# Toyota Corolla Shimmy

**URL:** <https://community.cartalk.com/t/toyota-corolla-shimmy/14238>\
**Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\
**Created:** [May 20, 2008, 1:53pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/toyota-corolla-shimmy/14238 "2008-05-20T13:53:40Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![bselect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecae2f/32.png) [@bselect](https://community.cartalk.com/u/bselect)\
**Post date:** [May 20, 2008, 1:53pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/toyota-corolla-shimmy/14238/1 "2008-05-20T13:53:40Z")

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I have a 1998 Toyota Corolla. The tires are good and I rotate them every 3000 miles. Lately I noticed a shimmy or vibration of the steering wheel when I travel over 60 MPH. Gets worse at 75. It seems to pull to the left. Could this be a bad wheel bearing and do they need to be packed or are they sealed? Any suggestions? Thanks

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**Author:** ![Docnick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Docnick](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Docnick)\
**Post date:** [May 20, 2008, 1:58pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/toyota-corolla-shimmy/14238/2 "2008-05-20T13:58:53Z")

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If your tires are balanced, the problem is likely in your front suspension or steering, I would check the wheel BALNCE first though… Your car could very well have well worn front end components (ball joints and steering arm connections) causing the problem.

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**Author:** ![bselect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecae2f/32.png) [@bselect](https://community.cartalk.com/u/bselect)\
**Post date:** [May 20, 2008, 2:03pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/toyota-corolla-shimmy/14238/3 "2008-05-20T14:03:58Z")

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Thanks for the information Docnick

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**Author:** ![admitted\_amateur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/94ad74/32.png) [@admitted\_amateur](https://community.cartalk.com/u/admitted_amateur)\
**Post date:** [May 20, 2008, 2:04pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/toyota-corolla-shimmy/14238/4 "2008-05-20T14:04:21Z")

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The first sign that the bearings are going is usually noise - a really annoying whine or roar that will change when you turn. If you haven’t been getting a lot of noise then I wouldn’t start assuming a wheel bearing.

What does “the tires are good” mean? How many miles are on then and have they been balanced lately? Balancing is the first thing I would have done. You may also have the beginnings of tread separation which wouldn’t show up visibly right away.

What I would do is take it to your mechanic and ask to have the tires balanced and do a full front end inspection while they are at it since there are plenty of really important front end parts that can also cause vibration if worn.

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**Author:** ![bselect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecae2f/32.png) [@bselect](https://community.cartalk.com/u/bselect)\
**Post date:** [May 20, 2008, 2:12pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/toyota-corolla-shimmy/14238/5 "2008-05-20T14:12:44Z")

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Thanks I appreciate the info.