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Front End Shake

4.4K views 20 replies 9 participants last post by  daerl  
#1 ·
Hi,
I did a search and didn't find an answer, but if its there, sorry for the repost. My 89 corolla shakes bad between 40 - 70 mph; it pulls to the passenger side. this shake is worse when I am coasting (foot off the gas). I have checked the bearings and the brakes. Any ideas before I put it in the shop.

thanks,

:confused:
 
#5 · (Edited)
tie rod end or ball joint are likely causes. But what I have found is it can be rare for them to cause excessive vibration. You might also need your tires balanced or better yet a new rim if it's really out.

Wheel bearings will also cause the car to be unstable and you can try to check them, but to be honest the regular way of checking them didn't work until mine got REALLY bad. But I took it in and told them to replace it even though it didn't seem bad on the hoist and I was right since when they pulled it out it came out in pieces.

One overly simple thing that would cause what you are describing are loose lug nuts. I've had that happen and drove from Barrie to Hamilton and back (for those in Ontario who know how long of a drive that is) with the vibration getting worse. I was pleasantly surprised when I checked it the next day and instead of a bad wheel bearing it was just a loose front rim.
 
#6 ·
One overly simple thing that would cause what you are describing are loose lug nuts. I've had that happen and drove from Barrie to Hamilton and back (for those in Ontario who know how long of a drive that is) with the vibration getting worse. I was pleasantly surprised when I checked it the next day and instead of a bad wheel bearing it was just a loose front rim.
that's scary :p:

I'm guessing it's probably just a wheel balance issue. or the tires have a flat spot from the car sitting.

my car did the same thing when I got it, as soon as I replaced the tires it was like new.
 
#9 ·
Front end

tomorrow I'm going to firestone and have them check it all out; whatever it is, its a constant pull to the left; what I mean is that even when I'm going slow (10-25mph), there is a rythmic pull to the left, like something is dragging. oh, and it gets worse at 40mph, and whenever I'm slowing down. it definitely is the passenger side, and has to do with the wheel, not engine or clutch. the guy @ firestone said it could be a warped rotor/bad caliper, tie rod, or the tire. the tires look fairly new, but also fairly cheap. thanks for all the help!!
 
#10 ·
I used to drive a Jeep Wrangler that had this same problem. I'd hit 55-60 mph and thing would just start shaking like crazy. I'd have to let off the gas and let smooth out. It was pretty scary. I tried everything...replaced sway arm, checked ball joints, had it aligned, tires balanced...etc. I finally bought new tires and the problem went away. The tires had no visible signs of wear or problems so I can only assume there was a broken belt or something that was throwing them off. Anyway the problem never came back while I owned it. Hope that helps.
 
#13 ·
if the belt broke inside you are lucky the tire didn't blow. Had that happen with my friends parents car when I was a kid headed off to a camping trip, I told them what happened by the buldge in the tire and they didn't believe me and got back on the hwy, 10 min later the tire exploded lol.
 
#14 ·
HI everyone...I'm having the same problem of some sort, in my situation I've just replaced the clutch, after that I'm having a vibration around 40 mph and gets worse in higher speeds. Tires are fine. My mechanic change the clutch but now he's in vacation, so I cannot bring my car to him to check it, I wonder if I can fix the problem. Clutch works very well but the vibration if the problem now.
I will check all the points here exposed in the last posts.

More ideas? Can the clutch change alterate the whole and normal driving?

thanks in advance
 
#15 ·
if it's vibrating at 40mph and not lower you probably have a bad bearing, tie-rod, or ball-joint prob not much else to do that if you don't hear your motor shuddering or anything else
 
#17 ·
i bought inner/outer tie-rods and ball-joints i think for a combo price of like 110 on ebay.

your car is 20 years old you prob need them and if your planning on keeping for a few years you might as well start now...
 
#19 ·
sounds to me like he might have knocked a balancing weight off one of your front wheels when he was doing the clutch. I would wait till he's back from vacation and have him look at it.
 
#21 ·
Suspension Check

Hi,
I went to Firestone, and for about $21 ($15 if you find a coupon), they will check your suspension, brakes, hoses, etc. Thats how I found out it was just a tire. A friend of mine had 2 tires that fit the corolla, I spent $18 to have them changed onto the car, and now it drives perfect.

Goodyear does this inspection too, but for $30.

Hope it helps.