Why Does My Car Wobble?

You should not feel your brand new car wobble. It is not uncommon, however, for an older car to wobble as you drive down the road. This can be the result of a few factors that can easily be fixed. Fortunately, wheels are round and any bends can be easily felt. This means if your wheels wobble at a specific speed, then they will shake and tremble every time at that same speed. The first thing we recommend is checking to see if your wheels have any uneven wear and tear.

Cupping Wear

Cupped tires have random worn-down patches around them. These will appear as if someone shaved parts of the tread off. There are two main culprits. The first one is driving with severely worn down shocks and struts. Shocks and struts are meant to reduce the road vibrations and prevent your car from continuously bouncing up and down when going through a pothole or over a speed bump. When a vehicle is bouncing, its tires do not maintain the required constant contact with the road surface. This causes the rubber to wear down in specific areas prematurely. 

Misaligned and unbalanced tires can also lead cupped tires. If your car has cupped tires, we highly recommend taking your vehicle to a tire shop. They will be able to determine if your wheels are unbalanced or if your car has suspension problems. We also recommend taking your vehicle to an auto mechanic to inspect the shocks and struts. A new set of tires can be installed, but if the issues are not addressed, it will merely be a matter of time before new tires are needed again.

Wobble At 15 to 20 Miles Per Hour

If you feel a considerable amount of wobble at low speeds, we recommend you head immediately to a reputable wheel and tire shop. The most common cause will be a severely bent wheel. This is highly common if you live in an area with large potholes. A very common issue can also be a separated tire. Separated tires are a severe problem, and must be dealt with immediately. If the wheel is not repairable, then a new OEM wheel is highly recommended.

Depending on where the wobble is felt, you can differentiate between the front and rear tires. If you feel the steering wheel wobble and shake, then the bad tire is in the front. If you feel the rear of the vehicle wobble, then the bad wheel is in the rear. If you have a spare tire, it highly recommended replacing the bad one with the spare. This should be done even if you are driving to the tire shop.

Wobble at 30 Miles Per Hour or Faster

If your vehicle wobbles in this speed range, then the cause is most likely a slightly bent wheel. Although a reputable wheel and tire shop should inspect your vehicle, as soon as possible, it is not a significant safety issue. You should be able to drive your car to a wheel and tire shop safely. If the wheel is not bent, then the wheel is most likely just out of balance. The wheel shop will run the wheel through a balancer, and the wobble should be eliminated. If the wheels are perfectly circular and balanced, and your vehicle still wobbles, then you should have a mechanic look at the car.