NHTSA Complaint #10524642 — 2012 TOYOTA FJ CRUISER

MY TRUCK'S STEERING WHEEL SHAKES VIOLENTLY BETWEEN 55 AND 65 MPH WHEN OUTFITTED WITH OFF ROAD LT CATEGORY TIRES. THE SHAKE IS OFTENTIMES VIOLENT AND ENERGETIC, AND CAN MAKE THE VEHICLE DIFFICULT TO CONTROL. THE TRUCK IS A DEDICATED OFF ROAD CAPABLE SUV AND SHOULD EASILY TOLERATE SUCH TIRES. THERE IS A VERY ACTIVE ONLINE COMMUNITY OF FJ CRUISER OWNERS, AND THIS ISSUE HAS BEEN DISCUSSED THERE AD INFINITUM WITHOUT SOLUTION, AND HERE IS A LINK TO ONE OF THE BETTER THREADS WHERE IT HAS BEEN DISCUSSED ... HTTP://WWW.FJCRUISERFORUMS.COM/FORUMS/NEWBIE-DISCUSSIONS/113533-2010-FJ-TRAIL-TEAMS-EDITION-SHAKING-HIGH-SPEED.HTML THE PHENOMENON STRONGLY SUGGESTS A TIRE BALANCING ISSUE, BUT MANY ATTEMPTS ALONG THOSE LINES BY MYSELF AND OTHERS HAVE FAILED. THE CURRENT CONSENSUS AMONG MEMBERS OF THE ABOVE FORUM WHO ARE KNOWLEDGEABLE IN VEHICLE MECHANICS IS THAT CHANGES TOYOTA MADE TO THE SUSPENSION/POWER STEERING SYSTEMS IN 2010 TO MAKE THEM MORE SENSITIVE ARE THE ROOT CAUSE OF THIS ISSUE. SOME SORT OF UNDAMPENED VIBRATIONAL RESONANCE OR HARMONICS SEEM TO FEED BACK THROUGH THESE SYSTEMS FROM MANY TIRE BRANDS AND TYPES TO CAUSE THE PROBLEM. TOYOTA'S DEALERSHIPS SEEM LARGELY UNABLE TO CORRECT THE ISSUE SINCE IT SEEMS TO BE A DESIGN/ENGINEERING ISSUE. TOYOTA THE MANUFACTURER HAS RECOGNIZED THIS PROBLEM IN VARIOUS MODELS OF VEHICLES IT PRODUCES AND HAS PROVIDED RECALLS. SO FAR IT SEEMS UNWILLING TO ADDRESS THE PROBLEM WITH FJ CRUISERS. THOSE OF US AFFLICTED WITH THE PROBLEM TRY TO DEAL WITH IT BY AVOIDING THE 55 TO 65 MPH SPEED, BUT THAT IS DIFFICULT. I PERSONALLY SPEED A LOT WHICH IS DANGEROUS TO MYSELF AND OTHERS BECAUSE THE VIBRATIONS TEND TO GO AWAY AROUND 70 TO 75 MPH FOR WHATEVER REASONS, AND I FEEL I'M SAFER DRIVING AT 70 MPH WITHOUT VIBRATIONS, THAN AT 55 - 60 WITH VIBRATIONS. *TR