Wheel Balance
Thread Starter
6th Gear
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 6
Likes: 0
From: carlsbad ca
Wheel Balance
Finally got my new BF Goodrich G-Force tires balanced on stock OEM wheels.
Not sure what happen, but two well known tire/repair shops in LA area could not balance my new tires. These shops are not your typical tire/auto repair shop and I had the new tires sent to one of these shops who also does most of my repair work for mounting. Unfortunately the frustration level got to be huge after both shops gave up. I will spare the details on what three months of driving the "vibrating/shaking vette" was like. I am not here to complain so I will move on.
I finally connected with a guy who does not balance wheels/tires per usual, but has professional shop that does dynamic balance on motors, shafts, etc.. He agreed to try and balance my wheels and new tires as I was looking at a new purchase of wheels if this did not work. Three times is a charm.
Anyway he got it right and my vette drive's perfect.
For any of you with this type of problem (past or current) whether it be C4s', 5s', etc. it's got to be one of the most frustrating situations.
Kebxx
Not sure what happen, but two well known tire/repair shops in LA area could not balance my new tires. These shops are not your typical tire/auto repair shop and I had the new tires sent to one of these shops who also does most of my repair work for mounting. Unfortunately the frustration level got to be huge after both shops gave up. I will spare the details on what three months of driving the "vibrating/shaking vette" was like. I am not here to complain so I will move on.
I finally connected with a guy who does not balance wheels/tires per usual, but has professional shop that does dynamic balance on motors, shafts, etc.. He agreed to try and balance my wheels and new tires as I was looking at a new purchase of wheels if this did not work. Three times is a charm.
Anyway he got it right and my vette drive's perfect.
For any of you with this type of problem (past or current) whether it be C4s', 5s', etc. it's got to be one of the most frustrating situations.
Kebxx
Instructor
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 215
Likes: 0
From: Conway AR
Went thru this problem when I when to Michellen PS. I'd had other brands on the car before. I've used Michellen tires before on other cars and they didn't need much weight added to balance them. I got this set of new tires and had ALL kinds of problems (above 70 mph). I'd used this tire store for several different vehicles (Bronco, trucks and the "vette") no problem.
I was sick, I'd lost my car. Anything over 70, it just got worse. Went back to the tire store 3 times and everytime they changed the weights and the position. Still the same problem. The answer I finally got was "you're driving too fast"--WTF, why have a Corvette?
I've got a friend that has a transmission shop, that does some work for me. He says bring it over and I'll use my old Snap On spin balancer and we'll see what happens. This is a HAND spun tire balancer, you spin the tire by hand, it doesn't go very fast. Turned out, the tire shop guys where putting 2, 3, 5 ounce weights on the wheels. They needed .2 or .3 ounce or NO weights.
Bottom line: Never underestimate STUPIDITY.
I was sick, I'd lost my car. Anything over 70, it just got worse. Went back to the tire store 3 times and everytime they changed the weights and the position. Still the same problem. The answer I finally got was "you're driving too fast"--WTF, why have a Corvette?
I've got a friend that has a transmission shop, that does some work for me. He says bring it over and I'll use my old Snap On spin balancer and we'll see what happens. This is a HAND spun tire balancer, you spin the tire by hand, it doesn't go very fast. Turned out, the tire shop guys where putting 2, 3, 5 ounce weights on the wheels. They needed .2 or .3 ounce or NO weights.
Bottom line: Never underestimate STUPIDITY.
Race Director
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 17,551
Likes: 26
From: El Paso Texas
Glad someone was finally able to resolve the issue. Vibrations suck...plain and simple. They can take all of the enjoyment out of driving the car.
Duly noted.
Duly noted.
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Thread Starter
6th Gear
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 6
Likes: 0
From: carlsbad ca
The cost for balancing and mounting was around 200.00.
I won't speak about the shops on this or other public domains.
Meet me in private and sure I can give out some details to you.
One thing is for sure, all these guys where trying their best. Unfortunately,
their best effort is short of my expectations. The new "normal"?
Kebxx
I won't speak about the shops on this or other public domains.
Meet me in private and sure I can give out some details to you.
One thing is for sure, all these guys where trying their best. Unfortunately,
their best effort is short of my expectations. The new "normal"?
Kebxx
Team Owner
Joined: Dec 1999
Posts: 34,873
Likes: 487
From: Lacey WA RVN 68-69
NCM Sinkhole Donor
The Hunter website has a list of shops that currently have a GSP9700 Road Force Balancer. It may cost a bit more to have tires balanced with this machine simply because of the capabilities is has and the time it takes to find and resolve problems. It's also a good idea to ask how much experience the machine operator has on that particular system.
The local Discount Tire shop has a GSP9700 and a very skilled operator. When I had a set of ZR-1 style wheels and new tires balanced, the guy was able to hide all of the tape weights on the insides of the spokes. There were no visible weights when the wheel was mounted on the car.
