91 Corolla shakes at 70 mph... what’s going on?

Hey everyone, I’ve got a ‘91 Corolla that shakes at 70 mph, mostly in the steering wheel. I already replaced the inner and outer tie rods, and had the wheels balanced and rotated. There’s a clunking sound in the steering wheel, but I’m not sure if it’s from the manual rack and pinion or the steering wheel assembly. Planning to check it out this weekend, but thought I’d see if anyone has tips. Thanks :blush:

Check for a bad CV joint. That was my issue when I had a similar problem.

allson said:
Check for a bad CV joint. That was my issue when I had a similar problem.

I did notice some play when moving it back and forth… could definitely be the CV joint. Thanks!

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I’d check both tie rod ends for wear and the outer CV joint for any excess play or clunking—it usually wears the most. Since you balanced and rotated the tires, you’ve kinda ruled out tire vibration. Also, check the lower ball joints for any excess play. Outer joints tend to wear more due to turning and up-and-down movement, so look for grease leaks from the boot.

@Ziv
Thanks, the tie rods are new, so no play there. Just noticed the shaking after a 15hr road trip and right after rotating and balancing the tires. I’ll definitely check the ball joints and CV axles this weekend. They’ve got over 100k miles on them, so that could be it.

Alignment maybe? Clunking could also be from the rear mount, sway bar bushings, or control arm bushings.

RuthMitchell said:
Alignment maybe? Clunking could also be from the rear mount, sway bar bushings, or control arm bushings.

Alignment was done not long ago, but I’ll give the bushings a look. Thanks for the heads up!

Might be worth checking shocks/struts and ball joints too. I’m not sure about the clunking, but loose struts can cause some wobbling. If the clunking is from the steering wheel, maybe the rack is loose or the steering column U-joint is acting up.

@Robe
Good point on the struts! I’ll add that to my checklist. Never thought about the U-joint. Thanks for the advice!