i drive a 03 TL-S and when i was driving home from school today i felt my steering wheel vibrating. first i though it was maybe my tranny giving out or something... took it into the shop by my house but they couldnt find out and they want me to leave it there for a day to figure it out and itll cost $50, is it worth doing this?

the vibration was only when im acceleration or on the gas, if i let go of the gas it would stop... felt like it was coming from the drivers front side...

history of the car: iv had it for like 5 months now, it was bought from an auction and that side of the suspension was pulled by the person that fixed it. so could it be an arm thats bent or a common problem with TLs?
i lowered the car about a month ago on sprint springs but its been running fine after that...
just today i started feeling the vibration...

any help would be nice?

 

Bent arm woudn't cause vibration, alignment problems.

Vibration under acceleration sounds like axle problems to me, but there are plenty of things that could cause it. does it change depending on the RPM's? or does it change with the vehicle speed?

Engine tuned and running well? getting good MPG then likely axle. On the other hand if you load your engine (brakes and gas) while at a stop (safely) and it starts vibrating, sounds like engine.

 

Get it aligned. Mine would vibrator when i went from 60 to 70 and once I got it aligned there was no more problem.

 

does it only shakes when accelerating and not while steadily cruising? could be more than just wheel balance if that's the case

 

This is either an alignment, axle, or brake rotor issue. I went thru similar problems more than once with an Accord, but once I replaced these components all was well again.

 

If it vibrates only on acceleration, then maybe your engine mount(s) are bad. If it vibrates on braking, it could be rotors, if vibrates while driving at any certain speed, it could be wheel balance. It could be balljoin or U-join. You have to know when it vibrates and figure it out from there. I can only guess from your explanations.

 

i got an alignment done about 2-3 weeks ago and only problem i had was rear camber issues... so i bought rear camber arms (not installed yet)...

only get the vibration when accelerating or on the gas, then when i let go of the gas/stop accelerating it will stop and coast nicely...

havent tried pressing the gas and break at the same time...

this problem just started today, iv had the car for 5 months and never had this problem at all... doesnt feel safe to drive like this thou...

as for the wheels issue, i have three CL-S wheels and one TL-S wheel so that could be something but they wheels have been like that since i bought the car also...

anyone know how much these things could cost to fix and any good shops in Houston Texas? i want to get it fixxed correctly not like the guy who fixed it the first time... anymore help would be nice...

oh and its not just steering wheel vibration, the passengers could feel it also. i gave my dad a ride in the car to show him and he said he could feel it in the passengers seat also..

 

Sounds like it could be u-join, but it better you have someone look at it. It is hard to say how much until you find out the exact problem.

 

1. I am still suspicious of axles (no u-joints, cv joints) if the rate of vibration is directly related to speed when experiencing the symptom. IMO alignment has nothing to do with vibration; the car would drive in a not "surefooted" way and wear tires. Wheel balance would be a constant unrelated to acceleration. Tires out of round, if it wasn't an acute onset maybe, but it was so no.

2. If not, the axles, and more consistent with an acute onset of this symptom, I would suggest that you may have a bad coil. Does the engine run rough? Are you sensitive to that normally or would you need to go have a look? Rev the engine in P or Neutral and assess whether is revs up smoothly as you would suspect. Pay close attention to the fuel mileage/usage on your current tank. Fill er up and observe. These will help determine if it is engine related. #1. is more drivetrain oriented.

 

i dont think its the engine... i reved it up at home and felt fine...

i think its most likely something with the suspension since that was the side hit and just pulled never replaced parts (to my knowledge)...

i hope its an easy fix and wont take too long and cost alot...

after this happened on the way home, iv been sad

 

Not to worry- this sounds like the classic accident induced axle/cv joint bearing failure
Easy fix is to replace the entire axle with its cv-bearings at each end- all assembled and ready to install
Check NAPA auto parts- last year the axle complete unit was 75 bucks - new!
Install is fairly simple if you have tools- or a shop you trust can throw that and the rear camber kits on- get it aligned after everything is done

Now you can rest easy!

 

bad brakes...check em' out.

 

I have had this problem also, but only when i'm accelerating and the speed is between 20-30mph and it stops after that. Anyone have a clue what this could be?

 

check ur tires, it happen to me when i was driving my MDX and the tires wer eliek 5 years old and when i changed it the steering stopped vibrating...

 

i dont think its tires because tires have good thread...

im hoping its one of those common accident problems like 01tl4tl said, and hopefully it will be an easy and cheap fix... i just dropped the car off at the shop and they said they'll call me and let me know whats going on...

 

Keep us informed, Vim.

 

Mine does that too

 

i have this weird vibration at around 40mph, i don't feel it through the steering wheel, the whole car is just shaking. it cant be the rotors, because it doesn't shake when i hit the brakes. i have brand new tires so it cant be that, cause it was still happening with the old tires. so im thinking that its either the axles, or the mounts but i want some one to clear this up for me before i go ahead and start wasting money on parts i don't need.

 

Could be a variety of things... all the tires could be out of balance, might have bubbles or worn tires, tie rods loose/broken, bad or worn wheel bearings, inner axle gone bad... there could a number of possibilities... time to diagnose...

 

the shop should be doing all the diagnose stuff right now... ill be picking it up tonight if i make it back to my side of town in time... if not tomorrow morning..

 

cant be the tires, I've checked them..and the balance is ok cause its fresh rubber mounted on new rims. it could also be from the ball joints, cause both of my lower ones are shot. i may also need new shocks, because i still have the original ones.

 

i also think its engine mount(s) coz m going through similar problem and i checked eveything but didn't think about the engine mounts and found out it was that causing the vibration .... mine r front and side engine mounts i can feel it when m hitin the gas if i drive reall smooth I barly feel it!

 

if the problem was rotors you would feel them while braking coz they're kind off pumpin or bouncing back .. i would say its the mounts get them checked from a friend if you dont know how to check you cant do it with a family person ... if you wanna know i can explain

 

^how do i check if its the mounts? car only had 60k miles on it...

they called me in the afternoon and said they think it might be the left or right axle but they arent sure and someone else is gonna take a look at it tomorrow morning... im leaning more towards something wrong with the suspension since it was hit on that side and pulled...

 

axle is cv-- like we said
A tech with a mechanics stethascope can usually run the car in the air and find out for sure

 

Just to keep you thoroughly confused, I had THRASHED motor mounts, no vibrations. Just a "thunk" upon acceleration (front and side mounts).
I am still leaning toward axles.

 

60k miles- right on schedule for motor mounts! front and passenger side go out all the time

 

I have this same problem usually between 70-90mph. i got new tires4 months ago and an alignment 2 mos ago (after an accident). I cant say if its under only acceleration or also while coasting tho. I'll pay closer attention to it and post later. I also wanna know what it is cause Its annoying as hell ...... especially since im always highway bound

 

At hiway speeds the vibration could be tire balance. At slow speeds it could be a broken belt in one of the tires.

 

Try rotating the tires. This could help rule out a wheel balance or tire issue. I had a similar prob where the steering wheel would vibrate at lower speeds. I didnt believe the mechanic when he said it could be the tires (there was no visible uneven wear). He jacked up the front and put it in drive so I could see the wheels spin. I noticed that one edge of one of the tires had a sort of lopsided or uneven edge to it that was only noticeable when spinning. Sure enough, I replaced the tires and the problem disappeared.

 

got the car back today... i noticed its vibration when im accelerating in the 35-50mph range... the shop said they "think" both cv joints need to be replaced which im getting done tomorrow for $310 parts and labor and 1yr warranty.
i took it to couple other shops and was told the same thing, but one said it looks like the tie rods also... so i guess getting the cv joints tomorrow will tell if its that or something different..

 

i told one original shop that an online forums (AcuraZine) was telling me that it might be the motor mounts and i asked them to check it out also... the response from the guy on the phone "him: those people online have no life and dont know anything about cars.... *blah blah blah*"

i just said im coming to pick up the car. *click*

 

neither shop is the place to be
go find an alignment shop- if the tie rods are bad they will know how to check them
The axle cv assembly is less thaqn 100 each side and less than 1 hour per side to install
They are bending you over and cant even be sure of their diagnosis
Look in the phone book yellow pages for a honda-acura specialst shop and go there

 

I dunno, man, I am with him. I think axles still.

 

Vim, u should call Burden Honda Care. Its on the north side but they have very good prices. Google them for the #.

 

mines confusing the shit out of me, it could be the axles, cause it vibrates a lot between 40-60mph after that it kind of smooths out. under 40 its almost non existent. damn it could also be wheel bearing...hmmmmm

 

they THINK its the cv joints? and they're replacing em' for 310? whack...

 

Seems like a good price for both axles, so long as that is what they are saying.

 

Burden Honda Care is really close to my house... i am going to get the CV joints replaced tomorrow and go from there... if i keep getting the vibration then ill goto Burden Honda Care...

the original shop (which had my car over night) said they could see the axle "jumping 3in" when they put it on the lift and drove it...

 

Maybe a bit dramatic, but axles/cvjoints totally fit the symptoms. I am sure it will take care of your issue.