Chrysler Repair: Wobbling and shaking on the front right tire: van, wheel nuts, alignment shop

Question
I just bought 98 t&c lx with 150k mil, when the speed is around 35-40 mil, the right front tire start so shake badly and feel abit wobbly but after I past that speed, it's going ok, it also happen after I lower my speed to 35-40, it;s happen again. I know my car need some balancing and allignment too because the steering wheel has to be on the right side a bit for driving straight. What do I need to maintain this car since it's get 150k already eventhough the last owner maintain it very well. Do I need to do all through tune up or just regular tune up? thanks for your help.

Answer
Hi Rio,
On the maintenance issue, I would look at the previous maintenance records from the prior owner if they were given to you. Then compare the mileage since each service was done with the recommended maintenance schedule to decide whether it has gone far enough since to now need service. I have the list of services and mileposts when they need to be done and can send that to you by postal mail if you didn't get an owners manual with the van from the former owner. If you don't have those records, then assume they were done recently before you bought it and go from there.
On the vibration at 35-40, that is perhaps a situation where there is a slightly out of round tire mounted to a slightly out of round wheel in such a way that the two are reinforcing one another. It can be corrected by what is called "match mounting" the tire on the wheel so as to cancel out the out-of-round conditions. So ask about having that checked when you get an alignment. The vibration when you are in the range of 40 mph is one of the symptoms of such a situation. Also the alignment shop will look for other possibilities (wheel nuts loose, tie rod ends, wheel bearing adjustment, etc.). But you can check the out of round possibility by jacking up the front end, let the tire "rest" for an hour so that the temporary "flat" from being on the ground goes away, then spin the tire and place a fixed pointed object close to the center tread and spin the tire to notice if the distance between the tread and the pointer change by more than 1/16" which is the amount it should not exceed in terms of being out of round.
There is really no need for a routine "tune up" with modern engines. Even the spark plugs often are designed to last 100,000 miles. So I would base my need for engine work on how it is running rather than some arbitrary mileage.
Roland