Dave Z...need your opinion please

As a recap, I installed my Axxis deluxe plus pads last Saturday. I have an ongoing problem with vibrating steering wheel and vibrating gas pedal since I got my car new last October. The car now has 5050 miles in it. I have taken my car to 2 dealers. The first dealer rebalanced all wheels the first time I took my car to them for servicing. That didn't do any good. The next time I took it back, they replaced all tires. That didn't do any good. I then took my car to another dealer where they rebalanced the wheels again. The vibration in the steeering wheel and the pedal improved a little bit, but, it is still definitely there.

Last Saturday, I installed a set of Axxis deluxe plus pads. I was surprised to notice that my steering wheel shimmy went away after installing the pads. The gas pedal vibration is still noticeable though. I've driven the car up to 80 mph for about 60 miles Saturday and Sunday. When I got home today(I didn't drive the car today), I retorqued the wheels to 88 ft/lbs and made sure that the tires are inflated properly(33/f and 37/r). I then took the car for a highway drive. I drove between 60 and 80 mph, carefully looking for signs of vibrations. The steering wheel definitely is almost vibration-free. I started noticing the gas pedal vibration at 60 and grew worse as I reached 80. The vibration is happeniing while I am cruising and not touching the brakes.

my thoughts are:
1. the wheels/tires combo could be defective. If this is the case, I am not too worried as I am awaiting for a new set of BBs wheels and Goodyear tires in a week or two.
2. could I have warped rotors? But then, the vibration happens even when I am not touching the brakes
3. driveshaft imbalance

anybody?

Don't know if this helps but my son had a steering wheel vibration in his 1999 328 that would occur after repeated braking, then gradually go away as the brakes cooled. Turned out it was a seized piston in one front caliper.

Steve D

There's only 1 Dave Z.

Originally Posted by jun

As a recap, I installed my Axxis deluxe plus pads last Saturday. I have an ongoing problem with vibrating steering wheel and vibrating gas pedal since I got my car new last October. The car now has 5050 miles in it. I have taken my car to 2 dealers. The first dealer rebalanced all wheels the first time I took my car to them for servicing. That didn't do any good. The next time I took it back, they replaced all tires. That didn't do any good. I then took my car to another dealer where they rebalanced the wheels again. The vibration in the steeering wheel and the pedal improved a little bit, but, it is still definitely there.

Last Saturday, I installed a set of Axxis deluxe plus pads. I was surprised to notice that my steering wheel shimmy went away after installing the pads. The gas pedal vibration is still noticeable though. I've driven the car up to 80 mph for about 60 miles Saturday and Sunday. When I got home today(I didn't drive the car today), I retorqued the wheels to 88 ft/lbs and made sure that the tires are inflated properly(33/f and 37/r). I then took the car for a highway drive. I drove between 60 and 80 mph, carefully looking for signs of vibrations. The steering wheel definitely is almost vibration-free. I started noticing the gas pedal vibration at 60 and grew worse as I reached 80. The vibration is happeniing while I am cruising and not touching the brakes.

my thoughts are:
1. the wheels/tires combo could be defective. If this is the case, I am not too worried as I am awaiting for a new set of BBs wheels and Goodyear tires in a week or two.
2. could I have warped rotors? But then, the vibration happens even when I am not touching the brakes
3. driveshaft imbalance

I think you may have had had several things going on at the same time, which is making it harder to diagnose your problems. Did the steering wheel vibration, which occurred prior to the installation of the brake pads, only happen under braking? Or did it happen WITHOUT touching the brakes?

I suggest you wait until the BBS wheels arrive before spending any money on diagnostics. If the BBS wheels make the problem go away (or reduce it), then it's time to take your factory wheels and tires to a tire shop with a road force balancer like the Hunter GSP9700 to find the root cause and to try to get some compensation from your dealer. See Tire Rack's explanation of why they use this system: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tirete...uniformity.htm

Then you can use this tool to find a shop near you with one: http://128.242.141.111/pub/search/findgsp9700.cfm

Dave,

Thanks for responding to this.

Even when I first got the car, the steering wheel vibration and gas pedal vibration happen when I am cruising and not touching the brakes.

Tirerack told me that the wheels are being shipped from their Indiana location to their Delaware site and then shipped to me in MD. I'll install the BBS and see what happens next. If it is still the same, i am going to put back the OEM pads and the OEM wheels. I have made an appointment with a dealer on 3/22.

I hope that this is a wheel issue. I am getting tired of bringing my car to the dealer for the same problem.