My Steering Wheel Farts!

[prazeo]

weird stuff. everytime i turn my steering wheel to the left, it makes this weird noise. it sounds like a mild fart or squeal or something. its kind of hard to explain. anybody know what's wrong with it?
and sometimes, at highway speeds, my steering wheel vibrates too.

any help would be appreciated. thanks in advance!

[xavior66]

From the way it sounds and the way I'm picturing it in my mind, it sounds like those "farts" might possibly be the rubber on the outer part of your steering wheel that's rubbing against the metal? Try taking off your steering wheel and see if you can find anything. (btw, you'll need a steering wheel puller to take off the steering wheel itself.)

[mox]

From the way it sounds and the way I'm picturing it in my mind, it sounds like those "farts" might possibly be the rubber on the outer part of your steering wheel that's rubbing against the metal? Try taking off your steering wheel and see if you can find anything. (btw, you'll need a steering wheel puller to take off the steering wheel itself.)

Or just pull very hard on your steering but take care to not break your seat at the impact of you returning into your seat after the steering finally get removed

That's how I proceeded for my steering and it worked fine

Don't forget to remove the connector for the airbag/cruise inside your steering.. if you forget it, you'll kill the coil that is used to transport 12V and airbag/horn/cruise to your steering

If you break it, I have a 4th Gen and 3rd Gen steering + coil here that are doing nothing

[dj14901]

First, before you go pulling your steering wheel, I had a similar problem. My steering wheel used to squeak when making shart turns at low speeds, and it drove me nuts. I lubricated everything around the steering wheel, but to no avail. Finally Gibson99 said to spray silicone spray where the steering shaft goes through the firewall (there's a rubber grommet there). After doing that, the noise disappeared. He said that it was a common problem with Camry's, so hopefully that's your issue...

Secondly, is your vibration at highway speeds only when you're braking? If so, there's a good chance that it's either your front rotors or rear drums that are causing the problem. Let me know if that's the case and I can post a test that'll let you know if it's the front or rear brakes that are causing the problem. If the vibration occurs when you're just cruising or coasting, it could be an alignment/wheel balance issue. Camry's seem to be more sensitive to the alignment/wheel balance issues than other cars...

HTH -

DJ

[DavePont]

I get kind of the same problems...

when mostly idle (like waiting for a red light to turn or at a stop) my steering wheel starts shaking hard (most of the time, not always). And that kind of plastic trim around the whole steering column (where the flasher, wiper and cruise-control levers come out from) has a broken clip on one side so it's kind of loose around the column, which amplifies the noise with a rather bothering rattle...

Also when I do sharp turns at low speed, it used to emit some "cracking" sounds... Twice I think.... like "scrack-scrack", depending on how fast I would make the wheel turn. But now there also is some squeaking added to it, right after each "crack", (making it "scrack-weei-scrack-weei" :P) which sounds like I drive a garbage can, even though it has only 67k KILOMETERS on it !!

And if dj14901 is right about the vibration being linked to a problem with the brake rotors, I have my rear brakes that make this greatly annoying squeal sound whenever I brake at low speeds. The pads are in good condition and I got the whole brake setup washed recently at a good mechanic's shop... So if this is of any help for you helping me, there it is lol!


THANKS FOR ANY HELP, REALLY APPRECIATED!
-Dave

[DavePont]

/bump
please help, this gets very annoying and I'm sure many of you could come up with an answer

[amerikim]

Check your steering fluid, it sounds like a change is needed. Your fluid could be over or underfilled too.
Brake squeal means pads might be not reinstalled right or crap is in there or... list goes on forever. I think they sell some brake quiet down spray at some shops, give that a shot. A good mechanics shop can wash your brakes, but a great mechanic's shop would fix it if you brought it back.

[userlain]

Originally Posted by prazeo

and sometimes, at highway speeds, my steering wheel vibrates too.

That would be because of a misaligned wheel or a wheel off balance. You better have a shop look at that.

[bowlofturtle]

i get that fart sound too only to the left at low speeds i said screw it i dont care. just crank up the music and go..

[klex]

you're not alone bro, my 99 le does that also!

[Todd Soden]

This is driving me nuts as well. I have tried White Grease, WD40 and Silicon spray and the noise keeps returning after a week or so. STUPID RUBBER ON RUBBER!

[articledon]

for you gen 5 camrys there is a TSB about a recall about the stearing wheel squeel. I think it is named st001 or something like that. It is sometype of lubrication problem. I took mine to the dealership a few months ago. the sqeeling stopped but now it is back as loud as ever

[ModifierMR]

my 03 camry makes a weird noise when i turn the wheel. it sounds like plastic squeek or something. It happens more often on Colder days. Sometimes in the summer but very seldom.

[drunken_panda]

Is there a place to get the TSBs? I never ever go to the dealer, so there is no way for me to get notified. Unless they mail them, but I never got the one about the sulfer smell.

[CX889]

Same with 97' Camry. I got the same problem when I start my car cold. Sometimes it squeak too but I am not too concern with it. Maybe I will wait till I have some big maintenance.