There are different reasons why the steering wheel would wobble.( shake side to side ).

An out of alignment car WILL NOT cause the steering wheel to wobble..So do not waste your money doing an alignment, you will be dissappointed when problem is still there and you are out 60-70 dollars


Here are some ways to diagnose what the cause most likely might be :

Wobble at idle. :

Car with auto tranny experience this worse, if sitting at a stop lite car in gear, steering wheel shakes

Most likely cause : motor mounts, broken, collapsed, mostly the rear and or frt mounts..chk all mounts ..


Wobble at slow speeds 10-25 mph..

most likely cause :: you got a separated ply in the tire,or a tire badly worn, where the metal cords are showing, take a close look at the tires .

As mentioned by JIM BLAKE.......... if you suspect bad tires
Don't forget the best way to separate tire/wheel problems from suspension, is to swap the tires.
swap the frt to rears and see if wobble helps if it does you know you got bad tires for sure


wobble at highway speed:

most likely cause ,,: 1, out of balance tires. Have the wheel balanced .. 2, bent rims, 3 worn suspension parts, ( inner and outer tie rods,ball joints etc etc ) inspect frt suspension components

Wobble when braking ::

Most likely cause:: warped rotors. mostly the fronts but it could also be the rear rotors or drums is so equipped ..The way to diagnose if it is coming from the frt or rear is to.. take car on a drive, instead of using the brake pedal to slow down ( stop ) just use the E- Brake. if you feel wheel shaking than you got an issue with the rear ,, if it slows down smoothly,, next time ,just use the brake pedal if wheel shakes you got warped frt rotors..

IF the rotors are thick enough they can be machined , try to find a shop that has a ( on car lathe ) it is the best way to resurface the frt rotors,,Unfortunatelly you cannot machine the rear rotors on the car . If rotors are too thin to machine and need to replace them ,Brembo rotors is a good brand to install, if the pads are less than 40 % I would advice to install new pads as well.preferably use Honda pads , non Honda pads have a tendency to squeak..If you got over 40% make sure to sand them down smooth ..

As always, if you work on the car ,double chk all your work make sure all bolts and nuts are tight

 

My brutha! It may not be allowed to comment in the DIY section but I had to give you MAAAADDDDD PROPS for helping me avoid a nasty expense. I had the wheel wobble described in the 10-25mph section of your post and you suggested maybe a separated ply. I figured that to be a bunch of bullcrap cuz I have never ever heard of such baloney. My son hit a monster pothole and looking at the bushings and ball joints in his 97 Accord, they looked like hell. One side I even wondered how it stayed intact.

Well, your post about the plies kept eating at me until I decided to swap rims with a car I'm about to sell. I wanted to prove you wrong and take the car to the shop for some expensive suspension work. (YEAH RIGHT!!!) Well, last Saturday I did the switch and BAM...BAMMMM!!!

It was a separate ply!!!! AGGHHH!!!! Kudos, my man! You know your stuff and you just saved me a grip of cash! I have never been so happy making an *** outta myself!