Shaking In Steering Wheel

[JC]

Originally Posted by ebayholic

JC - thanks for letting me know. Is balancing one of those things that only need to be done for new tyres? Or does it have to be done every now and then like wheel alignment?

It should be done for new tyres for sure. If you have hit a large pothole, or even run up a gutter, and you end up with vibrations, then a balance as well as alignment would be a good idea. Balancing is generally around $5 to $10 per tyre.

[svo supporter]

Originally Posted by JC

It should be done for new tyres for sure. If you have hit a large pothole, or even run up a gutter, and you end up with vibrations, then a balance as well as alignment would be a good idea. Balancing is generally around $5 to $10 per tyre.

Oh dear. Only balance when you hit a large pothole or run up a gutter. I'm definately missing something there JC. Depending on the profile of the tyre, it can actually stuff it with the pothole. We won't get into the rim side of things, unless you really want to. The gutter run up, can stuff a tyre if you're not careful period. No balance would fix that one, despite what you're saying.

It's recommended you balance them, along with roate and align every 10,000K. The reason being, is when a tyre wears, they don't wear the exact amount to tread from the same areas. So, you've got to rebalance so the tyre and rim assembly is evenly weighted in relation to the tyrewear and the tyre location on the rim.

The rotation and align is done so you have no wear issues and with the front tyres going to the back it allows to flatten them out. Whilst on the front they tend to wear the edges slightly, due to the weight of the car being transferred from one edge to the other, with cornering.

Then again, I'm wrong with all that, aren't I JC? Probably. :togo:

BTW. Tyre manufacturing can be a cause of out of roundness. Or have you never struck that problem. That'd explain how I'm missing the point.

Another little thing about balancing. You don't have to take it to a tyre shop for balancing. It can be done at home, if you have the lead weights and you know what you're doing.

[JC]

Originally Posted by svo supporter

Oh dear. Only balance when you hit a large pothole or run up a gutter. I'm definately missing something there JC. Depending on the profile of the tyre, it can actually stuff it with the pothole. We won't get into the rim side of things, unless you really want to. The gutter run up, can stuff a tyre if you're not careful period. No balance would fix that one, despite what you're saying.

It's recommended you balance them, along with roate and align every 10,000K. The reason being, is when a tyre wears, they don't wear the exact amount to tread from the same areas. So, you've got to rebalance so the tyre and rim assembly is evenly weighted in relation to the tyrewear and the tyre location on the rim.

The rotation and align is done so you have no wear issues and with the front tyres going to the back it allows to flatten them out. Whilst on the front they tend to wear the edges slightly, due to the weight of the car being transferred from one edge to the other, with cornering.

Then again, I'm wrong with all that, aren't I JC? Probably. :togo:

BTW. Tyre manufacturing can be a cause of out of roundness. Or have you never struck that problem. That'd explain how I'm missing the point.

I agree with all that - I think you're finally on the same page.

As for balancing at home - if you know what you're doing, you can do anything at home.

[svo supporter]

Originally Posted by JC

I agree with all that - I think you're finally on the same page.

As for balancing at home - if you know what you're doing, you can do anything at home.

More to the point, you're on the same page as me.

[JC]

Originally Posted by svo supporter

More to the point, you're on the same page as me.

No, you are!

Just so you know, when I refer to out of round, I guess I really mean tyre runout (ie out of round), not alignment issues. Here's an excerpt from an article on how to diagnose and "fix" the condition:

"TIRE RUNOUT
An out-of-round condition can be confirmed by measuring radial runout on the vehicle with a dial indicator. Position the tip of the pointer against the center of the tread and slowly rotate the tire until you've found the high and low points. If the difference is more than .050 inches, you've found the problem.

If you don't have a dial indicator, the "poor man's" alternative is to use a piece of chalk and a block of wood. Use the wood to support the chalk. Spin the tire by hand and move the chalk closer until it just touches the tire. This will mark the high spot. If the mark extends less than half way around the tire and you see an air gap between the tire and chalk that's as wide or wider than a nickel at its widest point, the tire has too much runout.

You can attempt to correct runout by repositioning the tire on the rim to match the tire's high spot with the rim's low spot. By the same token, you can minimize potential runout problems when mounting new tires by aligning these two spots if the tire manufacturer provides a mark that shows you where the high spot is on the tire.

On some vehicles, the low spot on the rim may be marked with a paint dot inside the rim dropwell. Ford and Chrysler do this on their steel rims. Most steel replacement rims are similarly marked. General Motors and most Japanese vehicle manufacturers use the valve hole to mark the low spot. This is also the case on most aluminum and polycast rims as well as unmarked rims. Medium truck (20 inch or larger) steel tubeless disc wheels have a dimple or small indentation to mark the low spot on the same side of the rim as the valve hole.

Of course, you can always find the low spot on a rim by mounting it on a balancer and using a dial indicator on the bead on the rim.

Once the tire high spot and rim low spot have been found, rotate the tire so the two line up. Or, if you suspect runout but don't know where the high and low sports are and don't have a dial indicator to find them, try rotating the tire 180 degrees on the rim to see if that reduces runout. If runout is now less than specs, or the vibration has ceased, congratulate yourself because you've solved the problem. But if it still exceed specs or still shakes at speed, you have to make a decision.

A tire with too much runout can be buffed or shaved on a tire truing machine. But removing tread obviously reduces the remaining service life of the tire, so this approach would not be recommended unless the runout can be eliminated with minimal tread removal.

Lateral runout on the tire should also be checked. If more than .050 inches, measure lateral runout in the wheel and compare the two to determine which one has the problem. If the wheel is within specifications but the tire is not, the tire has too much runout and needs to be replaced.

With wheels, the amount of lateral and radial runout that's acceptable will vary according to the application. Alloy wheels on small cars with MacPherson strut suspensions are much more sensitive to both kinds of runout than steel wheels on larger rear-wheel drive vehicles. If lateral (sideways) or radial (vertical) runout exceed specifications, the wheel should be replaced.

As a rule, a wheel with more than .050 inches of radial runout or is more than .025 to .035 inch out-of-round can cause problems. Lateral runout may be excessive if it exceeds .035 inches on a steel rim, or .020 inches on an alloy rim. Some vehicles are so sensitive to lateral runout that a difference of only .008 to .010 inches side-to-side can cause a noticeable vibration in the steering.

The only cure for a wheel with too much lateral runout is replacement (though there are aftermarket services that can straighten and repair expensive alloy wheels).

Radial runout on a vehicle can sometimes be reduced be reindexing the wheel on the hub. If moving the wheel one or two lug positions fails to reduce runout, hub runout may be the problem. As a rule, hub runout as measured at the lugs should not vary more than .030 inch."

[svo supporter]

Mate, that's not worth wasting my time reading. I could pick the bejesus out of what you've written. I'll use the dot on the rim part just to show why. The Holden rim using the valve hole as the lowest point is a load of garbage for starters. I was fitting tyres on these rims 6 years ago, when the factory had a break down. Only stopped doing them 4 years ago, as they got a new tyre machine from USA. I was also fitting the alloys up too. The factory specified we line the red dot from the tyre with the valve. The weight was high. We then changed tack and moved the red dot round 180 degrees. Funnily enough, the weight needed dropped substancially. Now, do I go on with the other manufacturers you've said. I don't think so. It's pointless trying to shift your mindset when you're impossible to reason with.

I just say drop it and get the fellow to go through all the suggestions put forward and see if solves the problem.

[Dave_Obsession]

I'm all for expressing difference of opinions, but we are all brothers-in-arms on this forum......happy families guys!!!

[svo supporter]

Originally Posted by dave93761

I'm all for expressing difference of opinions, but we are all brothers-in-arms on this forum......happy families guys!!!

Hello lewya. Someone that has realised what I've been trying to say all along. Drop the dripple and try the suggestions put forward.

[adrian k]

your tyres need balancing, i have never put on a tyre that has not need balancing. eliminate that first, and if its still a problem, start looking else where.

[ebayholic]

MY REAR LEFT TYRE CAKED ITSELF :(
Was driving on its alloy for a few metres
Got the spare put in by nrma but gonna go to tyre shop to have everything look at. I hope i can still use my old alloy