Hard to balance aftermarket wheels?

[Elboy]

Today I went to the shop to put on some new wheels on my badlands but then noticed slight vibrations at only 70-80mph range. I was driving city all day until i took the interstate back home, which is when i first noticed it. It was already too late in the day to go back to the tire shop i got the mount and balance done.

I’ve never had aftermarket wheels before, always oem. After reading some forums online i’ve noticed that some people have hard times finding places that could properly balance their aftermarket wheels. Is this a thing? lol again like i said i’m new to aftermarket wheels / modding in general.

I was planning to go back tomorrow to the same hole-in-the-wall shop i took it in at (it had great / many reviews) and see if they could check it out, but do you think it’ll be worth it at all if it was balanced when i brought it in? Would they rebalance their balance? lol. i’ve checked for any loose wheel weights and bases on the double sided tape. all the weights are accounted for.

i’m wondering if i should just go to a different shop with better/different balancing tech? do any of you have this problems with aftermarket wheels?

Should i try the dealer? should i just pull the trigger on some upgraded tires and get those balanced anyways? lol

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[Jonk]

I’ve had that happen, but it should be easily fixable. Just go back to the shop back and ask for a rebalance.

If you can pinpoint what wheel it will speed things up (typically you’ll feel front wheel wobble through the steering wheel, rear wobble through your seat)

Failing that, find a shop with a Hunter Roadforce balancer (the holy grail of wheel balancing machines) and you should be fine. FWIW I’ve never had a aftermarket wheel that was unbalanceable.

 

[Elboy]

I’ve had that happen, but it should be easily fixable. Just go back to the shop back and ask for a rebalance.

If you can pinpoint what wheel it will speed things up (typically you’ll feel front wheel wobble through the steering wheel, rear wobble through your seat)

If a rebalance doesn’t fix things, find a shop with a Hunter Roadforce balancer (the holy grail of wheel balancing machines) and you should be fine.

okay awesome, thanks for the reassurance. I'll be stopping by the same place tomorrow. Yeah through the forums i saw, the roadforce machines were spoken highly of lol

 

[Osco]

Back in the day we'd ask for 'fine' balancing.
Not all machines could do it.
It was 1/8th ounce balancing not 1 ounce.
It seemed to 'help' with old school mag wheels, Craiger SS and such.
Cost more by a few bucks.

 

[Elboy]

okay so it might be a bigger headache than i thought. i brought the car in this morning to the same place and he rebalanced free of charge. i could feel a little bit in my steering wheel before so i told him it’s probably the front two wheels. i was with him as he rebalanced, which he pointed out that both wheels needed more weights. but also he pointed out that the tires were slightly out of round, a slight jump when spinning. which i didn’t know how to feel about.

after i got them rebalanced i went on the free way and still the vibrations were similar except only happening at slightly higher speeds than the last. at this point i just wanted a smooth ride so i took it to a bigger chain of a tire shop and rebalanced all my wheels with them for $60.

i got my car back and still i get vibrations on the freeway, they start to become noticeable starting at 65mpg but at 85mph is very noticeable but not violent.

Any suggestions on what the problem might be? i’m afraid all the cheap fixes are almost out of the question. Is the tire the problem? The aftermarket wheel might be bent? and after all this i’ve spent a decent amount of money and just don’t want to spend more for the same result. Would road force balancing be worth it?

if the tires are the problem, does anyone know if the tire warranty would cover this and replace for me free of charge?

thanks

 

[fourthgear]

Did you have this vibration before you changed Wheels ?

 

[Jonk]

Sorry to hear it's being such a nuisance. I assume aftermarket rims on the OEM tire? I would have thought if the wheel was bent, they would have refused to mount the tire.

Whenever I've had shimmy issues, the only thing that solved it was using a Roadforce balancer:

https://www.hunter.com/find-equipment/

 

[Elboy]

Did you have this vibration before you changed Wheels ?

i only noticed it after i had the new wheels mounted. i’m almost certain it only started after the first time i took it into the shop for the wheel mounting.

 

[Elboy]

Sorry to hear it's being such a nuisance. I assume aftermarket rims on the OEM tire? I would have thought if the wheel was bent, they would have refused to mount the tire.

Whenever I've had shimmy issues, the only thing that solved it was using a Roadforce balancer:

https://www.hunter.com/find-equipment/

yeah definitely annoying l. yes aftermarket wheels on the OEM pirelli atr tires. i’m hoping that’s the case that the wheels aren’t bent.

i may just call around to see which shops use the road force balancer. if just hate to contribute to this money pit if the problem lies elsewhere you know?

i’m honestly considering just buying the tires i was planning on getting at this point. find a place that will buy my tires and also get new tires that includes mount / balance. 2 birds with one stone except i’ll just have to spend a lot more than i planned to :/

 

[Zolutar]

Balancing a wheel should have nothing to do with the car. You balance the wheel. If there were no vibrations with the stock wheel, but with the aftermarket wheel, then make em do it right...
Mileage varies by tech and equipment used.

Other issues could be an "out of round" tire (aka faulty tire)

 

[Elboy]

Balancing a wheel should have nothing to do with the car. You balance the wheel. If there were no vibrations with the stock wheel, but with the aftermarket wheel, then make em do it right...
Mileage varies by tech and equipment used.

Other issues could be an "out of round" tire (aka faulty tire)

right, if i mentioned it was something about the car then i probably worded it wrong. there were no vibrations with the stock wheel, vibrations only started on the aftermarket wheel i’m just at a loss for trying to diagnose the problem / saving money.

at first i believed it wasn’t balanced correctly. and after the first mount / balance, i’ve had it rebalanced two additional times and still the problem persists. So maybe the tire is out of round? if it is something must’ve happened during the wheel mounting since i had a smooth ride prior to the wheel mounting.

if the tire is indeed out of round, i wonder if the dealer / tire warranty could get it replaced under the uniformity warranty. but like i mentioned in a previous reply, all this hassle is just making me want to buy some new tires i was planning to get later down the road. sometimes i get a little impatient with this kind of stuff lol

 

[Osco]

Another old trick or two.
Mark where the tires are mounted on the rim..be exact.
Dissmonut each tire and balance only the rim but before you spin up each rim check it for true, at the edge, fix a screwdriver pointing at the rim bead. Inside and outside edge.
TURN BY HAND. Slow, don't get hurt.
,
Then remount the tire to the same rim but rotate that tire 1/4 turn.
Use those marks you first made.
Spin by hand, check for round.
Then rebalance to 1/8th ounce.
Wheels go back in the same spot.
If it's a no go..
Defective rim or did you say you got new tires?
Defective tire is more likely..
Been there got that t-shirt..
My Mustang shimmy went away with a new PAIR of tires....
,
As for aftermarket wheel,, most OEM wheels on many makers cars are made in the same wheel plants as aftermarket...
,
In China or Taiwan most likely..

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