Steering wheel vibration above 65mph. Not constant

[jcmiro]

Im a little stumped. I thought my steering wheel vibration was because of my wheels and tires being unbalanced. its never really bothered me because I never go above 65mph, when it becomes apparent. Last week I put new wheels and tires and the problem is still there. What could possibly be the problem. Two sets of tires and wheels and the same issue. I cant nail it down. It comes in around 65mph, sometimes 60 and sometimes 70mph..... Can somebody chime in.


I have 2 inch radflow coilovers, 20 LX570 tires and wheels, and my lc200 weighs just shy of 8,900 lbs (50-50)

 

[KMGHMG]

Well, it's probably not this, but... I bought a 100 last fall, and it had a vibration in the steering wheel at around 62 mph. I assumed it was a tire out of balance or maybe an alignment issue. A week after buying it, I bought all new tires (used existing wheels), had them balanced by the tire shop, and got an alignment. But the shimmy was still there! I had heard that a "road force" balance was a better balance, so I went to a Toyota dealer for a road force balance. Fixed the problem, much to my surprise.

 

[Romer]

Could be alignment. Could be the front drive shaft. Have you greased the drive shaft at all? Could be several other things with the front end. Feeling it in the wheel typically means front end of vehicle.

Jack the front end up. Put your hands at 12 and 6 oclock and see if there is tire movement from either front tire. That is free and easy and will see if there is something loose in the front end like bearings

If your mechanical at all, you could remove the front drive shaft, engage the center diff and see if that makes a difference

If it were me, I would start with an alignment

 

[jcmiro]

Thanks for your help. Ill take it to the gas station to try that 12 and 6 wiggle right away.

 

[jcmiro]

So. I jacked it up. Nothing wiggles. I then drove immediately 65 - 75 mphn. Nothing no wiggles. Funny. 15-20 minutes later after driving several miles I get the vibrations. What could cause this.

 

[Island1064]

What type of vibration? Is your steering wheels shaking when you take your hands off?
Or is it more like a harmonic vibration around 1800 2000 rpm? Which is 65/70 mph on the highway.

 

[T4Runner]

The harmonic vibration has been present on mine since new. Two different dealerships denied being able to replicate it but it's consistently there. I don't really worry about it but should it ever develop into a problem it's been documented under warranty...

 

[Romer]

Your signature has AT tires, doesnt say what kind. Is it possible your just feeling the aggressive tread? This would be very slight though. Tell us more about this vibration

 

[jcmiro]

Yup my steering wheels shakes when i take away my hands. Its not felt in the car if your not driving. I have Michelin latitude, OEM LX570 wheels and tires.

I swear this morning when I started on my drive home from the beach the first 15-20 minutes were vibration free.

I have had this car several years but only recently driven it in the drivers seat.

 

[mark71]

Why does your LC weigh 8,900lbs?

 

[jcmiro]

Its armored. (bullet resistant)

 

[mark71]

Stopping that much weight could warp the rotors.

 

[bamachem]

My guess is the toe is out of spec. If you have too much toe-in on the alignment, you can get vibration at higher speeds and sometimes only on certain road surfaces (concrete vs new asphalt vs old asphalt).

 

[jcmiro]

could very well be toe in. The front is lifted quite high. I think Im going to drop her down an inch.

 

[mark71]

It's lifted AND armored?

 

[Jam din]

I have just purchased a brand new lx570 also. And for the past week I have been 'explaining' to the dealer sales and service centres that something is wrong. Seriously wrong!

I can only explain that the vehicle vibrates. Whether driving, accelerating or decelerating there is a constant vibration just like driving on a poor road surface. We have superbly flat and new Roads in Dubai, and I drive them every day in my 2 other (far less expensive) 4WD's and I do not feel shaken, stirred or positively nauseous. The only time u feel at ease in my new Lexus IS when I am stationary.
Transmission also lags and I can feel the gear changes, sometimes a judder and a bit of a jump as it searches for the gear. Take off is sluggish ( it's a big car!) but I feel it's not good enough for the car that it is supposed to be.
This I my first Lexus. I opted for the full top of the range with s few extra options and a big spend. This is certainly not the car I was expecting and it is definitely not the Lexus experience that I thought that I would get.
What is the problem with vibration? The whole body and floor shakes ( not through the steering wheel) albeit mildly, it vibrates almost constantly. The Dealer has changed all the tyres at 100km claiming flat spots due to transit and storage. The car now has 200 km on the clock now. It's not the tyres or the alignment. They claim to have run Full diagnostics but found nothing.
I can't believe that his issue is on my car only. I have taken 2 other drivers out and they agree with my concerns, something is definitely wrong !
Does anyone have the same problem??

 

[luke27617]

I had the same vibration issues on 2010 GX460 when bought it new. Dealer couldn't fix it and eventually for couple grand let me switch to 2011. Also had the same problem. Changing wheels and tires where no help. Doing a road force balance helped slightly but not much. Sold it back to dealer and move away from Lexus/Toyota for a while until now bought 16 LC. Not having the problem yet.

 

[zahidjamal]

I have just purchased a brand new lx570 also. And for the past week I have been 'explaining' to the dealer sales and service centres that something is wrong. Seriously wrong!

I can only explain that the vehicle vibrates. Whether driving, accelerating or decelerating there is a constant vibration just like driving on a poor road surface. We have superbly flat and new Roads in Dubai, and I drive them every day in my 2 other (far less expensive) 4WD's and I do not feel shaken, stirred or positively nauseous. The only time u feel at ease in my new Lexus IS when I am stationary.
Transmission also lags and I can feel the gear changes, sometimes a judder and a bit of a jump as it searches for the gear. Take off is sluggish ( it's a big car!) but I feel it's not good enough for the car that it is supposed to be.
This I my first Lexus. I opted for the full top of the range with s few extra options and a big spend. This is certainly not the car I was expecting and it is definitely not the Lexus experience that I thought that I would get.
What is the problem with vibration? The whole body and floor shakes ( not through the steering wheel) albeit mildly, it vibrates almost constantly. The Dealer has changed all the tyres at 100km claiming flat spots due to transit and storage. The car now has 200 km on the clock now. It's not the tyres or the alignment. They claim to have run Full diagnostics but found nothing.
I can't believe that his issue is on my car only. I have taken 2 other drivers out and they agree with my concerns, something is definitely wrong !
Does anyone have the same problem??

Same problem with my lc200 2009 from Dubai