Hey guys, I've got a problem. I had an accident about 2 weeks ago on the hwy where I ran over a length of scrap metal. The front and rear rims on the driver's side were heavily damaged and blew out the left rear tire. I now have new rims (18x8.5 and 18x9.5) with new tires as well. When inspected, the mechanics didn't see any visible signs of suspension damage. Driving the car, the steering now feels loose with a little play (feels like my old 2002 Yukon) and at above 45mph vibrations are felt through the steering wheel. At 80, it's bad enough to hear all the rattles in the car. What the hell is wrong? Balancing of the rims, suspension damage, steering column damage... I don't know. Any input would be greatly appreciated.
Texak

 

There is something wrong with ur suspension related stuff. check it at some other shops.

 

I'd say alignment or wheel balance would be most likely the issue. If you bent some suspension pieces, i think you would get a pull to the left/right instead of vibration.

 

I hope so. I'll have them realign the front and see if it goes away. Do you think the loose steering is attributed to the misalignment as well? Thanks for both of your guys' help.
Texak

 

While it may be possible that it is alignment related, I feel there may be suspension problems. In fact, I think I have a similar problem and was looking for data on the site. In my case, I shattered a rim at high speed because of unmarked construction work, some three years ago. I upgraded all of the rotors to high performance slotted united. Over the last two months, I have noticed a vibration similar to what you have described. It does not seem to come from both front wheels when the brakes are applied, just the right front.... the same corner that I shatter the rim years earlier....

I plan to have my car in for a check up while I am out of town. Hopefully, they will run it to ground.

Dave

 

The only way your alignment would cause a vibration is ,,, Nothing. I would say there is either a balance problem or some other damage to the suspension. Like something is loose at a bushing point.
Could be your lug nuts are loose. Grab the wheel/tire that was replaced on the top and pull in and out, do you feel or hear any clunking?
I venture to say that I would try balancing the wheels again. A weight could have fallen off.

 

Great info guys. I appreciate everyone's input. I have an appointment tomorrow morning at the dealership. I'll have them rebalance, align the front, and check the bushings. I'll let you know how it goes.

Also, does anyone know how to determine which TPMS sensor is bad without replacing them one at a time? I've had them checked 6 times now, and the light still comes on.
Texak

 

Does anyone with a staggered 18x8.5/ 18x9.5 setup feel any ride quality difference? I wounder if some of my troubles (ie loose steering) may be related to the wider rears. Any thoughts?
Texak

 

Yes, you should not run a staggered setup. It will feel different.

you want to figure out which one and replace it yourself, what you need to do is, one at a time, let the air out of the tires to below 27 psi.

This will cause a beep and make the light go solid. After you do that with one tire, reinflate it back up to normal again. Repeat this on the other tires until you find the one that doesn't register that the pressure is too low.

That is the malfunctioning sensor.

When you replaced tires....

You only did the left side? That's your problem.

 

Great tip ^ and no, I didn't just replace the left. The tires had very even wear, so I put the 225's from the right side up front. I bought 2 new 245's for the rear. I'll have 245/ 265 for summer I believe.
Texak

 

Alright, Razz great tip. It worked, and the dealership had no idea it was so simple to test. My alignment was WAY off, causing the steering to feel loose. That's all but gone now. As for the vibration, it's still there. I had them rebalance the wheels, but they said that they were fine and didn't change anything. I chewed them out for having to come back a third time for problems which should have been dealt with on the first visit, and they offered to pay for highspeed balancing at another location. I'm going to try Precision Import Repair in Englewood, CO and see how their service is. At least the dealership hasn't tried to blame the problems off on the new rims and has accepted responsibility for failing to service the car properly.
Texak

 

just keep in mind that wider wheels and different tire pressures can make the road feel more aggresive towards you.

 

It feels just the opposite. At high speeds its like driving a sedan. And the vibrations are definitely due to the imbalanced wheels.
Texak

 

My $0.02... If the dealership mounted & balanced the tires, I doubt you're feeling an imbalanced tire. My guess is the impact damaged your wheel axle, or the brake rotors.

I don't know how hard/fast you hit that piece of metal, but if it was hard enough to destroy the rims, it was definately hard enough to damage the parts they're attached to... It doesn't take much of imbalance due to warping in the axle/hub to cause a MAJOR vibration to the car.

 

check the tires too, i've had a defective tire once where it buldged up in 1 portion, just like a defective volleyball, and it caused extreme vibration at high speed. most tire place will replace free of charge.

i do discuont tire, free balance+rotation+air+awsome insurance policy.

 

We were going around 85 on the highway and hit what could have been a length of guard rail. It was a very heavy impact. I'm hoping that a high speed balance will show that the tires were not properly balanced. The rotors are very warped, but that vibration is the same and can be felt only during braking. How can they tell if the axles are warped? Will they have to remove them for inspection?
Texak

 

^^ if its not from the rims, then it never will be.
i'd worry about having other components inspected and not worry about the vibration coming from the rims...since you said they are new with new tires.

the vibration is coming from the front from the cause of impact...correct?
try to isolate the source. if you think its your driver side front- jack up that side, shake the wheel left-right to verify wheel bearing is in good condition. then look at the steering linkage and move/tuck on that too... make sure no teeth/gears are popped on it. and follow that up to ur lower control arms and follow that up.

my hypothesis would be that of a wheel bearing... since its not only brake related.
i would give the wheel a quick check for play. rock it left-to-right with it jacked up...

 

1. I do not know if the wheels are balanced. They were done on an old machine which can only balance at low speeds.

2. I have no idea where the vibrations are coming from other than some part of rolling mass (wheels, rotors, hub, axle, ect)

3. I have little experience mechanically, let alone with car suspension, so I would have no clue what would seem normal or slightly damaged. A part would have to be hanging off for me to notice it was damaged.

I'd like to accumulate as much information as possible so that I can be well informed when I go to a new shop. I would like to know what possibilities could most likely cause this problem, and what cannot. When I take it to the shop, I'll pass on all this information, about the wheel bearing, axle, rotors, alignment, tire deformation, ect. This is really great stuff. I would have never thought of any of them other than a tire balance. Thanks so much for the help and advice. I really appreciate everyone's input.
Texak