Could worn steering rack cause vibrations?

Tiny
DANSFRAZ
  • MEMBER
  • 1996 TOYOTA COROLLA
  • 164,000 MILES
I have a vibration bad vibration from 55mph to almost 70mph. At first I thought the problem could be with worn cv axles, but after replacing them I found the vibration persisted. The tie rod ends are tight, but the steering rod moves in and out of the rack about 1/8"-1/4" when the vehicle is raised. I guess my question is that is this normal or not and what else do I need to be checking to eliminate this issue.
Saturday, August 11th, 2012 AT 6:22 PM

4 Replies

Tiny
CARADIODOC
  • MECHANIC
  • 34,330 POSTS
Worn steering parts will not cause a vibration but they can allow some other cause to make a vibration feel worse. At lower speeds suspect a broken tire belt or bent wheel but at the higher speeds you mentioned tire balance is the logical suspect. An out-of-balance rear wheel will be felt in the car seat and floor. A front wheel will be felt in the steering wheel.

Worn inner cv joints will cause a shimmy in the steering wheel while under load such as when accelerating but that goes away as speed increases.
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Saturday, August 11th, 2012 AT 6:52 PM
Tiny
DANSFRAZ
  • MEMBER
  • 9 POSTS
Ok, thank you. I will have my tires rotated and balanced soon and let you know how it goes.
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Saturday, August 11th, 2012 AT 7:01 PM
Tiny
DANSFRAZ
  • MEMBER
  • 9 POSTS
I went and had my tires balanced and rotated them. The vibration is gone. Thank you very much.
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Saturday, August 11th, 2012 AT 9:45 PM
Tiny
CARADIODOC
  • MECHANIC
  • 34,330 POSTS
All right! One in a row. Happy to hear it was a simple fix.
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Saturday, August 11th, 2012 AT 10:44 PM

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