2005 LR3 Steering Wobble
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Overlanding
Joined: Jul 2015
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2005 LR3 Steering Wobble
2005 Land Rover LR3 4.4l
I have been trying to diagnose a steering wheel wobble for about 2 months now and cannot seem to find what’s causing it.
I got new tires in June and thought they may be causing it because it feels like a wheel balance issue. I had them balanced 5 times. For the first 3 times, the wobble would go away for about 2-3 days and would come back. Finally I had the tires road force balanced which rules out the tires being defective or a bent rim. So the tires are not causing the shake.
I so far have given the vehicle:
New Tie Rod Ends
an Alignment
New Tires
Trying to diagnose the vibration I have run many road tests to find what induced the steering wobble and what does not.
Casual acceleration to around 50+ MPH even on a straight road will induce the steering wobble.
Rapid acceleration to 70MPH in a straight line will not induce vibration unless the speed comes down to about 40 and back up to around 55. Then the wobble will continue up into the 70’s.
In most instances unless very low speeds (which a slight vibration in the wheel can be felt) when cornering it induces the wheel wobble.
When braking from higher speeds, the wobble is also induced.
At low to mid speeds if there is a bump in the road, there is a rattle from the front passenger side over bumps.
I have lifted both sides of the front end to test for play in either wheel and I have been unable to find any play in either the 3-9 or 12-6 positions. I have also taken a pry bar between the sway bar and lower control arms when jacking up by the frame and cannot find any unusual play in the bushings. I have found more than average rust around the control arm’s metal near the ball joints.
Has anyone had or experienced similar issues and found a resolution? I’ve had it checked out by 2 different mechanics, one being a Land Rover mechanic and other at a different shop. Thanks in advance.
I have been trying to diagnose a steering wheel wobble for about 2 months now and cannot seem to find what’s causing it.
I got new tires in June and thought they may be causing it because it feels like a wheel balance issue. I had them balanced 5 times. For the first 3 times, the wobble would go away for about 2-3 days and would come back. Finally I had the tires road force balanced which rules out the tires being defective or a bent rim. So the tires are not causing the shake.
I so far have given the vehicle:
New Tie Rod Ends
an Alignment
New Tires
Trying to diagnose the vibration I have run many road tests to find what induced the steering wobble and what does not.
Casual acceleration to around 50+ MPH even on a straight road will induce the steering wobble.
Rapid acceleration to 70MPH in a straight line will not induce vibration unless the speed comes down to about 40 and back up to around 55. Then the wobble will continue up into the 70’s.
In most instances unless very low speeds (which a slight vibration in the wheel can be felt) when cornering it induces the wheel wobble.
When braking from higher speeds, the wobble is also induced.
At low to mid speeds if there is a bump in the road, there is a rattle from the front passenger side over bumps.
I have lifted both sides of the front end to test for play in either wheel and I have been unable to find any play in either the 3-9 or 12-6 positions. I have also taken a pry bar between the sway bar and lower control arms when jacking up by the frame and cannot find any unusual play in the bushings. I have found more than average rust around the control arm’s metal near the ball joints.
Has anyone had or experienced similar issues and found a resolution? I’ve had it checked out by 2 different mechanics, one being a Land Rover mechanic and other at a different shop. Thanks in advance.
Last edited by SaltyDiscoII; Aug 8, 2018 at 06:46 AM. Reason: Accidentally pushed submit
Thread Starter
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Overlanding
Joined: Jul 2015
Posts: 16
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Update:
Previously when I jacked the car up, I couldn’t find any play. Now i’ve jacked both wheels up and found some back and forth (3-9) play. Enough to move the steering wheel the same way my wobble does. Believe I’ve located my problem. Are there any common failure points in the rack I should check for? I’m lost when it comes to steering. Lol
1st Gear
Joined: Aug 2018
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
I have a similar issue for years...happened on my summer tire first after swapping my winter tire, re balance summer tire twice including road force balance, helps a little. Than I found a fail front wheel bearing after half a year, the wobble around 50MPH almost eliminated on my summer tire. But after I changed the inner and outer tie rod, the wobble got back on my summer tire... the old outer tire rod has wear out but still has no play.
I always had almost no wobble with my winter tire even with the play wheel bearing once after tires recover from flat spot during the parking. What I could conclude for now is the suspension has resonating point around 50 ~ 60 MPH which explain why it is so sensitivity, if any related component has more play than ideal or damping has dried out, it would quite possible have wobble if you do not have a set of good enough tires. Besides LR3 is just too heavy for a 255 tire, the pressure applied by the roller from the road force balance is simply not enough to simulate the ride, and the force imbalance is not linear with load which could explain why buy summer tire passed the road force balance but still has wobble.
For your question about the steering gear, mine has some plays as well, what I guess it was designed for that amount of play as an off roader, but I haven't checked a newer LR4 to verify. My suggestion is to check a bit more on other suspension components for play and you could always sway tires around wheels, you might find the wobble dose change with tires.
The ultimate solution about this bad design, change all the control arm as well as all the steering gears, It definitely a over kill and could only solve this issue for your current tires for a few years. After checking plays in your suspension component, live with wobble or try some luck with a better set of tires seems the only way to go.
Let me know how yours going, maybe you could find something more to finally solve this wobble.
I always had almost no wobble with my winter tire even with the play wheel bearing once after tires recover from flat spot during the parking. What I could conclude for now is the suspension has resonating point around 50 ~ 60 MPH which explain why it is so sensitivity, if any related component has more play than ideal or damping has dried out, it would quite possible have wobble if you do not have a set of good enough tires. Besides LR3 is just too heavy for a 255 tire, the pressure applied by the roller from the road force balance is simply not enough to simulate the ride, and the force imbalance is not linear with load which could explain why buy summer tire passed the road force balance but still has wobble.
For your question about the steering gear, mine has some plays as well, what I guess it was designed for that amount of play as an off roader, but I haven't checked a newer LR4 to verify. My suggestion is to check a bit more on other suspension components for play and you could always sway tires around wheels, you might find the wobble dose change with tires.
The ultimate solution about this bad design, change all the control arm as well as all the steering gears, It definitely a over kill and could only solve this issue for your current tires for a few years. After checking plays in your suspension component, live with wobble or try some luck with a better set of tires seems the only way to go.
Let me know how yours going, maybe you could find something more to finally solve this wobble.
Thread Starter
|
Overlanding
Joined: Jul 2015
Posts: 16
Likes: 0
I have a similar issue for years...happened on my summer tire first after swapping my winter tire, re balance summer tire twice including road force balance, helps a little. Than I found a fail front wheel bearing after half a year, the wobble around 50MPH almost eliminated on my summer tire. But after I changed the inner and outer tie rod, the wobble got back on my summer tire... the old outer tire rod has wear out but still has no play.
I always had almost no wobble with my winter tire even with the play wheel bearing once after tires recover from flat spot during the parking. What I could conclude for now is the suspension has resonating point around 50 ~ 60 MPH which explain why it is so sensitivity, if any related component has more play than ideal or damping has dried out, it would quite possible have wobble if you do not have a set of good enough tires. Besides LR3 is just too heavy for a 255 tire, the pressure applied by the roller from the road force balance is simply not enough to simulate the ride, and the force imbalance is not linear with load which could explain why buy summer tire passed the road force balance but still has wobble.
For your question about the steering gear, mine has some plays as well, what I guess it was designed for that amount of play as an off roader, but I haven't checked a newer LR4 to verify. My suggestion is to check a bit more on other suspension components for play and you could always sway tires around wheels, you might find the wobble dose change with tires.
The ultimate solution about this bad design, change all the control arm as well as all the steering gears, It definitely a over kill and could only solve this issue for your current tires for a few years. After checking plays in your suspension component, live with wobble or try some luck with a better set of tires seems the only way to go.
Let me know how yours going, maybe you could find something more to finally solve this wobble.
I always had almost no wobble with my winter tire even with the play wheel bearing once after tires recover from flat spot during the parking. What I could conclude for now is the suspension has resonating point around 50 ~ 60 MPH which explain why it is so sensitivity, if any related component has more play than ideal or damping has dried out, it would quite possible have wobble if you do not have a set of good enough tires. Besides LR3 is just too heavy for a 255 tire, the pressure applied by the roller from the road force balance is simply not enough to simulate the ride, and the force imbalance is not linear with load which could explain why buy summer tire passed the road force balance but still has wobble.
For your question about the steering gear, mine has some plays as well, what I guess it was designed for that amount of play as an off roader, but I haven't checked a newer LR4 to verify. My suggestion is to check a bit more on other suspension components for play and you could always sway tires around wheels, you might find the wobble dose change with tires.
The ultimate solution about this bad design, change all the control arm as well as all the steering gears, It definitely a over kill and could only solve this issue for your current tires for a few years. After checking plays in your suspension component, live with wobble or try some luck with a better set of tires seems the only way to go.
Let me know how yours going, maybe you could find something more to finally solve this wobble.
Thanks for the reply, Ricky. I’ve found some play in the front wheels and believe it to be linked to the inner tie rods. There’s movement in the 3-9 positions but nothing in the 12-6 positions. I’m going to replace those and see if the wobble improves. When I first got the tires put on there wasn’t any wobble. As a matter of fact, I drove a 600 mile journey after having them put on and didn’t experience any wobble during the entire trip. I’m certain the control arms will need replacing soon enough, but I can’t find enough play in them to justify changing them out just yet. I jacked the truck up by the frame and put a pry bar between the sway bars and the lower control arms to test for any abnormal bushing play. I couldn’t find anything that gave unsatisfactory results. I’m hopeful that I can get another 6-8 months out of them assuming they survive the winter here. I’ve noticed the steering has gradually gotten a looser feeling to it when making turns, so I’m also hopeful that the tie rod replacements will correct this. Upon some further research I found that Land Rover put out a technical service bulletin regarding the steering components on these trucks. Originally they were fitted with M12 tie rods ends and suggested that they be replaced with M14 instead. I would imagine they suggest this because they realised that trucks this heavy need some heavier gear to run them. You may wanna check and see if yours was ever changed out on your truck. Might be helpful if you’ve still got a wobble!
