last night we got about 18" of snow and i was on a back road where the drifts get pretty bad. i couldn't see the road at all but was using the fence on the left side and the telephone poles on the right side to judge where i was. i was only going 5-10MPH and i ran over something with the left side. i assume it was a large rock or something. i got out and checked and everything looked fine. went out just now and i have a very bad shimmy now. obviously something is bent somewhere. i'm gonna pull it in the garage tomorrow morning to check it out. i'm guessing either 1) rim, 2) steering component (tie rod or drag link), 3) axle. anyone have a guess as to what it might be from past experience? i have the stock 20" wheels and i would think they'd crack before they bend? i'll see what i can find then call the insurance company monday morning to see what they'll do.

thoughts?

 

could just need an alignment

 

snow packed in the rim, crusted on the tie rods and control arms... any of these things can cause a shimmy. Or you could have simply knocked your alignment out. I wouldnt worry about it until you get the front end cleaned out.

 

it's in the garage now thawing out. i'll crawl under it to check it out. the drift was probably 2-3 ft. deep so i'm sure plenty of snow got packed in there (my grille was packed full).
also, it doesn't start until about 30MPH and going around turns it seems to go away (especially lefts).

i'll update my findings.

 

thaw it out and if it is still there get tires balanced and alignment. you might have just knocked a weight off the wheel.

 

Im glad we dont have that stuff here..........ouch

 

That sucks, I hope it is just the snow.

Good luck.

 

happend to me when i plowed through a unplowed parking lot. I let the truck thaw and it went away

 

got it all thawed and the shimmy is gone. fixed that. the steering wheel is slightly off center left but it tracks straight when i let go of the wheel. i'm thinking it was off slightly when it was new but i don't remember now. just kinda forgot all about it but now i notice it because i'm looking for something.

thanks

 

Great news. I had a honda a while back that had the steering wheel on wrong, I never got it fixed either lol.