FJ Vibration in Steering Wheel

[MrTRD]

More often not, this is a tire out of round issue. All tires are SLIGHTLY out of round, but some manufacturers are much more concerned about this issue (Michellin being the most notable).

Tire dealers are very reluctant to take a tire back that's seen asphalt (unless the fault is obvious like a sidewall bubble), but unless you have a noticeable out of round issue with the rim the tire is almost always the issue. And it's something the naked eye can't see...only load balancing on a GOOD machine with a competent operator (like the Hunter 9700).

I had no problem with my original TRD 16" alloys, but once I got some steelies & heavy mud tires, the fun began! A good tire shop & patience is my only advice...and if you off-road, air down so you don't rip cords in the tire going over a sharp rock (a common reason why tires can get out of round).

[Zooka]

11/12/08 - Just bought a new Sandstorm '08 FJ with offroad Pkg (16" alloys) last night. But I noticed wheel shimmy at 60 plus mph, which they promised to fix.
Dealer is now having to replace all tires due to "flat spotting" that their dynamic road balancer said was too extreme to be within allowed bounds. Whatever. I just wish they would have been able to credit me a few hundred bucks to go towards the mud tires I'm getting soon.
I wonder if these vehicles' suspension/steering setup makes this shimmy more noticeable.

[AZFJCRUZ'er]

Yes, I've had my wheels/tires road force balanced a dozen times or so. Still there.