RBG Posted October 15, 2006 Share Posted October 15, 2006 I have a 99 outback limited editon 46,000 miles. Today it started to shimmy the faster I go the worst the steering wheel shakes. If I let go of the steering wheel the car pulls to the right. I have jacked it up and everthing seems tight, no rattles or loose tie rods etc. Any suggestions? Things to check and how? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fastwgn286 Posted October 16, 2006 Share Posted October 16, 2006 I bet you a package of cookies that its a tire. this has happened twice on mine (michelin weatherwise). Its a front tire. here's what you do.... 1. jack up car 2. remove a front tire (i start with driver's side) 3. replace with spare tire 4. unjack car and drive around the block. let go of steering wheel to see if it pulls in any direction. repeat for the other tire if the shimmy and pulling to one side is still present. unfortunately, you will need to dish out for another tire unless you still have receipts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ericem Posted October 16, 2006 Share Posted October 16, 2006 Might just be the tires need to be balanced. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fastwgn286 Posted October 16, 2006 Share Posted October 16, 2006 thats what i thought when it happened the first time. balanced front tires, and still rough vibrations:mad:. before this point, i rotated the tires so the offending one was in the back. turns out, once i took off the wheels one night trying in desparation to find out why the vibrations were occuring and started to roll them along the pavement, one started to hop. the tread was peeling off the belts in one spot (looked kinda like a blister or a hernia). in fact, i still have one on the car, waiting for sears to get a replacement in... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RBG Posted October 16, 2006 Author Share Posted October 16, 2006 Thanks for the advise..I'll start playing with the tires. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne Boncyk Posted October 16, 2006 Share Posted October 16, 2006 The other simple thing it could be, if not a tire, is a buildup of dried mud on the inside of the wheel. This happened regularly with my '96 when we lived on a dirt road in eastern South Dakota. Once I cleared the buildup, the shimmy would stop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a97obw Posted October 16, 2006 Share Posted October 16, 2006 I had this happen a few weeks ago on my 97 OBW, and inspecting the tires, the front left (OEM Michelin white letter tires) tire had a large "scallop" indention in it. They lasted right at about 65k miles, and their time was done. Replaced all 4 with locally bought Yokohama Avid TRZs in the stock size, and paid a premium for them compared to $58 or so each from the Tire Rack. About 6k miles later I would still highly recommend this tire. The ride instantly went from a log wagon to a Lincoln Towncar! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lpasco Posted October 16, 2006 Share Posted October 16, 2006 It is proubably the tires like they said. If it is pulling it could be whats called a radial pull. This is that the tire is coming apart and causing it to pull. TO find if this is the problem. drive the car. if it pulls to the right, rotate just the front 2 tires left to right so the left front will be on the right front and the right front will be on the left front. if it pulls the other way then it is a radial pull and the tires are bad. If it pulls the same way, you have other problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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