# Steering vibration at 80+ mph (but wheels not unbalanced)



## tortoise99 (Dec 26, 2005)

I am getting vibration from my front wheels at speeds of 80 mph (and faster). It feels very similar to the wheels being out of balance. However I have had the wheels (all 4), balanced by 3 different garages and the problem persists. I do not believe any of the wheels are buckled either. I had the tracking checked and that's also ok.

Any thoughts what's causing the problem? The car has done 83,000 miles by the way.

Thanks

Edit: the tyres (Goodyear) are all good, no uneven wear or scrubbing.


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## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

Hi, Do you have spacers/adaptors fitted, if not get all steering joints & suspension checked out.
Tyre walls & tread checked & O.K. ?
Put front wheels on the rear, any difference ?
Hoggy.


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## tortoise99 (Dec 26, 2005)

Hi Hoggy

Car is completely standard so no modifications. The second garage swapped the fronts and backs and it made no difference.

My guess is a track rod end starting to wear.


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## CWM3 (Mar 4, 2012)

I had a similar issue, initially suspected balance, as that had been the problem before, but turned out to be alignment, full 4 wheel alignment was the cure in my case.


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## MarkTTS (Feb 19, 2011)

I had a similar issue, three garages balanced my wheels and yet still had wheel wobble.

Then took it to a place that had a Hunter Road force balancer. Cured 

Ps If you're going to take your car to get the alignment done in attempt to fix the problem, make sure it's a Hunter alignment too!

http://www.alignmycar.co.uk (use 5% discount voucher)

http://www.balancemycar.co.uk


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## Von Twinzig (Feb 10, 2014)

Out of round tyres? Had this before. Get them off and onto a balancer and spin them slowly with your eye level with the tyre tread, end on.

VT


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## drejcislo (Dec 29, 2015)

cupped tires? winter tires? Do an alignment before messing with suspension parts.


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## Skygod (Mar 1, 2012)

Have you changed your brake discs recently?


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## rajanm1 (Feb 1, 2014)

MarkTTS said:


> I had a similar issue, three garages balanced my wheels and yet still had wheel wobble.
> 
> Then took it to a place that had a Hunter Road force balancer. Cured
> 
> ...


What's the 5% discount voucher?


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## MarkTTS (Feb 19, 2011)

rajanm1 said:


> MarkTTS said:
> 
> 
> > I had a similar issue, three garages balanced my wheels and yet still had wheel wobble.
> ...


Printable voucher that's on the bottom of the website. Take it into any of the dealers registered with that website that all have hunter machines and get 5% off you total cost.

Not a lot but every little helps


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## Sodde (Jun 1, 2015)

I went through the same scenario a few months ago when I had new wheels and tires fitted. As soon as I drove away from the tire fitting shop I noticed a pretty bad imbalance but rather than take it back to the fitter (I didn't like their service very much), I decided to take it to a shop that a friend of mine works in. They balanced the wheels on their machine which made some improvement but I still couldn't drive above 70mph without the wheel jumping out of my hands. Next stop was a dealership with a Hunter road force balancer. They diagnosed that the 2 RH tires were above their imbalance levels and on their advice, I had 2 of the tires replaced under warranty.
Once I got the replacement tires I took them back to the same dealership who mounted them and re=balanced them. When I picked the car up they told me that the wheels balanced ok but that there was still a vibration above 70mph and suggested that I let them check over my suspension for possible problems...which I declined as the car (2012 TTS) only has 7700 miles!
I knew this was all BS as the wheels and tires I took of the car were completely devoid of any vibration at any speed.
So next up I called another local dealership who also offered road force balancing and explained my problem an his immediate response was that my wheels probably need 'road force matching'....something that any establishment with Hunter equipment knows about but few seem to carry out.
The end result was that I let the tire technician drive my car who confirmed the imbalance, he then checked the balance and I had 2 tires showing above 17lbs of imbalance. He explained that the Hunter machine allows 18-22lbs of imbalance for it to be given an 'OK' but that most large rim/low profile tire packages need a much lower figure that that to remove vibration.
After deflating the 2 tires, moving the tire around on the rim, re-inflating and rebalancing, I ended up with all 4 wheels below 4lb.
Bottom line is make sure whoever is doing your roadforce balancing knows and practices road force matching and make sure you get a 'before and after' printout of the balance procedure....which should always be presented when you pick up your car, but again rarely is.


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## tortoise99 (Dec 26, 2005)

Skygod said:


> Have you changed your brake discs recently?


they were replaced about a year ago - so no, not recently


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## tortoise99 (Dec 26, 2005)

Went out in car today (on a private road)...

Accelerated hard up to 90mph going up through the gears (on a straight, flat road). and no vibration! Then eased off to 85 and as I went round a slight bend, the vibration was back.

I think my original hunch was correct - something has worn in the steering or suspension - like a track rod end.

Have car booked in to my trusted local indie in a couple of weeks - will keep you posted.

Thanks for the suggestions.


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## Sodde (Jun 1, 2015)

tortoise99 said:


> Went out in car today (on a private road)...
> 
> Accelerated hard up to 90mph going up through the gears (on a straight, flat road). and no vibration! Then eased off to 85 and as I went round a slight bend, the vibration was back.
> 
> ...


I could also 'drive through' the imbalance until the road force matching got rid of it.


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## Alzo (Mar 24, 2016)

Hi I had an issue with vibration at 78/80ish mph had the wheels balanced and it did not cure it. I took my car to a place in Wigan that had the hunter system and basically long story short it was the tyres causing the issue. Something called sawtooth (alternate high and low spots) new tyres and rebalance... Problem solved


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## tortoise99 (Dec 26, 2005)

Update...

Took car to garage. They weren't 100% sure what was causing the vibration but on a hunch (because the tech's wife's car had a similar problem), replaced a CV joint.

This seems to have fixed it - have driven the car but need to give it a proper test (on a racetrack :wink: ) to be sure.

Thanks for your suggestions.


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## Bobo2211 (Sep 27, 2015)

tortoise99 said:


> Update...
> 
> Took car to garage. They weren't 100% sure what was causing the vibration but on a hunch (because the tech's wife's car had a similar problem), replaced a CV joint.
> 
> ...


Hi tortoise99,

Could you please explain what the CV joint is? If possible the part number from Audi as well.

I'm from a not native english speaking country so it would be easier for me to find it. Mine has slight steering wheel
vibration at about 100km/h and above. It has Hunter alignment 6 months ago


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## tortoise99 (Dec 26, 2005)

Hi

Try this:

http://www.samarins.com/glossary/cv_joint.html

I do not know the part number.


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## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

Bobo2211 said:


> Mine has slight steering wheel
> vibration at about 100km/h and above. It has Hunter alignment 6 months ago


Hi, An out of balance wheel could easily occur after 6 months, get the wheels re-balanced first.
Hoggy.


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## Willyzzz (Feb 6, 2017)

What was the solution?


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## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

Willyzzz said:


> What was the solution?


Hi, Many solutions, usually require re-balancing correctly, weights can easily come off.
Could be wheels/tyres all require checking, before replacing any suspension/steering.
Hoggy.


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## Easygeezer (Dec 11, 2017)

Hi, 80mph my steering wheel starts to vibrate and it annoys the hell out of me, this is how I bought the car and thought it was the balance of the wheels, I had them balanced and it didn't improve, I then bought 4 x new F1 tyres thinking it would resolve the problem but it didn't, I then took it to 3 different places to be rebalanced and the issue is still present, I had the geometry checked, adjusted but it's still there. It starts at 80mph and you can drive through it so at 95 all comes good again, is this a characteristic off the vehicle or is something not right? TIA Andy


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## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

Hi, Do you have spacers fitted ? Are the wheels running true, not bent/twisted. Have you put front wheels on the rear ? 
Have the wheel bearings been checked ? 
Steering vibs are not a common problem on the TT.17 years & never had that problem.
Hoggy.


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## Jsimba (Sep 15, 2018)

This is something I've noticed on my TTS since picking it up a month ago - it's fine up to around 80mph before the steering wheel essentially starts to vibrate. So sounds like a similar problem to others here - wish it wasn't the case for any of us, but glad I'm not alone in noticing it!

What's the approximate cost for a having the alignment looked at by somewhere with a Hunter Road force balancer and does anyone have any trusted places to go to that can be relied on to do a good job of it?

Cheers


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## Easygeezer (Dec 11, 2017)

Hi, no spacers fitted, wheels are true, rears have been tried on the front, suspension checked for any play, don't get me wrong once you get to 100mph it's clean again and the wobble is an annoying vibration, Hoggy are you saying if you cruise at 90mph you are vibration free, I don't want to chase an issue if it's part of owning a TT?


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## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

Easygeezer said:


> Hoggy are you saying if you cruise at 90mph you are vibration free, I don't want to chase an issue if it's part of owning a TT?


Hi, Yes & not a tremor & I've had her for 17 years.
3 different wheel types.
Vibs are not normal when everything perfect, so something not quite right on yours.
Hoggy.


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## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

Hoggy said:


> Easygeezer said:
> 
> 
> > Hoggy are you saying if you cruise at 90mph you are vibration free, I don't want to chase an issue if it's part of owning a TT?
> ...


PS, Mine is a MK1 & usually a much more stable car at speed
Hoggy.


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## wsantos (Sep 7, 2020)

Easygeezer said:


> Hi, 80mph my steering wheel starts to vibrate and it annoys the hell out of me, this is how I bought the car and thought it was the balance of the wheels, I had them balanced and it didn't improve, I then bought 4 x new F1 tyres thinking it would resolve the problem but it didn't, I then took it to 3 different places to be rebalanced and the issue is still present, I had the geometry checked, adjusted but it's still there. It starts at 80mph and you can drive through it so at 95 all comes good again, is this a characteristic off the vehicle or is something not right? TIA Andy


Hi, did you ever manage to get it sorted? Facing the same issue with my 2008 TT. Got new F1 tyres on today, wheel tracking, alignment, balancing... No luck.

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## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

wsantos said:


> Hi, did you ever manage to get it sorted? Facing the same issue with my 2008 TT. Got new F1 tyres on today, wheel tracking, alignment, balancing... No luck.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G975F using Tapatalk


Hi, Do you have spacers fitted, have wheels been checked for trueness, have you replaced wheels front to rear as a test?
Get them rebalanced some where else.
If every thing is fine there should be no vib problems at any speed.
Hoggy.


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## wsantos (Sep 7, 2020)

No spacers, swapped wheels back to front today while having new tyres fitted. I did a standard 4 wheel alignment and balancing. Wheels were off by around 20grms each. I'm looking for a place where they do a road force balancing. It's not been easy to find around Huddersfield.

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## repsol (May 1, 2015)

I've had this on and off on mine for yrs.I fitted a subframe kit and anti lift kit a few yr back and it cured it. However the other month the bushes were creaking from the anti lift kit so I greased the uprated bush myself but didn't strip the whole wishbone off. The bastard vibration has come back again. It could be linked to your front wishbone rubbers mainly the one that sits in the alloy block. Also, whoever does the alignment make damn sure that they set the thrust angle at zero. This was something on mine over the years that wasn't set right. It has to be at zero, not even 1deg out. My was also more prone to it when I used to run conti 3s. It was much better after the conti 6s I now have. This to me indicate's that the tyres contribute towards it as well. Anything that slightly upsets the geometry or handling seems tof exasperate it further.


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## Tditt (Dec 9, 2019)

wsantos said:


> No spacers, swapped wheels back to front today while having new tyres fitted. I did a standard 4 wheel alignment and balancing. Wheels were off by around 20grms each. I'm looking for a place where they do a road force balancing. It's not been easy to find around Huddersfield.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G975F using Tapatalk


If you live in Huddersfield, I use a small garage in Denby Dale called Hillam Tyres. I had the same issues with balancing and the motorway vibration, went to four garage's and had no improvement. Hillam tyres rebalanced all four tyres and the car is now perfect. They only charge £5 per wheel. 
It's an absolute lottery when it comes to garage's balancing tyres.
Cheers


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## Tditt (Dec 9, 2019)

wsantos said:


> No spacers, swapped wheels back to front today while having new tyres fitted. I did a standard 4 wheel alignment and balancing. Wheels were off by around 20grms each. I'm looking for a place where they do a road force balancing. It's not been easy to find around Huddersfield.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G975F using Tapatalk


If you live in Huddersfield, I use a small garage in Denby Dale called Hillam Tyres. I had the same issues with balancing and the motorway vibration, went to four garage's and had no improvement. Hillam tyres rebalanced all four tyres and the car is now perfect. They only charge £5 per wheel. 
It's an absolute lottery when it comes to garage's balancing tyres.
Cheers


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## wsantos (Sep 7, 2020)

Tditt said:


> wsantos said:
> 
> 
> > No spacers, swapped wheels back to front today while having new tyres fitted. I did a standard 4 wheel alignment and balancing. Wheels were off by around 20grms each. I'm looking for a place where they do a road force balancing. It's not been easy to find around Huddersfield.
> ...


Yes, I do. Thanks for the heads up. I work in Barnsley (Dodworth). I drive past Denby Dale every day. Will give it a go.

I heard that for the the balancing to be effective on TTs the weights have to be placed at specific locations on the wheel not just behind the spokes. Does this check out?

Thanks

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## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

wsantos said:


> I heard that for the the balancing to be effective on TTs the weights have to be placed at specific locations on the wheel not just behind the spokes. Does this check out?
> Thanks Sent from my SM-G975F using Tapatalk


Hi, That applies to any successful wheel balance, not just a TT.
Hoggy.


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## Tditt (Dec 9, 2019)

wsantos said:


> Tditt said:
> 
> 
> > wsantos said:
> ...


Absolutely what Hoggy said.
I hope they get it sorted for you. I never go anywhere else now for tyre balancing.


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## wsantos (Sep 7, 2020)

Tditt said:


> wsantos said:
> 
> 
> > Tditt said:
> ...


Cheers mate, I'll give it a go. Something I noticed was that lowering the trye pressure to 33psi (front) and 26 (rear) has helped reducing the vibration. Noticed the recommended values on the door so gave it a do. I'd normally just have them 4 at 34-36psi by default. Lesson learnt. 

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