Shaky steering wheel when braking at high speeds

August 23, 2024 11:03 AM

We were driving out to visit family last night and noticed that the steering wheel of our vehicle started to shake when braking, only at high speeds. We're due to drive back home on the highway on Sunday and have an appointment with a mechanic on Tuesday. Is this an ASAP situation, or something we can wait till Tuesday to look at?

We are on a trip to visit family about two hours away from home. On the way here, we noticed that the steering wheel (but not the brake pedal) started to shudder when braking, only at high speeds (e.g., around 100kph).

There are no obvious issues with regular city driving. There are no other issues evident like control problems or strange noises. The car hasn't been in any accidents or hit any significant bumps. Yesterday was the first time we noticed anything unusual, but we don't often drive on the highway or at speed often, and haven't for several weeks at this point.

We already have an appointment for regular service with our mechanic on Tuesday. I know there are a number of things that could cause this, but mostly want to know if this is something that we should try to get addressed ASAP or if it can be put off for long enough for us to drive the two hours / 200km home on Sunday.

The car is a 2015 Mazda CX5 with something like 175,000km on it. It's up to date on all oil changes, servicing, and inspections to this point and has otherwise been a reliable vehicle. It's mostly driven around in the city for commuting and shopping.

posted by synecdoche to Travel & Transportation (8 answers total)

That sounds like brake issues, the kind that are annoying and expensive but expected wear. I'd be bracing for a pads + rotors bill, personally.
posted by restless_nomad at 11:05 AM on August 23

(Just to clarify, I don't expect AskMe to be able to diagnose the vehicle over the Internet. Mostly wanting to know if we can drive home on Sunday or if we need to try to find a mechanic and hope they can fix it tomorrow.)
posted by synecdoche at 11:09 AM on August 23

Agree with restless_nomad from past experience. Most likely "warped" rotor which will need to be resurfaced or replaced.
posted by aught at 11:11 AM on August 23

Assuming the shaking is not so violent that you're worried about losing control of the vehicle, then it's totally fine to drive home. This is something that happens over time and isn't an emergency, by any measure. Brake rotors are the most likely culprit, but it could be many things.

Just in case it is relevant, if you have any kind of build up of material (mud, silt, etc) on the rims, it would be worth your while to get that off with a hose or at a manual car wash, as this can cause issues (though usually not only when braking).
posted by ssg at 11:13 AM on August 23

I would think it's okay to drive until Tuesday. I've ignored symptoms like that for weeks when broke and in denial, I'm not proud to say. Take it easy at highway speeds though, since it makes steering a little shaky.
posted by aught at 11:14 AM on August 23

I would drive home slower than I would otherwise. Take some back roads and enjoy the ride and worry less.
posted by SaltySalticid at 11:37 AM on August 23

This could be 'not that problematic' or 'mildly problematic' - I'd drive it until Tuesday but, as mentioned, do so not at Warp speed. Just take it a bit easier.

I concur with the brake wear/offset braking thinking except (depending on how violent the shaking is) this could be showing up a worn ball joint (suspension to wheel carrier link basically). Also, if this is very light braking, then it is less likely to just be brake pad/disc issues. It sounds to me like the system has a little bit of freeplay in one of the links somewhere and that particular load case (ie loaded the opposite way to normal driving) is allowing the free play to show itself.

Again - not a massive panic. If the vibration is mild, then no issue. If it can be felt in any other way (ie by wiggling the wheel side to side or similar at low speed) then it may give more information, but if it is gentle, minimise miles driven and get it to the mechanic on Tuesday.
posted by Brockles at 2:15 PM on August 23

My Mazda 3.2 with OEM ceramic pads.
They squeal at low speed and vibrate while breaking from highway speeds , because I drive on very dusty dirt roads , silt and clay accumulate on the pads, never goes away but gets much better after I spray the caliper with water , The rotors are fine but acted as they were warped..
posted by hortense at 10:39 AM on August 24