Road vibration... probaly not tires ?

[TheBobOfBobs]

Another in my many "looking to buy one of these" posts.

Drove a 2012 w/40K. Looked to be in great shape but above 60-65 on the highway there was a lot of road vibration transmitted to the wheel. It was smooth at lower speeds.

I don't think it was tire balance as there was no wobble-ish feeling, and it didn't go away at a higher speed like most balance issues do. I don't think it was tires as they had a fresh set of Goodyear RSA all seasons on there. It wasn't engine/tranny related as it was there even with the car in neutral.

It was just general vibration that seemed much too prevalent, like driving on a consistently very rough surface road or maybe on snow tires on smooth pavement at speed, but these highways were in good shape and reasonably smooth and the tires are passenger style.

Thoughts? Wrong tires? Worn suspension? Known issues with something?

Thanks,

 

[CarInOrder]

Could be that the alignment is way out of whack and since they have new tires on the car, you don't see the irregular tire wear a messed up alignment would cause. I would ask if they had an alignment done when they got the new tires. And hopefully the saved any receipts so you can see if/when it was done and any numbers related to the alignment (camber, toe, etc.). Depending on how new the tires are, I would still take a good look at them for irregular wear. Be sure to run your hand over them, as that can help you feel wear that is hard to see.

40k is very low mileage, so I wouldn't think it was worn suspension components. Couple of items you could check there are that the stabilizer links or struts are not loose. Hope this helps.

 

[TheBobOfBobs]

Could be that the alignment is way out of whack and since they have new tires on the car, you don't see the irregular tire wear a messed up alignment would cause. I would ask if they had an alignment done when they got the new tires. And hopefully the saved any receipts so you can see if/when it was done and any numbers related to the alignment (camber, toe, etc.). Depending on how new the tires are, I would still take a good look at them for irregular wear. Be sure to run your hand over them, as that can help you feel wear that is hard to see.

40k is very low mileage, so I wouldn't think it was worn suspension components. Couple of items you could check there are that the stabilizer links or struts are not loose. Hope this helps.

Thanks, that's a good thought... irregular blocks or blocks being dragged would probably do this and the RSA is a a bit blocky on the sides. The tires went on new at the dealer, but I think they drove the car for a while before putting it up for sale, so maybe they're uneven to. I didn't do the "hand test", but I'll give it a shot - I know that you can feel unevenness that doesn't show up to the eye. Thanks,

 

[HOUDAT]

Just put some new tires....I just installed the bridgestone serenity plus on mine yesterday from costco for 485 dollars out the door for 4 new tires. These tires are whisper quiet. I had installed the cheap Douglas tires from Walmart but they got very loud after you hit 30mph