Hello,

Sorry if this has been beaten to death, but regarding the steering wheel shimmy on 2004's I have the option of returning this truck to the dealer next week and getting my trade-in allowance back. Trying to catch up on all the previous treads on this issue is a daunting task. I have a real delima on my hands.

I just blindly walked into the whole issue (Including the Tech Service Bulletin 03-20-8) on steering wheel vibrating which many people are reporting. I have to make a quick decision as to what I want to do regarding the return of the vehicle or not.

Can I have a show of hands (yes/no or an explanation, fix,etc) if you are having steering wheel shimmy and if you run OE tires and wheels or not.

I had a wheel and tire set put on immediately after I took delivery of this truck (which only complicates things) so I don't know if I had this problem or not prior to the wheel/tire set. Discount Tire has tried 3 different sets of tires on my 200 mile truck now and I have shimmy on all of them. 3 different sizes at that. 285/50, 275/55, and now I have 265/50-20 Falkons which look real nice. They are almost dead-on vs the overall rolling diameter and have an aggressive enough look for me. They have a very reasonable width which the dealership could not argue with as well since the OE's are 255/65-17's.

I was really wondering if the problem was a bad aftermarket wheel during these 3 balancing attempts, the whole time not knowing the vehicle itself had issues. I have to say that other new 2004 F-150's I test drove had way too much steering wheel feedback even with OE tires/wheels.

I need to hear from you 04 owners! Even if it is yes or no.
Thanks in advance,
Reid in Houston

 

I have the 04 FX4 Scab 5.4L and have not had any steering wheel vibration problems thus far. (crossing fingers). I have stock 275/65/18

 

I have 20" aftermarket wheels that are hub-centric and I have wheel shimmy between 60 and 70 in one wheel/tire combination that's been rebalanced 5 times. Didn't happen when I first had the package put on- only started after the dealer rotated my tires as part of routine maintenance. One issue is that my wheels are designed in such a way that they can only be balanced using tape-on weights (no outer rim to attach to). Anyway, I'd definitely factor that into my next wheel selection because I've never trusted tape-on weights.

I had "0" shimmy for the first 3k with my stock wheels/tires. If the first rotation on my 20's hadn't been so smooth, I'd wonder if there isn't something mechanical on the truck's steering that can't handle the wider wheels/tires (since a lot of folks with aftermarket wheels seem to be having this issue).

 

No shimmy on my Screw Lariat. Now have 11500 miles on it and still rides like a dream.

 

No shake, shimmy, or any other sort of vibration. OE FX4 18" wheels/BFG tires. Rotated them at 10k miles which made no difference in ride quality or steering feel.

 

FX4 Screw, 17" wheels(stock) no problems as of 5,000mi.I think on a recent post, there was mention of the parking brake causing the problem(hanging up)

 

I have the 04 FX4 Scab 5.4L 18" wheels and BFG tires and have not had any steering wheel vibration problems so far at 2000 miles.

 

FX4 Screw stock 17's 1600 miles smooth as glass so far.

 

SCAB STX 4x4, stock 17" wheels & tires, no shakes, rattles, shimmys, vibrations, knocks, pings, etc.

 

Supercab 4WD Lariat. 85 MILES :-) I have a very minor steering wheel shake around 65 mph with optional LT275 Goodyears. My wife's new 04 explorer does the same thing....I don't get it. I can overlook it since everything else is great.

 

STX Reg Cab 4.6, Factory Michelins, 6600 miles. No shimmy, no vibes, nothing during normal driving.

 

285/50R20 a little shimmy around 50-65mph

 

No shimmy at all. 5600 miles since Oct '03.

 

No shimmy FX4 6400 miles, 17" stock Generals (gack!) P255/70R17. Gonna get real truck tires (Nitto's??) when these wear out. Want 285 or higher to fill the wells.

 

Yes 65+mph