I bought from ebay (B&B components UK) and have steering wheel oscillation which is most noticeable at 60mph+. I will be looking at this in the next few days to see if my bushes are the same.
 
I checked my front Meyle HD wishbone bushes yesterday and they are ok. So my steering wheel oscillation is not down to the problem highlighted here.
 
OK guys I just had and incredible revelation today.
Few days ago I had my front tires replaced. Afterwards car was INCREDIBLY unstable at speeds >65mph. Braking from >65mph was an earthquake. It seemed weird to me 'cause I didn't have the wobble before replacing tires. So it couldn't be warped discs. I was thinking about doing the geometry...

I decided to get my rims balanced again. This time by a PRO! He did the balancing again fixed a bit of a dent on the inside of my both rims. YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT KIND OF A DIFFERENCE IT MADE!!! Like a different car. It's hard to imagine balancing could impact driveability so much. Car feels solid all the way up to 100mph. Braking with no wobbles at all. Car feels planted.

Be sure to take your time when you get your wheels balanced; clean the sitting area, lube it, clean remaining glue on the rims.
 
Zikim said:
Is it the rubber bush that is not fitted into the metal sleeve or is it the metal sleeve that is not in the outer bush holding or is it that the wishbone arm is not in the rubber bush?

I too have fitted Meyle HD which I bought from ebay (B&B components UK) and have steering wheel oscillation which is most noticeable at 60mph+. I will be looking at this in the next few days to see if my bushes are the same.

cj10jeeper said:
Zeddicus,

Did the bushes and wishbone come as separate items, or were they already fastened together?

Bushes and wishbone came fastened together.
I just remembered that I had pictures from the parts when I received them (don't ask me why I took them, must have been bored at that time).
IMG_1156_zpskgzebzar.jpg
IMG_1162_zpsokagjdmr.jpg

This is the opposite arm, however you can clearly see the metal sleeve being properly engaged in the inner rubber bush, itself being hold by the outer rubber as it should.

Zikim said:
I checked my front Meyle HD wishbone bushes yesterday and they are ok. So my steering wheel oscillation is not down to the problem highlighted here.
Continue to rule out each possible reason, keep us posted once you'll get your finger on the root cause!

RenoRaines said:
OK guys I just had and incredible revelation today.
Few days ago I had my front tires replaced. Afterwards car was INCREDIBLY unstable at speeds >65mph. Braking from >65mph was an earthquake. It seemed weird to me 'cause I didn't have the wobble before replacing tires. So it couldn't be warped discs. I was thinking about doing the geometry...

I decided to get my rims balanced again. This time by a PRO! He did the balancing again fixed a bit of a dent on the inside of my both rims. YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT KIND OF A DIFFERENCE IT MADE!!! Like a different car. It's hard to imagine balancing could impact driveability so much. Car feels solid all the way up to 100mph. Braking with no wobbles at all. Car feels planted.

Be sure to take your time when you get your wheels balanced; clean the sitting area, lube it, clean remaining glue on the rims.

Thanks for your feedback. Wheel balancing has been checked twice on mine but this was before the current problem. Very true that a good wheel balancing / check always worth the time and money spent on it.

Anyhow, I resigned myself to go to the dealer and have both arms with lolipops replaced for OEM parts + full alignment. It is not going to be cheap, but at least the problem *should* be gone!
 
You are right. I have sent a email to B and B components and will see their answer.
However considering I really need the car back serviceable asap, dealer will do the change with OEM.
 
OP, just to let you know, I also had steering wobble over 60mph and hated it - ruined the driving experience. Had two OEM rear springs fitted last week (as one had snapped) and now no wobble at all over 60mph. Trust that helps.
 
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