Could be an alignment problem?
 

about a year ago I was driving on the freeway with a couple buddies and my friend noticed my steering wheel start to vibrate (sligthtly). He said to fix it I needed my steering aligned. Well just yesterday I put on wider rims, same tires, and I noticed the vibrations getting a little harder. It this a steering or tire alignment issue? Kind of a dumb question to ask, but any input would be great on how I can fix this before something gets ruined.

A bad alignment doesn't cause a shake. However, worn parts can. Also tires that have excessive wear from a bad alignment can definately cause a shake. Did you balance your new tire/wheel combo? Did you have weights put on the inside and outside of the rim? Many people opt to only have the weights put on the inside so as not to mar their pretty rims. This is a crappy balance. If your tires are good (round) and your rims are straight and balanced on both sides and no mud in them then your problem is likely in your steering linkage or wheel bearings.

What kind of truck do you have? Tire size?

Yes, type of truck would help get a more specific answer, but for the later models, see below for some info:
- http://www.gadgetonline.com/Vibration.htm

I have a ltd 98' 4runner. Tires are about a year old (265/75r16) on new pro comp 16x8 wheels. They were balanced right when they were mounted, so I doubt it is a balancing problem. I had this problem before I bought the new rims(which are an inch wider by the way), so i doubt it is the rims.

After checking that link, 4crawler, it seems that it is an alignment issue I am having, as to only my steering wheel is rotating back and forth at highway speeds, not the rest of the truck.

Not that I am trying to ignore the issue, but how long can this problem last before something on my truck gets ruined enough? And any estimates on how much this is going to cost me to get fixed?

Thanks a bunch fellas

Read the above page I posted a link to. Might be the way the tires were balanced, there is a right way and a wrong way for Toyota wheels and many shops do not know that.

after reading the article I am still not convinced that my problem is related to my wheels being balanced incorrectly. the article strictly sais that if my steering wheel vibrates on its own without the rest of the truck vibrating than it is an alignment problem.

Idk you seem to have had more experience on this type of issue, so if you could justify your post a little more i wouldnt be so confused...

Never had that problem myself, as I have an '85/solid axle truck. The rrd gens are a LOT more sensitive to lug-centric balancing. But get the alignment checked, toe in or camber/caster may be off, easy enough to check that and fix it. Many folks pop for an alignment every time they get new tires.

Alignment doesn't cause a shake. Its a rotational problem.
Hub centric balancing for Toyota factory alloy rims doesn't apply to aftermarket wheels.
Most people don't have access to tire machines but I have had to break down tires and spin them 180 degrees on the rim to lessen the amount of weight needed to correctly balance the tire/wheel. Similar to the link 4Crawler posted.
Go ahead and align it. I won't hurt and it won't help either.
Weights on both sides of rim?

hmm...yeah sounds like you and 4crawler both agree that it is most likely a balancing issue.

no weights on the rim at all...but i will look into it. I will take the truck to big-o and have them balance the wheels again, and maybe get a diagnostic. Just to mention, the problem isnt necessarily a "vibration", it is just the steering wheel wobbling back and forth when i reach 60+ mph.

So what you are saying is that, having put new rims on, them not balancing my wheels lug-centric is not the problem?

That is what I'm saying. No weights? You know that they can and do fall off? If you go to Big 0 try to get a look at the tire tread while it is spinning. If you see a noticable hop or irregularity while spinning, you might need to put that tire on the back. You won't be so likely to feel it back there. Get your best 2 up front.
I 've had tires that required a lot of weight not give me any problem and tires with little weight and some runout cause a noticable steering wheel shimmey.

They did a bad job balancing your wheels, ask them to "alloy 2" them when they balance them. 99% of the people that come in with a steering wheel shake, is because of out of balance tires

Yeah Im going to the shop I originally had them mounted and balanced to have them re-balance it. They need to be re-torqued anyways so I will mention it to them...

I just looked at your photo of your truck and the steel rims you have.

Make sure you get weights on the inner and outer edges if thats what the balancer calls for. I would still like to take a good look at the rim/tire combo while spinning on the balancer. Or specifically ask the tire guy to tell you how true they spin.

and depending on how advanced the tire shop is that is doing the work, ask them if they can road force them.

well after taking it back to the original shop I had put them on, it seems they were about an ounce off. They added more weights to the outside of the rim, and she runs fine now. They did it for free b/c they did a crappy job the first time.

so to clear things up, it was in fact a simple balancing problem.

Thanks guys. I appreciate it a lot.