99 camry front end problem, please help!

[njwrestler07]

I have a 99 camry 4 cylinder LE with only 45,000 miles on it. I've been having a problem with the front end shaking ever since I got the car from my grandparents at 22,000 miles. I've had it looked at by Toyota and my step father's shop and still cant figure out the problem. The wheel shakes at 55 mph+ and when the wheel is straight while driving it shakes more. If the car is sitting still and I move the wheel back and forth it clicks. Sometimes when I'm doing 70 mph for example, and the wheel is straight it feels like something is loose and rattling in the steering. I work for a tire company and I always check the balancing on the tires and rims and they are all fine, even high speed balancing. The car also sometimes feels like it gets away from me when I hit bumps on the highway. I need help with this, if I can't figure this out i will have to sell it.

[BamZipPow]

Originally Posted by njwrestler07

I have a 99 camry 4 cylinder LE with only 45,000 miles on it. I've been having a problem with the front end shaking ever since I got the car from my grandparents at 22,000 miles. I've had it looked at by Toyota and my step father's shop and still cant figure out the problem. The wheel shakes at 55 mph+ and when the wheel is straight while driving it shakes more. If the car is sitting still and I move the wheel back and forth it clicks. Sometimes when I'm doing 70 mph for example, and the wheel is straight it feels like something is loose and rattling in the steering. I work for a tire company and I always check the balancing on the tires and rims and they are all fine, even high speed balancing. The car also sometimes feels like it gets away from me when I hit bumps on the highway. I need help with this, if I can't figure this out i will have to sell it.

What wheel are you turning? Steering or the wheel/tire? If by the wheel/tire what do you mean by back and forth...do you mean left to right? Up and down? In and out?

Have you checked out the CV joints? How are the boots looking?

[njwrestler07]

the steering wheel, i feel everything in the steering wheel and also the rest of the car shakes because of how bad it is. when the car isn't moving, and i turn the steering wheel left and right pretty quickly, the steering wheel clicks. I feel that when i'm driving at high speeds when the wheel is straight.

[Hajoca]

What happens when you apply a little brake?

If shaking stops, then you have warped rotors.

[73sport]

Originally Posted by njwrestler07

the steering wheel, i feel everything in the steering wheel and also the rest of the car shakes because of how bad it is. when the car isn't moving, and i turn the steering wheel left and right pretty quickly, the steering wheel clicks. I feel that when i'm driving at high speeds when the wheel is straight.

You might want to start here with that click even though its beyond the date range.

Old Recall notice for Loose Nut! READ

Short of finding something bent, or completely shot (worn oput), please use the search button. In the end almost all vibrations come back to tire/wheel issues. Yes, many will claim things get better with lots of new parts. The fact is the new parts mask the real problem which is often a bad tire or a bent wheel. If you spin the tire ON THE CAR and they do not follow a perfect circle with no side to side or lateral run-out you need to find the source.

I suggest you chuck up these wheels and test them for lateral run-out, and confirm they center properly on the hub. Are these factory steel wheels? If aftermarket, do they have hub centers on them so the studs are not the only thing trying to center them?

Also, please be more specific about the vibrations. Denoting what the front does and what the rear does.

Something else to consider is sometimes people put shims under the rotor hats to corrects rotor run-out so the brake don't shake. You might consider pulling the rotors ad removing them. Perhaps replace the rotors if you find shims.