Balancing Issue with new Michelin Tires

[popalzai]

I have 07 4runner Sr5 4wd and 2 days ago i purchase Michelin LTX MS2 265 65 R17 from Costco...when i drove it they started giving vibration (steering shakes) at 60 -70 miles..next day i took it back to costco the re balance all 4 tires again same issue not a little bit difference...Is this a 4runner issue or do i have to perform balancing from some other shop like road force balancing as i read in different forums...I have not done alignment yet could this be due to not performing alignment..

Thanks in advance

 

[kai920]

I have 07 4runner Sr5 4wd and 2 days ago i purchase Michelin LTX MS2 265 65 R17 from Costco...when i drove it they started giving vibration (steering shakes) at 60 -70 miles..next day i took it back to costco the re balance all 4 tires again same issue not a little bit difference...Is this a 4runner issue or do i have to perform balancing from some other shop like road force balancing as i read in different forums...I have not done alignment yet could this be due to not performing alignment..

Thanks in advance

Vibration has been an ongoing issue for me. I purchased new tires(Falken Rocky Mountains AT/S when I purchased the vehicle. I had them balanced six times(in a matter of 2-3 months) by Discount Tire, including a Road Force Balance and they couldn't get it right. I complained enough where they swapped them out for a set of Michelin LTX AT2.

Issued solved..........until I had them rotated and balanced at 8k miles. I went back to Discount three times and they again, could not get it right. At the suggestion of another member here I went to a local shop and they have been working with me.

The first time they indexed the tires, which is moving the tire around on the wheel to try to get it to balance better. It worked a little but the vibe was still there, so I took it back last night. One tire was sufficiently out of balance again. Also, since they are lug centric, we tried torquing the lugs while the vehicle was in the air to see if this helps. I'll have it on the highway later today to know if the issue has been resolved.

My wife thinks I'm crazy, she doesn't feel it. I say my vehicle is just not the same since I had them rotated. It drives me nuts and I feel your pain.

Make sure they are using the Haweka adapter. It is a MUST with our wheels. Our wheels out lug centric, not hub centric. If the shop is not using this adapter make sure they are, or find another shop that has it.

4Runners.org - Balancing Your Tires: Haweka Adapter

Also a good read:
Vibration Problems

Good luck, and let us know how it goes.

 

[popalzai]

Vibration has been an ongoing issue for me. I purchased new tires(Falken Rocky Mountains AT/S when I purchased the vehicle. I had them balanced six times(in a matter of 2-3 months) by Discount Tire, including a Road Force Balance and they couldn't get it right. I complained enough where they swapped them out for a set of Michelin LTX AT2.

Issued solved..........until I had them rotated and balanced at 8k miles. I went back to Discount three times and they again, could not get it right. At the suggestion of another member here I went to a local shop and they have been working with me.

The first time they indexed the tires, which is moving the tire around on the wheel to try to get it to balance better. It worked a little but the vibe was still there, so I took it back last night. One tire was sufficiently out of balance again. Also, since they are lug centric, we tried torquing the lugs while the vehicle was in the air to see if this helps. I'll have it on the highway later today to know if the issue has been resolved.

My wife thinks I'm crazy, she doesn't feel it. I say my vehicle is just not the same since I had them rotated. It drives me nuts and I feel your pain.

Make sure they are using the Haweka adapter. It is a MUST with our wheels. Our wheels out lug centric, not hub centric. If the shop is not using this adapter make sure they are, or find another shop that has it.

4Runners.org - Balancing Your Tires: Haweka Adapter

Also a good read:
Vibration Problems

Good luck, and let us know how it goes.

Well i will talk to costco tire guys today..i believe they were using hub centric adapter and i dont think so they know anything about lug centric I highly doubt it... Their manager said i might have a wheel problem I said then why my old tires were smooth he replied with most silliest annswere "the vehicle was used to with the old tires thats why you did not feel any shake"

 

[galactic_04]

See if they can roadforce check the tires. One or two may just need rotated on the rim to get in an acceptable roadforce range. It measures the runout on the tires.

From Tire Rack:
The GSP9700 Vibration Control System includes Hunter's exclusive Road Force Measurement System to help detect potential tire uniformity causes of vibration that are not balance-related. This system utilizes a "road roller" which applies up to 1,400 pounds (635 kg) of force against the wheel and tire assembly to measure their combined uniformity. This simulated road force test helps verify if the assembly is "round" when rolling under load.

 

[eschnabs]

For what its worth, I had Michelin Cross Terrains installed in January at the local Toyota Dealership. They had to balance them 3 times before the vibration was completely gone. The truck now rides SMOOTH.

 

[popalzai]

was at costco 3rd time for the balance and convinced them to use lug centric adapter they did the re balance again for 4 tires but the result is same still shakes at 60 miles + shakes are not that much but i definitely feel it as its not smooth...they guy says that your wheels are not even might be damaged ..what should i do

 

[Bftfan]

I have the SMAE tires and a vibration at the SAME speed!! I'm going to take her back next week to get them balanced lug centrically so we'll see. <fingers crossed>

 

[Barry694]

Tire Balancing Issues, etc

New T4R. Removed Bridgestones immediately and replaced with 265/70/17 Michelin LTX MS2's. Balancing done by the local Michelin tire shop and the SUV rides like a limo. Must be they are not balancing them correctly. I have a Lexus sedan with RFT's and the T4R has a better ride than those crappy RFT's.

 

[popalzai]

i want to give a try to road force balancing using gsp9700 i located few toyota dealers and strause discount auto shop which has gsp9700 and straighttrak LFM...i live in Bergen county NJ does any one know any place where they have performed road force balancing and they had success?

 

[FlyZLow]

I just put a set of LTX MS2s on my '04 V8 2wd and couldn't be happier. The shop I went to sells lots of Michelin tires, so perhaps they just do a better job of balancing them than others do? I drive freeway speeds (75mph and 65mph zones) everyday and haven't noticed any vibration whatsoever. I did also have a front wheel alignment done at the time FWIW.

 

[08SilverB]

re

I can certainly relate to your problem & frustration...

Year's back I spent a huge amount of time dealing with idiot's after purchasing a set of T4R Tires at one of these places. Was it worth it to save $100-150 buck's? NO WAY.

I did some research and found Gadget's Web Page and my hat goes off to this guy. He explained it all and afterward's I realized what a fool I was going there in the first place. Then to think I actually listening to the moronic answer's they gave me when taking it back to be rebalanced.

Does this Discount Tire place actually have a Hunter GSP 9700 (or 9600 I forget) Road Force Variance/Spin Blance Machine? I doubt it. If they did no one must know how to operate it. They cost $30K or so I've heard. When your Wheel's are balanced correctly you should have either NO weight on a Wheel or a very Small one. When you have weight's that are several inches long on ALL your Wheel's your not getting a precise balance and your T4R will never bee as smooth as it could especially at 65-70 MPH.

I have to agree with "Barry694". Go to a QUALITY Tire Dealer that has the right Machine or call and find a Toyota Dealer that has one. Most Dealer's have the Machine now since the 17-18" Wheel's are difficult to balance since the T4R front end's are so precisioned machined. They are tight.

They don't call these "DISCOUNT" Tire places for nothing..... The last Tire Dealer I went to said some of these places "Calibrate" their Balance Machine every Month or two if that. The place I went to year's ago with the 3rd generation T4R calibrated their machine every week.

Hope this help's. When it comes to 4-Runner's and Wheel's/Tires from my experience you don't want to skimp, especially if you enjoy a smooth highway ride. It's hard to swallow at first paying extra but in the long run it's worth it. Properly balanced Wheel's might also get you another MPG or so and less wear on the front end part's. It's also a joy to drive a T4R on the Highway that's "Glass Smooth" as they say.

 

[shootersanks]

Sorry to hear about your problems with your new tires. I recently got the same tires put on my 07 Sport and haven't had any problems. I did have an alignment done when I had the new tires installed so that may have helped. I hope you find a fix for the vibrations.



Also I believe my shop used a Hunter DSP9000 for balancing.

 

[popalzai]

Well After the balancing using lug centric adapter the vibration is much much better its hardly noticeable though still not 100% fixed...i am thinking of getting alignment done from toyota...

costco guys say my wheels are not perfectly round..

 

[Roadking]

I feel your pain; I have been going through the same thing with Costco on a set of Michelin Cross Terrains I had installed a few years back on my 2005 SR5. One of the selling points was that the Michelin tires balance very easily with little added weight (then why do I have like 3 ounces of weight hanging on each rim?). I dread going back because each time they rebalance the tires the wheels get a round of new nicks and dings. I’m so disappointed with these tires (the vibration at 60mph that is) that I think I’m just going to bite the bullet and switch them out to something else, possibly the LTX MS2’s…I wonder if Costco would make a price adjustment for all the hassles on tires with 50% thread left?

 

[JimKW]

I have been told that Costco and Wal-Mart gets the rejects on their tires. Not sure it's true. But I get a price for tires from Costco and then get NTB to match the price. I don't buy tires as Costo or Wal-Mart.

 

[popalzai]

It is quite strange that some times the vibration comes back and steering shakes at 60+ but some times it looks ok...i have read a lot of forums where ppl have complained about balancing issue with 4runner,FJ cruizer and Tacoma...in the next step i am going to perform alignment which is due after new tire replacement if vibration is still there i am going to perform road force balancing any one know any place for road force balancing in NJ area where they had success?

 

[twotone]

sry to hear about your tire balancing issue. i bought new michelins about 2 months ago from discount tire and installed and balanced myself(working at a dealership helps) and have had no balancing issues with them. ive got about 8k miles on them now and have yet to rebalance them. i would try going somewhere else or maybe even to the dealer to get rebalanced. good luck.

 

[popalzai]

so i got the road force balance done at local toyota dealer here in NJ...they did not give me any sort of report like i have heard it tells you that how much the tire was off balance and the numbering of tires with respect to off balance etc...dealer said there is no such report generated... and after spending 3 hours at dealer ship still the issue is there still steering slightly shakes at 60 to 70m/hr...strange thing is that the vibration comes and goes...dealers said my tires and rims are good...i am cluless

 

[08SilverB]

re

If the Dealership had the Hunter Model 9700 Road Force Balance Machine then you should get a Spec sheet printed out period. That show's how much each Wheel/Tire is out. I've got "the Printer is Broken" line from a Dealer once and promptly left. I then contaced Hunter and they referred me to a fantastic Family owned Tire Dealer with 50 year's of experience. They not only had the right Machine but understood quality Customer Service and were HONEST. This is the only place I will let touch my Wheel's/Tires.

I would call Hunter and ask them for a list of places in your Area that have the Hunter Machine. Tell them your having problem's getting your T4R balanced correctly then go from there. I would also recommend getting the Tires inflated with "Nitrogen". Nitrogen is much more stable in temperature fluctuations then O2 and especially with large tires. In colder temperatures I remember getting on the Highway with a slight vibration only to have it disappear after 15 minutes of driving. I'm thinking the Tires would sit in the cold over night then warm up after driving on the Interstate. This would soften the Tire and bring the pressure back up some. It's possible the Hard Rubber compound Michelin tires are known for (that's one of the reason's they last so long) takes longer to soften and warm up.

If you have large lead weight's on all your Wheel's that tell's me they weren't balanced correctly. That's one of the thing's the Hunter machine will pick up on. You should get a Print out showing how much each Wheel is "out". They should each be between 2-8 lbs with quality Tires.

Please keep us updated

 

[popalzai]

Today i drove my 4runner at different speeds and on different free ways 50 60 70 and 80 miles i did not feel the shake...yesterday probably i missjudged...looks like road force balancing from toyota did the trick and i hope it remains same...i will update if i feel the shake again but so far it feels perfect.