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Steering Wobble After Accident.

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TheSuperJank

Probationary Member
15
1
Dec 12, 2019
Peru, Indiana
1994 plymouth laser

I was driving home in the rain last week, poor visibility, small country road, high shoulder. I went too far to the right and dipped the passenger side off the shoulder. long story short my laser ended up in the corn facing backwards. not my proudest day.

after this I got the car out and drove it home. anything over 35mph the steering wheel moved right and left, kinda slow wobble that gets faster if you drive faster.

havent driven it since, I tried wiggling stuff around with the front on jacks and all the suspension feels tight. could I have bent a rim or something else that would cause a wobble to start but only really over 35??

I'm also afraid I dented my oil pan which sucks, but the gasket leaked a bit anyway so I guess I'll have to replace it. the car is not lowered, it was a really high shoulder, freshly paved, suspension didnt seem to have any scrapes

anything helps thanks!!
 

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+1 on it being a balance issue, but that also includes looking for something being bent. It's a long shot, but just an example, but if you somehow managed to get an axle bent, that would definitely cause a balance problem. Look at your wheels too, for any dings int the bead seal areas, or even a missing wheel weight. I would also see if there's a bent tie rod. One it'll mess with your steering, but also cause some tire wear problems that may or may not have some vibrations paired with it. Good luck.
 
I agree with first check for mud on inside of wheels, or missing wheel weight, or wheel/bead bent/damaged. Then start looking for bent things like tie rods, main struts, etc. May have to go to alignment shop to find bent item (if you can't find it) and get alignment. Don't worry about the oil pan being bent - mine (see pic) is worse than that. But will probably have to fix that oil leak someday. The 2g uses gasket maker (not a gasket) on the oil pan and I suspect the 1g does too.
 

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Bent rim.....just a guess. A look at any of them while they are spinning should show if any are.
 
Thanks for all the responses! I'll check the wheels tonight when I get off work. run it on the jackstands, swap front to back, and also clean mud. I'll report back if I find the issue
 
But wear GLOVES in case you find a steel belt, those things can bite you really bad!!! :cry:
 
I would like to clarify the steering wheel doesnt vibrate, it wobbles/rotates to the left and right about 15 degrees each direction. it gets worse on deceleration or when driving at a high speed. I havent taken the car past 45 in fear of doing damage or being unstable

The tires seem fine and the wheels didnt wobble when I ran it on jackstands. tie rods didnt seem bent, nothing that I noticed was loose. only issue I found, the rubber boot over the axle where it meets the hub was torn on one side. maybe bent axle?

I also know my struts are bad but the car never did this before, could they have gotten worse?

I will actually tear stuff apart tonight, and I'll see what I find, but if all else fails I will take it to a shop for diagnosis
 
Sounds like a slightly separated tire. It doesn’t have to have much of a bulge to get it to do that. Does it pull to one direction? I would jack up the front and slowly roll the tire looking at the face of the tread. My guess is one of the tires is slightly raised on one side.
 
I would like to clarify the steering wheel doesnt vibrate, it wobbles/rotates to the left and right about 15 degrees each direction. it gets worse on deceleration or when driving at a high speed. I havent taken the car past 45 in fear of doing damage or being unstable

Is your Laser AWD? If so, maybe check the driveshaft, if not, disregard.
 
I rotated the tires and rims last night, steering wobble gone, now the rear wobbles. I take it either one of those tires is messed up, rims bent, or balance thrown off. ima take them to a shop to get checkd out and balanced tomorrow. thankfully suspension seeps ok but I still need struts.

when I had everything off I noticed one of my axle boots got torn, and both front axles seem to have a bit of up and down side to side play at the diff/ tranny. is this something I should be concerned about?
 
I rotated the tires and rims last night, steering wobble gone, now the rear wobbles. I take it either one of those tires is messed up, rims bent, or balance thrown off. ima take them to a shop to get checkd out and balanced tomorrow. thankfully suspension seeps ok but I still need struts.

It's unlikely a balance will fix it unless just a wheel weight was thrown. Either the rim is bent (most likely) or the tire damaged. Either way you'll most likely have to get a new one.

when I had everything off I noticed one of my axle boots got torn, and both front axles seem to have a bit of up and down side to side play at the diff/ tranny. is this something I should be concerned about?

An torn axle boot must be replaced because the CV joint inside won't stay lubricated and will get full of dirt and corrosion and then sieze up. Axle play at diff should be minimal. Does it actually slide horizontally/vertically or are you just tilting the axle into the diff?
 
If the steering wheel is moving left to right it’s a bent wheel. You need to clean it, raise it us and check everything. Make mental notes comparing both sides and go from there.

I would like to clarify the steering wheel doesnt vibrate, it wobbles/rotates to the left and right about 15 degrees each direction. it gets worse on deceleration or when driving at a high speed. I havent taken the car past 45 in fear of doing damage or being unstable

The tires seem fine and the wheels didnt wobble when I ran it on jackstands. tie rods didnt seem bent, nothing that I noticed was loose. only issue I found, the rubber boot over the axle where it meets the hub was torn on one side. maybe bent axle?

I also know my struts are bad but the car never did this before, could they have gotten worse?

I will actually tear stuff apart tonight, and I'll see what I find, but if all else fails I will take it to a shop for diagnosis
 
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