Dear All,

Car: Octavia 1.9TDI, 2006 model.

After changing the 15" tyres (BRIDGESTONE), the steering vibrates at 50MPH or more. I got the wheel balancing done again and still no improvement.

I could feel the wheels (NOT Alloy wheels) wobling at this speed. Please advice me in this regard.

Best Regards,

Javeed

Alignment maybe? Get a full laser alignment done and see what happens.

Otherwise, I don't know, especially if you've had the wheels balanced :confused:

Good luck

Dear Team,

I also got the lazer based alignment today and did not solve the problem.

My other worry is would this problem create other problems like suspension wear out, power steering issues, ...etc

Regards,

Javeed

The wheels are round, right?

The wheels are round, right?

There's the rage again :rotz:

It's not a steering rack issue? Worn out bushes? Tyre pressure? :confused:

could the tyres fitted be damaged? check the for any lumps etc

I have not check steering rack and bush.

But the wheel is round and at standard tyre pressure.

My friend also advised me to have a look at bearing inside the steering and that might have got worn out or loose.

Regards,

Javeed

There's the rage again :rotz:

It was a genuine question, since the OP appears to have steel wheels. A very slight... ovalisation (?) could result in the same symptoms.

Could be a track rod end balljoint. You need to get this checked out.

Is there any play in the steering?

Do you only feel the vibration through the steering wheel?

Is it coming from the front of the car?

Any noise?

If you jack up the front, can you feel any play in the wheel (as if you're checking a wheel bearing).

You could eliminate a bad tyre by fitting the spare.

If it was OK before new tyres, then guess what, new tyre is faulty, or fitter didn't align the correct coloured dot on the sidewall, with the tyre valve.

Worn steering or suspension will simply show itself as pulling or tramlining, but never vibration/wobble.

Also check for dirt/rust/high spot where the wheels mount to the hubs.

I've found the following after your inputs:

1. The colored dots are not aligned with the tyre valve on all the 4wheels except one.

2. Also my service advisor told, the wheel mount is quite ok and is not a problem

I'll have the color dots aligned and will see if this makes difference.

Thanks for your inputs.

Regards,

Javeed

Dear All,

After re-alignement, the wobling is gone. I tested at 50-105kmph and could not find steering vibrating.

Here is also an interesting note on tyres and balancing:

Since it is very hard to make a tire that is perfectly balanced, some tire manufacturers apply yellow dots that indicate the tire's light balance point and serve to help you balance the assembly while mounting the tire. The yellow dots should be aligned with the valve stem on both steel and aluminum wheels since this is the wheel's heavy balance point. This will help minimize the amount of weight needed to balance a tire and wheel assembly. So usually, whenever you see a yellow dot, match it up with the valve stem.

This is always true except in cases where a red dot also appears in the lower sidewall. The red dot indicates the high point for both radial runout and radial force variation. As I'm sure you know, not only is it hard for tire manufacturers to make a perfectly balanced tire, it also is very difficult to make a perfectly round tire.

Tires tend to have high spots and low spots. The difference between the high and the low is called radial runout. Radial runout changes the radius of the rotating assembly, causing it to raise and lower the vehicle as it rolls along. That gives the perception that the tire is "hopping'' or "bouncing'' down the road and ends up delivering a rough ride to the driver and irregular wear to the tread.

Radial force variation is similar to radial runout and is a result of a heavy or thicker area being manufactured into the tire due to variations in component thickness, placement and overlapping.

Sorry is re-balancing... not realignment.