I know a lot of you guys have upgraded your rims and tires and was hoping you guys could help. I just put on a set of 18X9s and 18X10s shod in BFGoodrich KDWs 255s and 285s. I am getting a vibration through the steering wheel. I am pretty positive it is related to the balancing. When they were first mounted everything I had the shop check the aligment and all was within specs. I returned the next day because of the vibration and they rebalanced the wheels. The vibration still exists but it has shifted from 75mph to 65 mph. I am going back tomorrow and I will have them check the tie rods and break the tires from the rim, rotate them 180 degrees and rebalance (just by chance the tire heavy spot got mounted in the same location as the wheel's). The weights used are the stick ons. Any other ideas I should have the shop look for/do? Any of you guys have problems getting your wheels balanced? I hate having to return several times to get something like this taken care of.
Before anything else, check to make sure the clips on the wheel studs have been removed. Our Stangs come from the factory sometimes with these clips (used to hold the rotor on during assembly and serve no other purpose once it rolls off the assembly line) on 1 or more wheels and sometimes more than 1 clip per wheel. Aftermarket wheels lie flat against the rotor at the studs whereas the Ford wheels are indented.
You can simply pull them off with needle nose pliers.
Before anything else, check to make sure the clips on the wheel studs have been removed. Our Stangs come from the factory sometimes with these clips (used to hold the rotor on during assembly and serve no other purpose once it rolls off the assembly line) on 1 or more wheels and sometimes more than 1 clip per wheel. Aftermarket wheels lie flat against the rotor at the studs whereas the Ford wheels are indented.
You can simply pull them off with needle nose pliers.
clips were removed and I would hate to gamble on the vibration disappearing after a few hundred miles and create and uneven wear situation.
I cannot remember what they are called, but Discount Tires put these spacers around the wheel hub that were supposed to center the wheel on the spindles. The vibration stopped after these little rings were added. I hope someone else know the name of these rings...
There is a painted spot on the tire that should be at the valve stem. Who's rims did you get? I didn't have any problem with my car tires but my truck tires I had to have balanced 3 times to get them right. You could find a place that has a Road Force machine.
__________________
07 REDFIRE GT 5 SPEED 3.55 gears
C&L Racer CAI XCAL2/Seq signals/GTAs/Steeda UDP/CHE K Member Brace W/Torq Links/J&M LCA/Spider DS/PRO.50 Shifter Hurst handle & "T"/Meziere EO2/ARH LT catted H /Prothane MM/Delet Plates/SLP BOSS 429 Scoop/Accel COP/PowerSlot/Hawk Pads/Tokico D-Spec/CHE Panhard Bar Brace/Steeda Adj. Panhard Bar/BMR F/R Sway Bars/Cervini ducktail spoiler/BMR UCA Mount/CHE UCA/GT\CS Rear Cover/AMChrome Bullets 18x9/10s/Nitto 255/45&295/45
Tillman Dyno Tune 307HP/322TQ
+1 on the RoadForce balance. I forgot about that...
My Ford dealer did a standard balance on my new wheels and tires and I had a nasty vibration. After doing a RoadForce balance, the dealer identified a tire with a slipped belt. I had the tire replaced by Tirerack and all was fine.
There is a painted spot on the tire that should be at the valve stem. Who's rims did you get? I didn't have any problem with my car tires but my truck tires I had to have balanced 3 times to get them right. You could find a place that has a Road Force machine.
I have a set of Shelby Redlines and I am pretty sure balanced for road force variations. I got them done at Belle Tire, a very reputable dealer up here. I just wonder if their machine might need to be recalibrated/adjusted. I know they say that with the stick style weights that you can'tget the accuracy as the lip mounted but I just can't believe they wouldn't be able to properly balance. I didn't have issues with the stock wheels but I wonder if it might be something related to the weight of the new wheels. Could this cause a tie rod to go bad this fast?
I have a set of Shelby Redlines and I am pretty sure balanced for road force variations. I got them done at Belle Tire, a very reputable dealer up here. I just wonder if their machine might need to be recalibrated/adjusted. I know they say that with the stick style weights that you can'tget the accuracy as the lip mounted but I just can't believe they wouldn't be able to properly balance. I didn't have issues with the stock wheels but I wonder if it might be something related to the weight of the new wheels. Could this cause a tie rod to go bad this fast?
Any wheel vibration will not help longevity, but they shouldn't go bad really fast.
__________________
07 REDFIRE GT 5 SPEED 3.55 gears
C&L Racer CAI XCAL2/Seq signals/GTAs/Steeda UDP/CHE K Member Brace W/Torq Links/J&M LCA/Spider DS/PRO.50 Shifter Hurst handle & "T"/Meziere EO2/ARH LT catted H /Prothane MM/Delet Plates/SLP BOSS 429 Scoop/Accel COP/PowerSlot/Hawk Pads/Tokico D-Spec/CHE Panhard Bar Brace/Steeda Adj. Panhard Bar/BMR F/R Sway Bars/Cervini ducktail spoiler/BMR UCA Mount/CHE UCA/GT\CS Rear Cover/AMChrome Bullets 18x9/10s/Nitto 255/45&295/45
Tillman Dyno Tune 307HP/322TQ
Could just be wheel force variation due to wheel runout or sidewall stiffness in the tire. If those tires sat for an extended time that could be contributing to it.
Just went out and checked...tires were manufatured 10/08 so they shouldn't have anyflat spots from sitting. Plus they have never been under any real weight that would cause this. The shop only rebalanced the fronts when I went back. If the rear wheels are out of balance would that also cause the steering wheel to shake or would that come through the chasis?
I can't say as I've had good luck with the Belle tire on the northwest side of Lansing,,,,,, wrong wheel weights,,, leaky tire stems,,,, thankfully on the company vehicles, not mine.
__________________
1989 2.3 Stealth Red (old cheap paint) LX Hatchback
2007 4.0 Torch Red Coupe
Just went out and checked...tires were manufatured 10/08 so they shouldn't have anyflat spots from sitting. Plus they have never been under any real weight that would cause this. The shop only rebalanced the fronts when I went back. If the rear wheels are out of balance would that also cause the steering wheel to shake or would that come through the chasis?
So much for that idea. Did you have the car aligned? It usually isn't a cause but it can make a slight vibration more noticeable.
They checked it and all was within spec. I am going to give them one more chance. I will probably have them break the tire from the rim, rotate the tire and rebalance. I just hope they get rid of the vibration...just one of my pet peeves
I went back up to the tire shop this morning (holiday so I have time to get all this done) and they test drove the car. The service rep took it our for a spin and thinks one of the tires is bad. Should have new ones in by Wed.
new wheels causing front end vibration 
