Shaky Steering Wheel

[Stus99GT]

Well, this is a problem that has been driving me crazy and seems to be getting worse. When I bought my car it has the standard 16 inch wheels that came on a 1999 GT. So I transferred my 17x9 wheels from my old stang. Ever since I did this I have had a slight vibration in the steering wheel. Well I took my car and had the tires rotated and balanced, this helped but didn't solve the problem. About a month ago I put on my FRPP C-springs and had the car aligned a week later. It seems like my steering wheel vibrated twice as bad as it ever did before, and annoys the heck out of me. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Also, the steering wheel vibrates when I am normally driving and when I brake

 

[BO94ZA4]

You can balance something all day long and if it is out of round it will still vibrate like that. Check the run out on the wheel and the tire and see how bad out one or more may be. I believe that you have a bent wheel or tire out of round. The latest balance machines that are out are able to be ran by a monkey so the balance should be in spec.

 

[StngStr]

I bet it's warped rotors. have Autozone or Pep Boys turn your rotors.

 

[BO94ZA4]

If the steering wheel shakes only when the brakes are applied that would be the case. The only time you have a vibration is if there is an imbalance in a rotating assembly or an out of round condition, rotors that are warped will not cause a vibration condition untill they have pressure applied. Same as a bent or out of round wheel and tire on a balancer, you can balance the assembly but when they have pressure applied is when the shake or vibration is seen. The assembly is still in balance, what you are feeling is the high and low spots on the surface.

 

[Stus99GT]

You can balance something all day long and if it is out of round it will still vibrate like that. Check the run out on the wheel and the tire and see how bad out one or more may be. I believe that you have a bent wheel or tire out of round. The latest balance machines that are able to be ran by a monkey so the balance should be in spec.

When you say to check the run out what do you mean exactly?

 

[BO94ZA4]

You are just check to see how straight some thing is, in this case how round it is. No high and low spots when the wheel and tire is spun.

 

[Stus99GT]

Ok, one more question. How do I remove the rotors on a 1999 GT. I removed the Brake Caliper and Bracket, but the rotor wouldn't come off. Other brakes I have changed the rotor just would slide right off. Do I have to take the Grease thing off?? I'm so confused!

 

[BO94ZA4]

It is probably a little rusted and stuck on the hub. Just take a dead blow and whack it and it should pop loose, if you do not have one get a block of wood and a hammer.

 

[Marine One]

I'm putting my money on out of round rotors as well. Had a similar problem in both my 95 GT and my 96 Cobra. On the GT I went through the balancing act several times, even had the tires repositioned on the rims to try to to ensure a high spot in a wheel wasn't matched with a high spot on a tire. Finally pulled the rotors and had them turned and the problem went away. I learned my hard lesson on the GT, so on the Cobra I just pulled the rotors at the first hint of steering wheel shake when the brake was applied.
Runout referrs to how far out of round a tire is. If you can find a shop that will let you watch them do the balancing, watch the wheel as it is spun on the machine. A tire that is out of round will be obvious.

 

[Turbo92PGT]

On mine there are two little circle clips that need to be removed, if you took those off and it wont come off. try tapping the rotor with a hammer. Not on the pad mating surface though. On either the hub (where lugs are) or on the edge, where the pads dont touch it

 

[Stus99GT]

On mine there are two little circle clips that need to be removed, if you took those off and it wont come off. try tapping the rotor with a hammer. Not on the pad mating surface though. On either the hub (where lugs are) or on the edge, where the pads dont touch it

I checked for the clips, but they have already been taken off my car. I tryed pulling the rotor as hard as possible and it wouldn't budge! Does Ford use PBR brakes??? My brake caliper has PBR on the top, but they look like stock. I'm full of questions.

 

[RIP 112]

Check the studs in the rotor, If you have warped rotors and even slightly bent studs, that can turn into a serious problem. When I got my new rims and tires, I had the same problem, but that was because one of my tires had uneven tread on it, a problem that seldom happens. Chck your sway bar and steering linkage too.