Ok.. So I have a 2003 audi a4 1.8t.. When I first bought the car it pulled to the right.. Well I just figured it was alignment issues.. Well I got it aligned.. Still pulled.. At that point the tires were pretty worn so I replaced all 4 tires and got it realigned.. It was better but still a slight pull to the right.. Well recently it's been vibrating, but only when sharp cornering at very low speeds. And it only does it when accelerating.. You can turn circles in a parking lot and it does fine but as soon as you give it gas you get a horrible vibration.. I took it to the shop today and he noticed that my passenger side front tire was wearing some.. He described it as "choppy tread" well he rotated the tires and aligned it again but I'm still getting a slight pull and the weird vibration when cornering at slow speeds.. Any help would be greatly appreciated! It's driving me nuts!! Thanks

 

Hey man. I've had alot of cars with your problem. This is a real headache to track down. Stop driving your car for now, you're going to chew through your new tires.

I have a few questions for you:

Does your ABS ever glitch or rattle?
Have you propped the vehicle on 4 jackstands (or 2, if it is a 2wd) and put it in drive and looked for the vibration?
IMPORTANT: Is the wobble/vibration consistant, or is it unpredictable and different all the time?


The problem is not your tires. It rarely is. New tires will mask bad problems but they will take a set very quickly and re expose the problem.



As of now, I'm tempted to say wheel bearing. They don't even have to make a droning noise to be bad. Sometimes, when they go they tend to develop an unpredictable wobble. Again, if your ABS is triggering a glitch this is a key indicator the wheel has sunk beyond the reading range of the ABS sensor and would point to a wheel bearing.

 

Oh, and one more thing: have you really checked the control arms carefully? sometimes when a control arm gives up it can really tow a tire out with the drivetrain and cornering angle working against it.

 

It sounds like you are experiencing quattro bind.. This is cause by all four wheels turning at a different rate when turning at slow speeds and accelerating.. Typically this is normal but if it seems to be worsening then either your front, center, or rear diff may be going out. As for your choppy tires this is caused by leaking struts, weak springs, or tires that were not desinged for XL rated vehicle with all wheel drive... I see it everyday with customer cars that buy off brand tires that arent desinged for heavy German performance cars and they end up chopping. As for you vibration when accelerating, if it does it in a stright line, then you most likely have a front axle with excessive play. Let me know more... What was your front camber/caster specs after they were aligned?

 

My car us AWD.. I thought wheel bearing.. It kinda pops when I turn sometimes as well.. What do you mean about my abs glitch or rattling? Sorry I'm not super knowledgeable on cars.. The vibration is very consistent.. And could a wheel bearing actually cause it to pull? Thanks ALOT for the response man!

 

My mechanic says Eveything under the car it's very tight..?? Wouldn't there be some sort of play in the control arms if they are bad? If not how do you know when they are bad? Thanks again

 

Ok man.. I do remember my mechanic saying something about the Quattro bind.. But the vibration in slow tight cornering only started when I bought these cheapo Lexani tires (which I guess explains the choppy tires lol) I doesn't vibrate in a straight line.. I can put the car in 1st gear, pop the clutch, and spin the car in a tight circle and its fine.. But as soon as you gas it you get a crazy vibration.. It also pop when turning sometimes.. If it was my front, center, or real diff going out how will I know and how much to repair? Sorry man not super knowledgeable on cars.. And as for the alignment numbers I didn't get a print off cause the damn printer was broken.. DUMB.. I'm very overwhelmed about all these things that could be wrong with my car.. Thanks you for the response man.. Been very helpful thus far!

 

Mechanics say this alot but usually they only take your tires with their hands and try to shake them around. To test a control arm you need to get a pry bar and pry in various directions against the control arm and the frame of the car to see if there is play in the bushing.

I really don't think it's your control arm though, now that you said the problem started after a tire change. I would really start by putting all 4's on jackstands, getting the car in 1st gear and letting the tires spin freely. Have your friend or dad (not your mom or sister that is dangerous) get in the car and mildly accelerate the car while doing hard turning. You want to reproduce the vibration. While under there, do you see the tranny and diff shaking? is the wheel wobbling? I am really gonna bet that wheel is gonna shake..

My family was chasing a wobbly wheel on a 96 prism we owned and it was the bearing.. didnt drone or anything just wobbled.

As far as ABS glitching, this is when you are slowing down and you hit the brakes and you hear your brake pads clatter around as if theyre clamping and realeasing quickly.. theyre like confused.

edit: bearings can pop too.

Try this: try a cheap diagnostic trick: tighten your wheel bearing nut like 20-30 FT lbs, and go for a ride down the street (not a long one). Does the noise and driveability differ at all??? then try 20-30 ft lbs looser?

 

ok man. ill try that and see if i can get that vibration. i dont believe its the control arms either because i actually watched my mechanic take a pry bar and there was no play he said. so youre thinking its the bearing? would a bearing cause my car to pull like that? and about the abs glitching i havent had that problem... yet... lol..

 

Make sure you check all the joints/links with the car at ride height (drive on hoist, not frame hoist). Most times a loose control arm will feel tight with the suspension hanging (tie rod ends also). They should be checked in the position they're normally in while driving.

A pop noise when turning sharp and accelerating COULD be caused by an outer CV joint also, and in some cases can cause a vibration.

Neat trick to check wheel bearings. With the tires off the ground (obviously), spin it by hand while holding on to the coil spring. If you feel the spring vibrate, it's the wheel bearing. Sounds strange but it really does work for diagnosing, even if there's no obvious bearing noise.

One other thing on the pull. During the alignment, the alignment software should have the tech turn the wheel lock to lock. This finds the center position of the rack. If the steering wheel is off center more than a couple degrees with the rack at it's center zero position, the steering wheel needs to be removed and reinstalled level. All else being perfect, if the rack is not on it's center point with the wheels straight ahead it can cause a pull to one side or the other. I've fixed quite a few pulling concerns on Audi/VW this way. Usually after it's been lined up at 3 other shops already but the rack is off center.