Pulsation in Steering Wheel - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

michaelz944 · 10-31-2010, 08:37 PM

I've got a 1999 Toyota Solara (6 cylinder).

Recently I've noticed a mild vibration/pulsation in the steering wheel whenever I reach speeds at over 40 MPH (I never feel it at anything slower). It's not a steady/consistent problem but it does come and goes.

At first I though it was the road condition, but sometimes this happens on perfectly flat and smooth pavement.

This just started happening immediately after getting my tires rotated, so I thought that this might have something to do with the way the wheels were worn, that I'm just sensing the difference in variation of the tread wear....but now I'm wondering if it might be something more serious.

I did just get an alignment done, but still the same problem.

Any ideas what may be causing this?

Thanks in advance for any help! =)

***Zembonez*** · 10-31-2010, 08:42 PM

More than likely a tire out of balance. It's much easier to feel it on the front than it is the rear. When you rotated your tires one of the rears that became a front probably needs balancing.

michaelz944 · 10-31-2010, 08:53 PM

Oh, well that that shouldn't be too big of an expensive fix...I was thinking maybe something more along the lines of the suspension, but definitely couldn't hurt to get them balanced (and it's not that expensive either). Thanks Zembonez!

***Zembonez*** · 10-31-2010, 08:58 PM

Well since the problem popped up when you rotated the tires, I'd bet a balance job does it. Good luck!

littlebookworm · 10-31-2010, 10:29 PM

I agree that it's probably just a tire balancing problem; but it could also be an incorrect tire rotation. Your tires, I believe, are supposed to be rotated front to rear only, not diagnally across. If the wheels were rotated diagnally, the wear pattern on the tires would be upset, causing a vibration. Check for directional arrows on your tires, They may or may not have them. Then get them balanced. If that doesn't fix the problem, have them rotated back the way they were. The only negative to not rotating tires is that the front tires wear out earlier than the rears, rather than all four wearing out at the same time. Hy