2003 Z06 Vibration
Thread Starter
2nd Gear
Joined: May 2023
Posts: 2
Likes: 0
2003 Z06 Vibration
I purchased a C5 Z06 with 30K miles yesterday in Dallas and drove it back to Midland, TX about 5 hours away. I noticed a vibration starting at about 65 miles per hour and staying through 85 mph, that is the fastest I drove. Don’t hold that against me!
The vibration is cyclical and peaks and wanes about every five seconds. The frequency does not seem to increase or decrease with speed. It does not matter which gear it is in or if the clutch is disengaged.
You can hear it on smooth pavement and it has a lower pitch that can be felt everywhere including the steering wheel but does not seem to be tire balance/alignment related as far as I can tell.
It has brand new tires on the front and 13-year-old rear tires on the rear with 30-40% tread left.
The rotor wear seems normal for a sports car with 30K miles.
I have read on forums where several people seem to be describing the same thing but the responders don’t add much to address the issue.
With the described symptoms I am assuming the issue stems from something down the line from the transmission.
The vibration is cyclical and peaks and wanes about every five seconds. The frequency does not seem to increase or decrease with speed. It does not matter which gear it is in or if the clutch is disengaged.
You can hear it on smooth pavement and it has a lower pitch that can be felt everywhere including the steering wheel but does not seem to be tire balance/alignment related as far as I can tell.
It has brand new tires on the front and 13-year-old rear tires on the rear with 30-40% tread left.
The rotor wear seems normal for a sports car with 30K miles.
I have read on forums where several people seem to be describing the same thing but the responders don’t add much to address the issue.
With the described symptoms I am assuming the issue stems from something down the line from the transmission.
Thread Starter
2nd Gear
Joined: May 2023
Posts: 2
Likes: 0
Drifting
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 1,862
Likes: 594
From: Prescott, Arizona
When you get the new tires balanced make sure that no wheel is out of round or bent by observing each wheel being spun on the balancer before a tire is mounted. THEN make sure each mounted tire is round and spins without any runout. At that point if the wheel and tire are true, it can be balanced.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Nov 2017
Posts: 2,306
Likes: 747
You might have seen my post about this in another thread last week...but I've replaced nearly everything that could be causing this to no avail. Only thing I haven't replaced is the transmission lol.
- Harmonic balancer
- Motor mounts
- Clutch
- Torque tube rebuild
- All ball joints, hubs, tie rod ends
- Diff rebuild/re-gear
- Several different sets of wheels/tires
I did just get another set of wheels and tires that I had road force balanced this time and just got the car aligned today...we shall test the wheel/tire setup one more time...knock on wood, but it does feel a lot smoother with the road force so far (50-60 miles worth at this point).
And no, I haven't done all of this stuff strictly to try to resolve this issue lol, just coincidental "upgrades" along the way. I'll report back here in a few weeks or less if I remember.
- Harmonic balancer
- Motor mounts
- Clutch
- Torque tube rebuild
- All ball joints, hubs, tie rod ends
- Diff rebuild/re-gear
- Several different sets of wheels/tires
I did just get another set of wheels and tires that I had road force balanced this time and just got the car aligned today...we shall test the wheel/tire setup one more time...knock on wood, but it does feel a lot smoother with the road force so far (50-60 miles worth at this point).
And no, I haven't done all of this stuff strictly to try to resolve this issue lol, just coincidental "upgrades" along the way. I'll report back here in a few weeks or less if I remember.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Nov 2017
Posts: 2,306
Likes: 747
It's usually just cruising on the highway in that speed range. It's not harmful, dangerous, or concerning enough to try to feel it during turns, it's just annoying if you're paying attention to it while cruising lol. It's a very subtle, rhythmic/cycling vibration that just feels like a driveshaft that's ever so slightly out of balance or something. And it's also intermittent...so you seem to kinda forget about it until the next time it happens lol.
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Moved to C5 Tech for more assistance. I would definitely get those 13 year old tires off the car ASAP.
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