I hit a curb this weekend and bent the rim up to where it is beyond repair. I bought a new used one at a local shop. Well with a new tire and a new rim on, my steering wheel tilts to the right (which is the side i hit) when going straight. Also there is a very noticable vibration in the steering wheel. I am going to take it back to the same place and have them take a look at it. I am pretty much in the dark when it comes to suspension. Can anyone give me some things to be aware of and to tell the mech. so i dont look clueless? TIA!

I'm just gonna start with the easiest things (as opposed to all the suspension linkage stuff) since it's a good possibility that it's one of the following. I don't know what you're wear was like on the old tires, but one new tire on the front end isn't the best setup. You should at least change the tire on the other front side. That may explain why the car steers to one direction (I hope that's the reason, otherwise some linkages may be bent!!!) Then, get things balanced again. I know you probably have had the new tire balanced - but do it again. I can't count the number of times I've had to rebalance my wheels b/c I always have to go back to the shop and tell them the last balance sucked ass. I'm pretty sure that's why you're steering wheel is shaking at speed.

i have some 14inch rs wheels with good tires if you want. i'll bring them back after thanksgiving if you'd like.

Did you get an alignment also? Most likely it needs to be aligned, or else you may have bent your control arms. I bent my lower control arm when I hit a curb (cost around 300 bucks for the parts I had to replace).

Today I went back to the shop that I bought the rim from, he retested the rim and it was fine. He then showed me how i could measure the distance from the edge of the tire to the wheel well with my hand and when doing so, the tire on the side that i hit is a bit closer to the wheel well than on the other side of the car. He then was like yeah you most likely bent one of the support arms. Well this leads me to think about what EZ said above. I bought a brand new tire and put it on the new rim, well the old tire was fairly new, had maybe 15000 miles on it. That being so, wouldnt the new tire sit slightly closer to the wheel well than the tire with about 15000 miles on it anyway? So, all being said i guess i am just going to get the alignment checked. Thanks for your help. And I hope this doesnt end up costing me a fortune.

No I don't think one tire wearing out would cause that much difference in measurement to the wheel well. If he told you it looks bent, then most likely you did bend one of your control arms. If you hit a curb pretty hard to destroy the rim, then most likely you did bend a control arm. But maybe you're lucky and it's just your alignment.

wow just how jacked up was the rim dude I have never had a DSM wheel fail on me from a curbing. I have a ninja star rim that has a BIG ASS bend in it I balanced that sucka myself and took it up to 120 and it was smooth. I also have some 97+ GS rims and I drifted into a curb and tore the wheel/drum straight from the car, rim has a big scratch on it but it miraculously survived and still worx. :) DSM makes em tough!!

also try to get a wheel alignment. Does it feel like the steering is REALLY off or do you notice bent suspension parts? You may have to replace what's bent, if it's off by a little you can probably get away with a wheel alignment, but the wheel alignment printout will tell you all.

Ok here is the deal. Lastnight i had my roommate follow me out to drop my car off at the alignment shop. He said that he could see my wheel whobbling as i drove. Well, I got my car back from the alignment shop this morning. He said it wasnt off too bad. I then asked him if he drove it and noticed any vibration. He said there was a little vibration. I then asked him if what he did fixed the whobble any. He said he didnt know it was whobbling any? So then we jacked the car up and put a straight edge against the wheel and spun the tire. The tire was moving around an inch in and out as the tire spun. He then took off the tire and put the car in gear and the rotor turned smooth and straight. This is where it gets crazy. Seems like the new rim i bought was too small to fit over the little lip to mount to the car. So, i went straight from there to the place that i bought the rim at and told him what was up. He tried to tell me there was nothing wrong with the rim, i then ripped off the hub cap and said explain to me why the f@#king wheel wont fit over this lip to match up to the stud mounts. he was like oh hmm let me see if i got another one. Well to make a long story short, he found one and put the new tire on and balanced it. Anyway, turns out that nothing was ever bent suspension wise and the car drives just fine now. Thanks for everyones help. And to FauchPJ, if you ever need tire service DO NOT go to Auburn Tire Inc. he sold me a rim that didnt fit my car and tried to tell me my suspension was bent or something. Thanks again everyone.

well that's a new one. glad everything worked out for you. still don't know what you mean by "lip" but it's a fitment issue, eh?

Woah that is weird. So I guess you're saying the wheel wouldn't fit over the hub on the car. Usually they use hub-centering rings when the wheel's ring is too big for the car. I've never heard of the opposite where it was too small to fit over. Glad you got it worked out.