Accord Steering Wheel Wobble

Has anyone encountered a problem on an Accord 2003 or newer where they could not get the vibrations out from the front end. I recently purchased a new set of tires Toyo Versado LX. I had them balanced several times including rode force balanced under the assumption that the tire balance is causing the steering wheel to wobble as soon as one gets above 90 km/h. If I cruise at 100Km/h it shakes but after a while the shake stops but then several minutes later it starts again. The vibrations reduce as you increase the speed. It is not too bad at

140Km/h. It is absolutely horrible at 170km/h (not near any population or drivers near me). I assumed that the problem was the brakes so I serviced them by completely disassembling the front and the rear calipers. Needles to say they were partially responsible for the shaking during the starts from 0 Km/h. The brake pistons had a lot of varnish, rust and dark grey fluid. I was surprised since I bled them every 50,000Km (I have over 325,000Km - 2003 Accord 4 cyl). I also have new front and rear disks, so I am sure they are not warped i.e. the whole barking system now works as good as when the car was new. I also rotated the tires to see if the vibrations start at different speed. It had no effect. I went to the dealer for inspection. They claim there's nothing wrong with the suspension i.e. struts are OK, joints are OK. Everything is still tight. Some dealerships are suggesting that I replace the half-shafts. However they could not claim with high degree of certainty that it is the shafts. I am planning to put my winter tires on to see if the car shakes with them. I know that it did not the last spring prior to taking them off. Any ideas or experience with this kind of situation?

thanks.

Reply to
highkm
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"highkm" wrote

Did this vibration begin after the new tires were installed? That is, did you have this problem with the old tires?

Reply to
Howard Lester

if the winter tires are ok, you know it's the new tires, not the car. i'd try that change asap. if it's the car, you need a new mechanic because whoever you're taking it to now doesn't know their business.

Reply to
jim beam

I had a very similar problem with my 2001 Accord when I bought it. The dealership I bought it from checked it out top to bottom, put new tires on, and couldn't find the problem. They had me take it to the Honda dealer at their expense, where they *balanced* all four tires and 99% fixed the problem. Either a) the original dealer's mechanics had no idea what they were doing, or b) their balancer was out of calibration -- which could be considered the same as a)...

Reply to
JM

If I had to guess I'd say it was one of the tires.

See if you can be there when they are balanced and see if one of the fronts looks odd when spinning. It could be a belt has slipped causing the tire to no longer ride truly.

Peter H

Reply to
Peter H

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Has anybody suggested it could be low fluid or a problem with the power steering?

'Curly'

Reply to
motsco_

It is definitely possible if the problem coincides with the introduction of the new tires (and precedes all the other suspension changes) that you just got a set of bad tires.

You say new front and rear disks - were the hubs properly cleaned before installing the new disks? A little rust buildup on the hub can prevent the rotor from seating properly and cause a wobble.

Another (more remote) possibility: I had a similar episode on the 2000 TL with excessive vibration at highway speed whenever the brakes were touched. Thought it must be a warped rotor. Dealer wanted to replace the rotors (at my expense of course). The problem turned out to actually be a bad upper ball joint on the left front. The excessive movement in the wheel had caused a build up of material on the rotor. The user discernable symptom was that particular wheel was noticeably hotter to the touch than the others after a 10 minute highway drive.

Reply to
E Meyer

I finally found some time and put on my winter tires and rims. The vibrations disappeared. I contacted Toyo and they stated that they would be glad to replace one or all four tires if need be.

Cheers.

Reply to
highkm

Is it just me, or are Honda's more sensitive to tires being out of balance than other cars?

Nobody I know has the same issues with their detroit junk or other import makes. I have made it part of my maintenance ritual every year to get all 4 tires balanced.

I have spoken with more than 6 other Honda owners that have the same issues.

What gives? It seems like more than coincidence... does it have something to do with the suspension setup or maybe designed with less isolation between the tire and suspension systems?

t

highkm wrote:

Reply to
loewent via CarKB.com

they are more sensitive.

both. but you make it sound like it's a problem. i /want/ my car to talk to me. if a wheel is out, i /want/ to know!

if you don't like that, go buy a buick - you can watch those things rolling down the freeway with an unbalanced front wheel bouncing so badly, it's hardly touching the pavement, yet the steering wheel is steady as a rock. /that/ is a dangerous situation because the slightest brake pressure will lock that wheel as it's not touching the ground properly. and it won't corner properly at speed either. give me a wish-boned honda any day - you'll /never/ be in ignorance of such dangerous defects.

Reply to
jim beam

Reply to
loewent via CarKB.com

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Finally, my car vibrations have been resolved. The problem was with the balancing of tires. This was determined by Toyo Canada. My last balance was a Road Force Balance at one of the Honda dealerships in Ontario. The dealership service manager has been contacted, who subsequently apologized and gave me service credit for the amount of the balance ($150 CDN). What is interesting about the whole episode is that 3 Honda FACTORY trained dealerships did not have a clue how to balance the wheels/tires. The Road Force Balance technician told me after the service that the vehicle has no vibrations at any speed even when going over 120Km/h. (He never tested the car after he performed the work.) My first drive at 120Km/h nearly broke my front suspension. It was later determined and I have seen it with my own eyes, that some weights that were installed by Honda delaership made no sense at all. One weight looked like it was 0.5 lbs, and beside it was another smaller weight. I usually go for an alignment and balance when I get a new set of tires, as in this case. Note that Toyo Versado LX is probably the best tire I have owned for normal highway cruising (up to

130Km/h). I get approximately 10% more kilometers per tank-full of gas. The tires are also quiter that the OEM Michelins MXV S8s.
Reply to
highkm

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thanks for posting the follow-up - successful resolution is great for the archives.

Reply to
jim beam

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