Have had this issue for a while now, JUST the steering wheel will shake not the car or anything else does it at 100kph+ and will stop every now and then. My thought is tie rods my integra had a similar issue however the WHOLE car would shake ended up being the axel everything is intact nothing loose etc. suggestions welcome !

 

Alignment, rotate and balance check tires. Inspect ball joints and tie rods

 

wouldn't be alignment I've tried the wheels from my integra still does it. the wheel shakes REALLY badly ! ball joints are still in good shape for the price of tie rods I may just replace them. but how do I check them ?

 

Have all 4 wheels balanced.

 

Wait, you put the wheels from your integra on your Civic, and it still did it? That doesn't rule out the alignment, that rules out wheel/tire balancing, and makes the case for alignment stronger.

 

Only thing is my integra has negative camber and no alignment/balance done since I got my new rims and the car is fine at 100+kph. I'm just trying to understand WHY and not throw a bunch of parts/services at it. anyone think it could be the tie rods ? it's JUST the steering wheel that shakes badly not the car it's self that's what's throwing me off.

will look into alignment tho it never used to do this happened after the winter tires had been put on/came off all I have is 185/60 on steels tires are brand new toyo's

 

If you tie rods are bad, the shop won't be able to do the alignment until it's fixed. Let them do that diagnosis for you - most shops, it's free. If you want to diagnose it yourself, put the front end on jack stands (use the front tow hook, you don't want to touch the suspension components). Grab your wheels at 12 and 6, and try to wiggle them. Now do the same thing at 3 and 9.

12/6 movement: Bad balljoints
3/9 movement: Bad tie rods, tie rod ends, or steering rack
12/3/6/9 movement: All of the above, or bad wheel hub bearing

 

So what in this thread rules out the need for wheel balancing, the most common cause of wheel shake at high speed?

 

ok thanks I may just get it "safety checked" it's an all-over inspection. the car sat for more then 5 months more or less. will try the 12/6 and 3/9


RonJ: just going by my integra and how it's handles lol can't remember the last time my civic got an alignment will be taking it to a shop for an all-over inspection. I need the car 100% safe by the time school starts again.

 

Nothing definitively rules it out, but the fact that he could recreate the exact problem after swapping wheels and tires from his other car that doesn't have a problem at speed strongly suggests against it.

 

If you read the OP's comments carefully, I'm not sure how you know exactly what the OP has done. Some wheels seem to have been swapped but the details are ambiguous to me at least.

 

While the OP's assumption in the quoted post is incorrect, it doesn't nullify his test, just his conclusion. The quoted post makes it fairly clear OP took the wheels off his Integra - which he later said has no problems up to 100 KPH - and put them on his Civic.

 

I interpret the OP's tests differently than you do. I think that both his Civic and Integra wheels may be out of balance. For example, he states that the Integra wheels have NOT been balanced. And, in my opinion the Civic would be more sensitive to out of balance wheels that would the Integra with the sturdier suspension. Bad alignment is not a good fit with the described problem.

 

Check your front calipers, one of the bolts that holds it may be way to tight, it happened to me and had no idea what it was until I took it to a shop. But yes, check your balljoints, tie rods (inner/outer), and the 12/6 and 3/9 test, get the current tires balanced, and an alignment

 

I just swapped the pads+ rotors and torqued everything to spec, ball joints have no ripped boots but i'll still go over them. Again just strange that ONLY the steering wheel shakes the car is perfectly sound no vibration at all which makes me think rack/ tie rod related. the current set of tires were installed on the rim at a garage so I'd think they did it right.

 

And go buy a damn Haynes or similar manual. Read it cover to cover

 

Why would you believe that out of balance wheels would result in a different symptom?

Assumption^

Consider that their machine may not have been calibrated or they simply didn't balance them.

 

Ok update drove the car on the highway thing shakes REALLY badly after 90kph ! there is not 12/6 play 3/9 is hard to tell as you're kind of turning the wheel when you do but I almost feel like the wheel will turn(3/9) before the other wheel/steering wheel starts to turn.

 

thats a sign of bad tie rods...if they were good the other wheel would turn together when you shake it as they would be no play (go to 1:40, really bad play):


FYI: you probably should replace BOTH inner and outer tie rods since the parts are cheap and you would need an alignment anyway. Also your brakes should feel better after this, mine had a shudder which every other mechanic diagnosed as warped rotors when in fact it was the play in the tie rods under braking that cause the vibrations. But also I would agree with RONJ the symptoms you are describing definitely involves bad tires/balance.

Man you canadians sure beat up on your car's suspension and body with all the rust and snow.........

 

Yes ! thanks very much for that link !! was hard to describe but basically I can turn the one wheel(they BOTH seem to do this) and it takes a while for the other one to start turning with it. So would that indicate inner or outer or both ? out is easy by the looks inner seems to be a bit of a hassle seeing as you need a special tool.

 

you can test the inner by doing the same thing as the guy in the video:

1) take out the outer tie rod and:

2) yank on the inner tie rod shaft to feel for play in the inner tie rod ball joints.

you might have enough room to slip on a big adjustable wrench to loosen the inner tie rod. I just rented the inner tie rod tool from autozone, not sure if they do that in canada....


inner tie rod check:
go to the same video at 3:03, very clear video of the test.

also another useful link, he didnt use special tools just two big wrenches.

http://civic-eg.com/viewtopic.php?t=13588

 

Ok got both inners and outers but rust has me stopped again ! plus the cotter pins broke inside the nut. Car is set to go to a garage tomorrow I'm too bust getting ready for school sadly seems like a real easy job. thanks for the input will update when I get the car back.

 

this^

Also, make sure your lugs are tightened to spec (80 ft lbs.?). The last time I took my car to the tire place they tightened the lugs so tight I almost couldn't get them loose. This can warp brake components and distort rims. Rotate the tires front to back and see if that makes a difference (doubt it). Likely imbalanced/poorly mounted tires, bent rim, worn suspension components, or bad alignment. I'd guess the last 2 are required.

How are the tires wearing?

 

you need to get an impact man, no need for air , electric one from dewalt or better still a DW059:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listi...d=&seller=&sr=

 

Can't say I torque my lugs down lol but I don't do it super tight or anything ya I should probably invest in one of those but this rust is CRAZY northern Canada winters are bad then the amount of salt/sand they put on the roads is another story. I need this car too soon to diy only times I've needed a garage is to do my welding or for advice/tool loan. may take pic of the rust it's pretty BAD.


tired the civic wheels on the teg nothing wrong as for wear they're pretty new so its hard to see much but they look good also it's starting to happen at low speeds too now which is rather scray