Vibration in the whole car starting around 78-80mph

[Hunter_M_]

I haven't gotten too deep into this issue yet as I have been very busy with work and life and whatever else... But I've noticed a kinda violent shake in the car when I get up to about 80mph and it doesn't go away unless I drop back down below 78 or so. The steering wheel will shake up and down and you can feel the vibration in your seat. I went and had the tires rebalanced and it went away for like a week but here it is again. I'm on 275s on all 4 corners on Nitto Motivos. Car has 16k miles and in all honesty I'm down to the last bit of tread on the rears. If anyone has any ideas as to where I might start on this problem, I'm all ears.

 

[Huff-n-puff]

If it changed when you balanced your tires then I'd say it's the tires. I've dealt with driveline vibrations at certain speeds over the years but if it truly went away with the tire balance then the tires will be the problem. If they are nearly worn out then you need new ones anyway and that would be where to start.

 

[Huachipato]

I'm about to get rid of my Nitto Motivos - I absolutely hate those tires. Absolute crap in the rain - even when new. And they are only so so okay but not really on dry, at least for me they were. Oddly only lasted me 16K miles. Down to 2/32s on all 4 corners.

Anyways - might be flat spots? My ride is a bit rough for a few miles after the car has been sitting for a few days at a time.

There are other things it could be - but since you are saying the front steering wheel is shaking -I can only think that it is imbalanced tires. Other thought is perhaps maybe a worn out tie rod?

Other common vibration comes from imbalanced drive shaft, but I doubt that would shake the steering wheel.

 

[silver03svt]

I had the same issue with my Kuhmo Ecsta tires. Was only about a 8-9 MPH area where the entire car shook at highway speeds. I put new tires on, and problem went away.

 

[3xBlackCobra]

Yeah sounds like tires. If it were driveshaft, you'd only feel vibration in your seat and not in the steering wheel. Plus, you wouldn't need to hit 80mph before you felt it

 

[Hunter_M_]

Thanks for all your help, guys. The wheels and tires being out of balance was the obvious possibility of what could be causing the problem, but I thought there was no way that they could go out of balance a THIRD time. Sure enough that's what it was. I'm not entirely sure how or why they keep becoming unbalanced, but it's been a real pain so far only 7k miles into these tires. Thanks again vibration is gone for now.

 

[SnakeBit]

You probably got stick on weights. They need a smooth clean surface to bond to or they will come loose. Before taking the car for balance or for new tires, I remove each wheel, remove all of the stick on weights and clean the inside wheel with Dawn in a bucket of water, using tar remover where necessary. Clean that off good and dry the inside of the wheel. I like to use 3M Auto Wax & Adhesive remover on the entire inside of the wheel. This gives me a clean surface for new weights to stick securely to. Since the tire dealer is in town, no problem driving there slow with tires without weights.

One more anal task is after returning home, to remove each wheel's lug nuts, then torque them back on with a good torque wrench. I go in a star pattern increasing the torque each time around (most dealers torque on one nut, then go to the next). I make sure they are torqued evenly. It helps to avoid warped brake rotors, too. But that's just me.