vibration that last for 2 minutes

[Spyke]

Hi guys, here's another topic for vibration issues!

Everytime that my car's been sitting for an hour or more on any driveway, its seems that tires are cooling down! So everytime I drive 70 km/h to 120 km/h (sorry for not telling in miles), my car (seats but mainly steering wheel) vibrate a little bit for approx. 2 minutes til tires are getting warmer. Accelerating or being regular on speed doesn't matter..

Is it me or it could be a problem with tires? After 2 minutes or so, everything's back to normal, no more vibrations.

Could it be the rotors? When I press the brake pedals, it vibrates in the steering wheel also but if it was the rotor, after the 2 minutes warm up it would still be a vibration, right?

Tks a lot!

[Sammy Z]

What year, how many miles on the car? original Tires? Does it get worse when you take a turn at the same speed or does it get better? Anyway, it may be a wheel bearing but it's hard to tell.

Maybe a quick test could be to rotate the tires (front to rear) and see if the symptom changes.

By the way, the brake vibration could be fixed by having the brake rotors cut or turned at an auto shop.

[zeevert]

I'd bet it's the tires. I have the same problem with two new tires on the front. Vibration for 3-5 miles, then gone. No vibration with the old tires. I'm planning to move them to the back and see what happens.

[dannoaz]

I was getting a good amount of vibration in my steering wheel, only when braking. Unlike your problem, mine would not go away after 2 minutes, or any amount of time. I found that my left rotor had a good amount of runout. I had it turned. Problem solved.

I am also guessing it is your tires.

Dan

[Spyke]

Sorry not to tell, its an 05 with 122000 kms or ummm 73-74k miles. Its not the original tires but they are the exact same brand, same model as original tires they have about 40% life left. Its started that maybe a month ago. Like I said, its like when the tires are cold for approx 3-5 miles, it vibrates and once they are warmer, the vibration goes away! Once warm, if I turn or not, there's no problem. When cold, I dont feel anything in city driving but in highway at about 50 mph, it starts vibrating and after 3-5miles it goes away and never come back except if the tires have the tie to cool down.

I'll try to find a shop for my rotors, tks! And for the wheel rotation, I'll try to do it very soon!

[87vertgt]

DAM....JUST WEIRD HUH?

my wrangler and my old cherokee had a nasty vibration that is refered to as "Death Rattle" it would last about 10 seconds the most.......

balance and rotate the tires and inspect the rim for dent, if that dont work do the alignment...

keep us updated...

[dannoaz]

Don't get the rotor turned unless you have to. Remove the wheels and put the lug nuts back on by hand. Then, check the rotor runout with a test or dial indicator. The manual shows the procedure for this. It also has a check, using a micrometer, for thickness variation. This is all rather easy to do if you have the tools. Thankfully, I have a lot of machinist tools.

My rotor had something like .003" runout, which is at the limit of specs. It is hard to believe that this small amount caused such a steering wheel vibration, but it did. I took them to NAPA. When I put them back on, one was good, but the other had .012" runout. Thanks NAPA-NOT. I had to take that one back. They turned it to almost no runout, but took it right down to the thickness limit. Thanks again. In the past I have had other similar experiences with Checker, Autozone, and Pep Boys. It seems almost impossible to find somebody to do this right. I wish I would have tried a repair shop instead of the parts store. On my Blazer, the rotors were only like $35 each. After going through this once, I decided that I would only buy new rotors if I needed them turned again. The rotors on the CTS are a lot more money, so it is worth it to try getting them turned.

Whenever you have rotors turned, don't assume they did a good job. Check them back on the vehicle before bolting everything back together.

Dan

[mahands24]

Can you post again if you end up figuring out your probelm? I am getting something very similiar. Mine happens at 40mph nad last more like 5 or 10 min. I have a 2003 with 65000 miles on the car. I thought it was just my winter tires but I recently changed back over to my summer wheels and the issue still seems to be there.

[Spyke]

mahands24, my problem seems to be the tires. When the car's been sitting for few hours, tires have a flat point. It takes about 5-10 minutes to warm up the tires and after that, problem's solve! The only thing I can see is that my tire's getting old maybe?! they have about 40% life left! I didn't rotate them to see if its all the tires or only the front ones.

[mahands24]

I guess I'll try swapping the front and backs to see if there is a difference. I have A LOT of tread left on mine. I switch between winter and summer wheels. Maybe they got a flat point on them when they were sitting in storage.