Every motorist has at least once encountered a runout or vibration problem in the steering wheel. Sometimes they are felt when driving at fairly high speeds, and this problem is most common. There is also plenty of information about the beats that occur during braking. Another problem of this kind - the steering wheel beats at low speed. Owners of both foreign cars and domestic cars face this. But do not worry about this. This is especially true for beginners. It is the newcomers, who first encountered a similar problem, begin to count money and wait for a diagnosis from a professional auto mechanic. But you can do without the service station. There are several reasons that cause these same heartbeats. But it’s also not worth turning a blind eye to these vibrations - often, if the steering wheel beats while driving at low speed, this indicates a breakdown in the steering mechanism. Further operation of such a vehicle can be dangerous.
How does this happen?
Similar phenomena can occur in a variety of cars - and it doesn’t matter what brand the car is and in which country it was manufactured.
Extraneous vibrations in the steering system are felt when driving at speeds up to 70 km / h. But this happens in different ways - on one at a speed of up to 10 km / h vibration is not felt, and starting from 20 km / h, the beating is already quite noticeable. If you accelerate the car to 100 km / h, then they completely disappear. If the steering wheel beats at low speed, and even the quality of the roads is frankly low, riding in such a car will greatly annoy the driver. All those who have encountered such vibrations claim that it is very difficult to keep the steering wheel even at low speeds.
How can I solve the problem?
Some will drive away their favorite car at the service station. However, this should be done only when there is a reliable specialist who knows his job well. Otherwise, there is simply no guarantee that the source of vibrations will be detected and the problem resolved. Even in the case of such troubles (and they are very common), repair specialists can set a high cost for the work. Also, the driver may pay for unnecessary operations. For example, at the service station they propose to replace the entire steering gear completely. To do this is much easier than to find out why the steering wheel hits at low speed. The owner should know well the reasons for this behavior - then he will not need the help of the service. You can almost always fix a malfunction with your own hands.
Impaired wheel balancing due to dirt or snow
This is one of the most popular reasons for the steering wheel beating and vibrations of the entire car. The root of the problem is as follows. Dirt or snow may clog into the rim - in this case, vibrations may occur temporarily. In case of problems with balancing due to dirt, the beating will begin when driving at low speeds, and during acceleration it may disappear.
Diagnosing this problem is very simple in the case of alloy wheels - dirt will be visible. If steel wheels are installed, then difficulties may arise. The design of the disk is such that the ventilation holes are small and can significantly interfere with the review. Dirt often builds up on the inside of the wheel.
Imbalances
Tires and rims are not ideal either in geometric characteristics or in composition. And since the weight of these elements varies in some parts, at the moment of rotation of the wheel, the point where the weight is greater will pull the center of the wheel towards itself. This is the effect of centrifugal force. Even not at low speeds (and already at 40 km / h, the wheels rotate quickly enough), through the thrusts on the steering wheel, vibrations will come. Wheels must be balanced. This is done after replacing the rubber or discs. The essence of the process is that the mass of the wheel is the same at every point. For this, special weights are fixed on the disk.
If you ride with unbalanced wheels for a long time, this causes severe tire wear in certain places. These worn areas will subsequently cause even greater vibrations. But that's not all.
Hub bearing and all suspension elements undergo significant wear.
Symptoms of Imbalance
The main symptoms - the steering wheel beats at low speed. But also vibrations can be felt at higher speed ranges - from 60 km / h and above. Carefully inspect tires and wheels. Discs should be flat and without deformation. If the driving style is calm and accurate, and the tires are not too worn out, then the reason is imbalance. What to do in this case? Balancing only the front wheels if there is vibration only on the steering wheel is the wrong approach.
It is necessary to align all four wheels. This is the only way to get the desired effect.
Disc warp
As already noted, they are far from ideal in their geometric characteristics. And how curved the wheels greatly affects the behavior of the car. Rims may become deformed due to a vehicle falling into a pit. Curvature can be detected visually. You must carefully inspect the rim for dents. But most often the inner part of the rim is bent. Deformations are most affected by stamped products. Cast are destroyed to a lesser extent. The rim can change its geometry during operation, or be uneven from the beginning. This is determined on a special stand. But there is a problem - often on such equipment the wheel behaves correctly, and when driving a car it rotates unevenly. If the disk behaves this way, then it is clearly defective.
Tires
It beats the wheel when driving at low speed due to tires, or rather their quality and condition. The cord is often damaged - a metal braid that is inside the tire. As a result, part of the tire becomes convex, which generates beats. Another equally popular tire problem is bumps. They are available on the side walls of the rubber due to sloppy driving, driving along pits or rails. Well, you can not cancel the factory marriage. He can prove himself in a variety of ways. If it hits the steering wheel at low speed, then the problem can be solved by replacing damaged wheels and tires.
Tire pressure
This reason is quite rare, because the whole car vibrates because of it. With insufficient pressure, vibrations are quite noticeable. Diagnostics and troubleshooting are very simple and every car owner can handle this.
You just need to pump up the tires.
Weak wheel fasteners
This reason is very dangerous. If the wheel mount is loose, and the owner did not notice this in time, then the wheel may fall off the hub directly during movement. The safety of the driver and passengers will be at risk. When the steering wheel hits at low speed, the reasons are not sought here. But in vain. If this trouble is not detected on time, then after a while the motorist will come to replace the discs, hubs, brake discs and much more. In this case, vibrations are noticeable even at very low speeds. The beats will be cyclic or acyclic. They can appear and disappear at the same speeds.
Steering system and suspension
Heavily worn suspension elements affect the contact of the car with the road. This is due to the fact that the ball bearings, steering rods and wheel bearings have play. They lead to an imbalance in the process of rotation of the wheel. Sometimes the suspension elements are deformed, as in the photo below.
If the VAZ-2110 beats the steering wheel at low speed, this is due, first of all, to tires, and then to the ball bearings and
tie rod ends.About rake
Also, the reason is hidden in the steering rack. It must be remembered that the gaps of the suspension elements by themselves do not cause vibrations and beats on the steering wheel. An unfixed part becomes a catalyst. But the main problem is the wheels, and you need to build on this. The VAZ-2110 also beats the steering wheel at low speed due to a malfunction of the power steering amplifier. The rail in this case is directly connected to the rods - hence the vibration. Experienced car owners in this case are advised to insert a rubber element into the cardan steering shaft. A ball with a diameter of 22 mm made of synthetic rubber is suitable. But the material wears out and cracks over time. As a more durable solution, you can use a cube with a side of 20 mm from the chipper of classic VAZ models.
Cornering vibrations at low speeds
Sometimes the steering wheel beats when entering a turn. This indicates the wear of SHRUS or silent blocks. It is easy to diagnose a joint failure - when you turn the steering wheel, a characteristic crunch from the wheel is heard. The first call that reports a similar problem is a crack.
It occurs due to a violation of the tightness of the anthers. They must be replaced.
Steering rack
There are also vibrations on the steering wheel. Especially often they arise when driving on bad roads. First, in the design of the steering rack , the sleeve fails. It must be changed first. If the shock absorbers and struts are in poor condition, this can also cause beating in the steering wheel.
Summary
If you study the malfunctions, you can derive a small rating of the prevalence of causes. So, if the VAZ-2114 beats the steering wheel at low speed, then in the first place are problems with the integrity of tires and rims. For many, vibrations were caused by a hernia or a curved wheel. Then there are breakdowns in the suspension and steering gear. But often the problem is solved by simply visiting a tire workshop. And to exclude this situation, it is necessary to brake well in front of each large pit and be careful when passing railway tracks. It is already impossible to restore the bump on the sidewall of the rubber.