[grampi]

About a month ago, I started getting a wobble in the front end of my Corolla. It only happens when I'm towing my motorcycle on my trailer, and it doesn't happen all the time; it comes and goes and it happens at various speeds.

Back in Feb of this year I spun out on some ice and hit the curb with right front rim. I was only going about 5 MPH when it hit. It did hit hard enough to slightly bend the rim, but the car drove fine, so at the time I didn't think it had damaged anything else.

So a couple weeks ago I took the car in to have the problem diagnosed. They said my struts and springs were extremely worn and needed to be replaced and that this could be causing my problem. They also said the half shafts were good. So I had new strut/spring assemblies installed and I still have the problem. I had the tires rebalanced thinking that may be the problem. The problem is still there. This leads me to believe that maybe some slight damage was done to either the half shaft and/or the half shaft bearings that's just now rearing its ugly head, or could it be a bad steering component? How do I go about finding out what's causing this problem?

 

[Bennie]

I've seen bad wheel bearing & loose tie rod ends cause a slight vibration. Either one of those could have also been damaged when you hit the curb.

 

[grampi]

No other inputs?

 

[fishexpo101]

Shop shouldn't have swapped parts until they diagnosed it a little further. Could be masking the true cause of the wobble.

Even at that low speed - if it was hard enough to bend a steel wheel, it would be hard enough to trash that bearing. Bad wheel bearing should be easy to check. Double check the alignment - see how far they moved compared to last go around.

Wobble can come from a number of possible sources, including:
- Bent wheel(s)
- Bad tire balance (Radial Force Variation issue)
- Bad tire(s)
- Worn suspension parts (need time for the new springs/struts to settle as well)
- Worn bearings
- Bent/damaged wheel hub
- Bad alignment
- Bent tie rod
- Bent control arm
- Worn bushings
- Damaged steering rack
- Damaged or worn brake components
- Loose lugs
- Uneven tire pressure
- etc

Axles are unlikely to be the issue, as they would be causing problems regardless if your are towing or not.

Need more info on the wobbling.
- Does the steering wheel wiggle in your hand, ie high frequency shimmying or it is low frequency, ie. you feel the wobbling more in your seat than in the steering wheel?
- How much weight are you trying to tow?
- Conditions of the tires (same ones you had before earlier in the year)?
- How did you hit the curb - straight on, at an angle, or the wheel face parallel to the curb?

 

[Sonix]

They said my struts and springs were extremely worn and needed to be replaced and that this could be causing my problem.

Thats a euphemism for, let us pick your pocket! Brakes, struts, and tuneups Rus, unfortunately are the life blood of chain shops!

 

[grampi]

I already knew my struts/springs were way overdue for replacement, so having those installed was a necessity anyway. The wobble is felt equally in the steering wheel and through the seat. I tow roughly 1000 lbs, including the weight of the trailer. The tires are the same ones I've had since about a little over a year ago. They're 80K mile tires and they got about 40K on them. I hit the curb with the wheel face parallel to the curb.

 

[dward3]

Here's a good PDF to check out. Its for a few toyota models. You do have a power steering box or gear that could be bad. I hope its something simply like your ball joint.

http://www.search-document.com/pdf/1/10/2001-corolla-suspension-and-axle.html

 

[Beekeeper2020]

Your rim is bent and it is out of balance when you hit the curb.

Take a closer look at the rim. Replacing the rim is the only way.

When you replace the rim, you need to do that in pair.

 

[Sonix]

Your rim is bent and it is out of balance when you hit the curb.

Take a closer look at the rim. Replacing the rim is the only way.

When you replace the rim, you need to do that in pair.

Ha-ha, I was going to suggest switching the back pair for the front, just to rule that out.

 

[grampi]

The rim is bent, but only slightly where the tire bead sits. That rim is on the rear also...and I just had all 4 tires re-balanced...