I was wondering if any of you who have put on new wheels and tires had notice any vibrations with the new wheels? I just put on a set this past Saturday and I have a vibration that start at about 55MPH and stops at about 70MPH; or it atleast lessens in severity. I put on Nitto NT420S street tires in 305/40/22. I am going this afternoon to maybe have my TPMS swapped over and to get them rebalanced but if it could be something else I don’t want to start a wild goose chase. My fear is that the wider tires up front are causing the vibration because I feel it in the steering wheel but I also feel it in the seat of the truck just as bad. Any ideas?

 

Make sure the tires are road force balanced and within specs.

 

They need to be rebalanced, preferrably road force balanced. The 04-08 f150's are very sensitive to wheel/tire balance.

 

Wow, for some reason, that sounds expensive. So normal balancing won't work. I guess not every tire shop can do this?

 

Most nowadays should have the proper equipment. Is it more expensive than a regular balancing, yes, but if there is a problem with the tire, that is the only way to verify it. If a tire is out of round, there is no way a regular balance is going to fix it. The road force balance will not only determine if the tire is within specs, but if the wheel is withing specs.

 

Good deal. I just talked to a friend who owns a tire shop but doesn’t do RF balancing. She is going to balance them for me and transfer my TPMS to see if that helps; the balancing, not the TPMS. She has agreed to both for 80.00 so I can’t pass it up. I will have her guys check them before removing any weights to see if there is a variance. If there is, it’s probably a couple of ounces. I used to work for Discount Tire and have driven cars with out of balance wheels and I know small differences can cause a noticeable vibration. This is a good couple ounces as it vibrates my coffee mug in my center console. I am wondering if a weight may have come loose. My wife swears she heard something like a rock hit the truck bed when we first drove it after putting them on and one of the wheels has no weights on the inside. I highly doubt it was balanced with just the tire and wheel. As unlikely as that is, I have seen it happen.

 

What causes the added sensitivity? Is it the suspension, front end, etc? You got me curious...

 

All of the above and a stiffer frame which can make the vibrations you do have worse.

 

FWIW mine balanced fine at NTB. I don't know what balancing machine they have.

 

I called the place where I got my wheels and they said these were supposed to come with hub-centric rings. Now, I know what those are but do you guys have them on your wheels? I know that the wheels are currently not hub-centric. Could this be my problem? If so, am I going to damage them driving for the next two days? They are overngihting them to me.

 

Those hub rings help to center the rims on the hub. Not having them could be a factor. With 22" maybe even more. You won't damage anything by driving without them for a couple days. I would get them if available.

Get the road force balance as suggested.

It could be a bad tire. Some tires just can't be balance due to hidden defects. I've had a few before. You could try to take them to the place you bought them, and get a different set of tires.

You may get a harsher ride with the 22", it won't feel like stock but they should be able to be balanced.

 

- Good Balance?

- Is a tire out of round?

- Are the lugnuts correct?

- Are the wheels missing centering rings?

 

i was about to say the same thing i wonder if one the lugs are cross threaded, i know that can cause vibration

 

No cross threads. I put them on myself. I will try the centering rings when they come in and get them balanced again. I bought them online so sending them back is a last resort but one I will take if needed.

Thanks for the feedback. You have given me something to work with. I will update this with the resolution when its done.

 

I just put a set of Toyo proxes s/t 305 35 r24's on my 03 navigator. It had G force BFG"S on it but i wasn't about to spend that much for Tires. The shop i use Road force balances tires and my Navi rides as smooth as a babies butt. And thats at any speed. That kind of balancing makes a big difference....