Bad Tires?

[Seamus McBundy]

So I get tie rods replaced and checked the other steering components. Nothing wrong there. At the recomendation of a friend I take it to Sears to get a front end alignment and balanced. So far at $180. I drive off to get on highway and it starts to shake at 65mph.

And now I'm pissed!!

I also had a leak coming from the rear seal of the transmission fixed. Come to find out, the place I took it a few months ago only used a sealer to fix it and charged me $90

Some one must die!!!

So my question....Could this shaking be caused by bad tires (all with fairly new tires with good tread)???

 

[pasotex]

The shaking you are describing is almost always caused by the tire balance. It is possible one of your front tires threw a weight. The weights that balance the wheels are hammered on to the wheel in a location specified by the balance machine. An inexperienced mechanic may have used the wrong type of weight or not hammered it hard enough to prevent it from flying off the wheel once you drove off. I would take your car back to Sears and ask them to check it again. I would also tell them about the problem you are having because it is also possible that either the tire or wheel are out of round. This does not happen all that often with good tires and wheels, but evey so often one or the other is out of round. A reputable place will tell you about this (if it is the wheel or tire from someplace else) or not sell you one in the first place. From your description of the problem occuring at a specific speed, it sounds like it is tire balance.

 

[Seamus McBundy]

Thanks. I'm definitely taking it back to check the balance and see what they say.

 

[Seamus McBundy]

I took it in to have the balance job rechecked and after waiting an 1 hour and a half they tell me its front right tire. Ok, I take it to Discount and and they say its the front left tire. I get it replaced and its still shakes at mof*n 65 mph!!!! Another $90 down the shitter and now Im beyond pissed...

 

[pasotex]

find a good alignment shop and have them look at the front end

if it is a wheel or a tire, they should be able to show you the problem

 

[accuratehorn]

Vibration felt in the steering wheel at highway speed, usually 55-65, is almost always caused by tires out of balance. Even brand new tires can have this problem. Some tires cannot be balanced, because they are made slighty out of round. This can be hard for a tire or front end shop to analyze and figure out.
Switching the front tires to the back can help find the problem, because you feel the out of balance tires more when they are on the front.
Aftermarket wheels can be notoriously hard to balance.
They probably just didn't get the tires balanced correctly-it can be a tricky process.

 

[Seamus McBundy]

So are you suggesting I take it back to where I bought the tire and have them check the balance or have them rotate the tires to the back?

I heard someone say that one bad shock can be the cause of the vibration. Any thoughts?

 

[accuratehorn]

Take it back to where you bought the tires and tell them you want them to stop the tire vibration. Suspension and alignment can cause tires to wear funny, wear out faster than normal, but it is wheel balance that makes the steering wheel shake on a smooth road at highway speeds.
Don't let them sell you a bunch of suspension parts to cure this problem. You need them if the car wanders, steering is loose, car rattles over bumps, or tires wear unevenly, but it won't cure the vibration. Fix that first, and tell these trained marketing expert to shove it up their sales goal chart.

 

[Bernard]

My 1986 Ford dually truck's front end used to shake at highway speeds thanks to some warped brake rotors and a grabby caliper. New rotors, new pads and new calipers fixed the problem 100%.

Bernard

 

[Seamus McBundy]

Thanks for the advice! I'll take it back tomorrow and see if they can get it right this time.

 

[accuratehorn]

The brakes should only make the vehicle shake when you are applying the brakes, not on a smooth highway when not using the brakes.

 

[Bernard]

You'd be right except the warped rotor was combined with a grabby caliper. The truck would drive just fine until you tapped the breaks a few times. After that, the brakes wouldn't fully release. This gave the effect of driving around with your foot resting on the brake pedal. My foot wasn't on the brake, but vibration was still very noticable at high speeds.

I'm not suggesting this is the OP's problem, just tossing out another possible cause of vibration.

Bernard

 

[Seamus McBundy]

Day 1- Took Jeep to Sears for an alignment and balance- $95-Still shakes

Day 2- Return to Sears- balance rechecked-problem, “Dent in center of right-front tire.”

Day 2- Take it to Discount Tire-problem, “Dent in center of right front tire-Got new tire $90-Still shakes.

Day 3- Take it to shop-balance checked twice on each front tire-$20-No problem found with balance-“Possible warped tires or engine mount cause of shaking.”

Day 3- Take it to different Discount Tire-tires and balance job rechecked-problem-right-front tire bouncing on balance machine, wasn’t properly done. Should solve shaking problem.

Back to work and haven’t hit the highway for testing.

 

[pasotex]

if the tire really was bouncing on the balance machine, either the tire or the wheel is out of round