Recommendation for a REALLY good tire shop (for cars)?

[xxaarraa]

Here's the situation with my car:

• Steering wheel wobble at 65-70 mph.
• THREE different tire shops and $250 worth of road force balancing later, problem still the same.
• Last shop says front two tires are defective and cannot be balanced.
• Rimpro in Tewksbury inspected both wheels and cleared the wheels as true. They confirm the left front tire is defective.
• $300 for a new tire, $30 to mount/balance it later, the problem still exists.
• Car-specific forum confirms these 19" wheels and tires for my car are notoriously hard to get balanced exactly right. Here is the critical part - they all agree that only way to get it right is to get a tire shop that has a machine that can balance down to .1 Oz instead of the standard wheel balancing machine that rounds to 0.25 oz. and that the last wheel weight often needs to be cut in half (lead weights) to get it right.

Before I throw another $350 at another tire, is there a shop that you guys know of that has the time, patience and the skills to get it down to 0.1 oz? I have tried Tire Pros, Firestone and down the street gas station guy. No dice.

[Stromper]

Only if you DO NOT have tire pressure sensors

Get Stainless Balancing Beads (Amazon) , if you think its f'd put 4 oz in each front tires

[G21forme]

No idea on a shop but we had a similar problem with my work vehicle and they ended up putting a a handful of what looked like shot on the inside of the tire. Supposedly the theory is the tire balances itself as it spins and the stuff moved around. No idea what it's called but it worked for us, might be something to look into as a last ditch low cost effort?

[hawk]

There is a place in Saugus call Brahms, not sure if that is spelled right but he is supposed to be one of the best at balance and alignment. I know a lot of race guys go there with expensive cars. Also Autobahn performance in Peabody is a great shop. Specializes in Audi, Porsche and VW. He might be able to help you out. They deal with a lot of notified cars and big wheels.

[Rosco61]

If remember right Salem Brake and Clutch can balance your wheels while on the vehicle. I remember having this issue along time ago and they were able to correct it through that procedure. This goes back along time ago so my memory of it may not be exact but I believe that's the ticket.

[xxaarraa]

Thanks for the recommendations guys. I called Bruhms in Saugus and they said they only have a regular wheel balancer (no road force) and wasn't sure he could help me. I will try salem wheel & clutch.

[jwm2k3]

There is a place in Saugus call Brahms, not sure if that is spelled right but he is supposed to be one of the best at balance and alignment. I know a lot of race guys go there with expensive cars. Also Autobahn performance in Peabody is a great shop. Specializes in Audi, Porsche and VW. He might be able to help you out. They deal with a lot of notified cars and big wheels.

I second Autobahn Performance in Peabody. They are the only ones to touch my last 7 vehicles. (all Porsche's and Audi's)

[golden chicken]

I took my car tonight to get dinner. I haven't driven her since Sunday. I had a highway speed shake that went away after 3 miles or so. The tires had flatspotted.

In my experience, it takes .50oz or more out of balance for noticable shaking to occur at highway speed, assuming the tire is seated evenly on the rim and there aren't any loose suspension components.

Have you tried rotating the tires front to back...or are they staggered?

[jwm2k3]

Also, brake discs can cause a vibration. Im assuming its the Mercedes?? If so, large rims, stiff high performance tires, etc. All a bit tougher to get right.

I had a set of 19 inch BBS rims and Potenza tires on my previous Audi S4. It felt like shit. I went through the whole rim/tire ordeal like you are....fuck it. I put the stock 18's back on and it was way better. This 2nd Audi S4 I have now....stock rims only. Felt great with the OEM Conti tires. When I stepped up to the new Potenza S04's last year, lo and behold...it sucks again. Next set, back to OEM. Ya, they dont look as good as a set of killer wheels and tires but it rides balls.

[RandyO]

Here's the situation with my car:

[LIST][*]Steering wheel wobble at 65-70 mph..

a wheel balance problem or an alignment problem

when was car last 4 wheel aligned with proper weight distribution ? lotta shops align vehicles with no load on suspension and are not even aware if the mfg specifies load distribution when performing alignments

[xxaarraa]

I took my car tonight to get dinner. I haven't driven her since Sunday. I had a highway speed shake that went away after 3 miles or so. The tires had flatspotted.

In my experience, it takes .50oz or more out of balance for noticable shaking to occur at highway speed, assuming the tire is seated evenly on the rim and there aren't any loose suspension components.

Have you tried rotating the tires front to back...or are they staggered?

Heavily staggered. 235x30x19 up front and 295x30x19 out back.

Also, brake discs can cause a vibration. Im assuming its the Mercedes?? If so, large rims, stiff high performance tires, etc. All a bit tougher to get right.

I had a set of 19 inch BBS rims and Potenza tires on my previous Audi S4. It felt like shit. I went through the whole rim/tire ordeal like you are....fuck it. I put the stock 18's back on and it was way better. This 2nd Audi S4 I have now....stock rims only. Felt great with the OEM Conti tires. When I stepped up to the new Potenza S04's last year, lo and behold...it sucks again. Next set, back to OEM. Ya, they dont look as good as a set of killer wheels and tires but it rides balls.

The Merc is long gone. This is a 911. AFter all these silly issues, I wish I still had the Merc though.

a wheel balance problem or an alignment problem

when was car last 4 wheel aligned with proper weight distribution ? lotta shops align vehicles with no load on suspension and are not even aware if the mfg specifies load distribution when performing alignments

You know what's funny. The first week of owning the car, BOTH the left and right front A-arm bolts fell off while driving. Just vibrated loose and fell off. Yeah. I got the new updated Porsche spec bolts and then got it aligned. BUT at the corner gas station. Now I am thinking if I should take it to a better shop to get the alignment done, along with fresh wheel balancing.

[jwm2k3]

911...all the more reason to visit Autobahn Performance. They did full suspension/wheel and tire upgrade on my 996. They set height and corner balanced it and I swear it felt like it coulda won cup races. The dude with the 993 turbo was pissed he.couldnt stay with me at Loudon or Lime Rock....good times. Wish I still had it....

[xxaarraa]

911...all the more reason to visit Autobahn Performance. They did full suspension/wheel and tire upgrade on my 996. They set height and corner balanced it and I swear it felt like it coulda won cup races. The dude with the 993 turbo was pissed he.couldnt stay with me at Loudon or Lime Rock....good times. Wish I still had it....

I called them this morning and the earliest they can get me in is Tuesday or Wednesday. They won't take any appointments on a weekend. I am in Foxboro and work in RI, so going up to PEabody on a weekday is going to have to mean taking a day off - can't happen for a while.

I am going to try Eurotech in Framingham - that's where the previous owner got the PSS10 and IMS/RMS/AOS/clutch etc. and see if they can fit me in on a weekend. This kinda BS sucks with any car.

[jwm2k3]

Never dealt with Eurotech but I think I remember hearing good things...

[timmyho414]

Making sure everything else on the car is good should be a first step. Different cars are different, brakes would normally show up when braking and an alignment doesn't cause a vibration. Ball joints and tie rod normally don't cause vibrations but on some cars they do. Vibrations like you describe are most likely your wheels/tires.

for what it's worth, don't worry about anything under .25 ounces or 5 grams. You'll never feel it. One of my friends says his tires are never balanced as good as when I do them. Which always makes me wonder what the hell the other people are doing.

I'd also be interested if the other shops you went to actually Forcematch(dismount and spin the tire so the high spot of the tire lands in the low spot of the rim effectively cancelling out both imperfections) the wheels/tires or just Roadforce(measuring the imperfection) them. Matching is a pain in the ass(on low pros) and unless the are out or there is a complain I sometime don't bother unless they are out by a good amount [I should mention that I do not get paid either way and the "customer" only pays $2.50 per wheel no matter how we balance them] . Under 10 or 12 lbs the machine will skip matching. Under 15, I tend not to worry about it, especially if it means dismounting and possibly damaging an expensive rim with pain in the ass low profile tire.

That being said, I normally see 10+ year old shit boxes not Porsches.

Sorry if you know this but if you didn't it may help you find a shop the can fix your problem. It really shouldn't be that hard.

[golden chicken]

I can vouch for the guys at Village European in Concord, MA. I used to work with them. They have a ridiculously awesome optical alignment machine and a Hunter tire balancer with road force. I'd have an alignment done at a specialty shop like theirs. Your car is too good for the typical toe-n-go.

Out of curiosity, what tires are on there now?

[breakdirt916]

off topic?

[RandyO]

You know what's funny. The first week of owning the car, BOTH the left and right front A-arm bolts fell off while driving. Just vibrated loose and fell off. Yeah. I got the new updated Porsche spec bolts and then got it aligned. BUT at the corner gas station. Now I am thinking if I should take it to a better shop to get the alignment done, along with fresh wheel balancing.

I have always been aware that shops are notorious for adjusting headlights with an unloaded suspension, it was only a couple years ago, my son was describing the procedure for aligning his 535 that specified a full tank of fuel, weights in trunk, and seats about 800lbs total, that I became aware of loading the suspension when performing alignments

[xxaarraa]

I have always been aware that shops are notorious for adjusting headlights with an unloaded suspension, it was only a couple years ago, my son was describing the procedure for aligning his 535 that specified a full tank of fuel, weights in trunk, and seats about 800lbs total, that I became aware of loading the suspension when performing alignments

I'm surprised they call for that on the 535. In my experience most german cars since the mid 2000's have had auto leveling lights that automatically adjust for all that you mention when you fire up the car.

[xxaarraa]

I can vouch for the guys at Village European in Concord, MA. I used to work with them. They have a ridiculously awesome optical alignment machine and a Hunter tire balancer with road force. I'd have an alignment done at a specialty shop like theirs. Your car is too good for the typical toe-n-go.

Out of curiosity, what tires are on there now?

Pirelli rosso. It has these ridiculously flashy asanti af29 forged wheels. I'm not a fan but waiting for the winter time before I put 2500 into new wheels and all seasons.

[xxaarraa]

Making sure everything else on the car is good should be a first step.

Yeah I have an appointment with Eurotech tomorrow for them to check it out. They did about 8-10 grand of work on the car when the previous owner had it so should know the car reasonably well. Hoping they can figure out exactly what's wrong because I love driving this car but hate dealing with this vibration nonsense.

[RandyO]

I'm surprised they call for that on the 535. In my experience most german cars since the mid 2000's have had auto leveling lights that automatically adjust for all that you mention when you fire up the car.

my sons 535 is an E34 (early 90's) fwiw, he's got staggered 19s as well

when I was thinking of aiming headlights though, I wasn't thinking exclusively of german cars, I was thinking of vehicles in general

[timmyho414]

Germans are the just about the only ones to specify a weighted car for alignments. Everyone else figured out that if you weight the car, figure out the alignment specs that work, take the weight out then give us the unweighted alignment specs it's a lot easier. Some trucks will have you measure the frame angle but that only affects caster which isn't adjustable most of the time anyway. Ferrari wants you to enter what the fuel gauge reads.

Germans just like to make their customers feel special. 'my car has to be weighted...'. I swear the is the only reason they do it. I've alignment all types of cars and I've played with weighting just to see what happens. It really doesn't make that much of a difference...most of the time...

Funny note.

My brother had a car, an Escort, that was wearing out front tires, alignment spec were ok. 2 sets of tires gone. Finally my brother finds out the guy weighted like 400 pounds. Turns out, that much weight on one side of a small car was enough to throw the alignment that far out. He had to align the car with the owner in it.

Sorry of the semi off topic.

[timmyho414]

Yeah I have an appointment with Eurotech tomorrow for them to check it out. They did about 8-10 grand of work on the car when the previous owner had it so should know the car reasonably well. Hoping they can figure out exactly what's wrong because I love driving this car but hate dealing with this vibration nonsense.

Sounds like they have a good reputation and if they know your car all the better. I remember cars better then I do people.

[scubasteveRR]

I had this issue before and it ended up being wheel bearing... if you hit a couple hard pot holes over the winter could cause this. I got new tires then had 2 or 3 places to balance them because they were still wobbly at highway speeds, then someone recommended to replace the bearing and when I did the issue went away.