17" Alloy help?

imalwayshappy

Hey guys

Right went to advanced pitstop today to get me wheels balanced cause my astra's steering wheel was shaking like mad when i hit 65mph on the M50. Found out my front wheel is buckled and the balancing dint do much to stop the problem. The chap in advanced told me to go to some chap in Cabra who fixes alloys anyone know who he is?? I've 17" alloys an anyone tell me does the steering wheel usually shake like mad normally because of the sheer size of the alloy? Im doin alot of traveling down the country and i dont want to have to put up with a shaky wheel when i go fast. Do you think i should maybe get rid of the 17" altogether? or when i get the alloy repaired will this solve the problem. Thanks in advance 4 any info

mmenarry

The sheer weight of a 17" alloy is probably overloading your shocks & springs.

Even though they're "alloy", larger wheels tend to be a bit on the lardy side - if you don't change your suspension to suit, you end up in trouble. Possibly the worst combination is large wheels, and lowered & hardened springs (without changing shocks to suit)

My car has a set of BBS alloys as stock (8.5 lbs each), I have a spare set of steel wheels (18lbs each) - but same size & profile.

With the steel wheels on, the car feels like both the steering & suspension is broken.

M.

imalwayshappy

Do ya think i should maybe sell them off and maybe gt 15" ones?

mmenarry

imalwayshappy wrote:

Do ya think i should maybe sell them off and maybe gt 15" ones?

At the end of the day its your call, but suspect you might be a lot better in the long run.

I'm assuming here (yeah, I know assume only makes an "ass" of "u" and "me") that these aren't expensive, top of the range alloys. If you could afford the good ones, you wouldn't be driving an astra
I'm also assuming that you haven't cahnged the suspension components to match the 17"s

You could easily flog them in the autotrader or buy & sell, or even online on one of the forums in the "for sale" sections (try racershaven), and net yourself enough cash to buy a decent set of 15" alloys & tyres.

As I said, its your call - but if they buckled once without you really noticing, they will probably do so again. Do you like them enough to keep repairing them (even on an infrequent basis?)

M.

fletch

I had a buckled wheel before....cost to repair was nearly as much as buying a new one so in the end I got a new one & the car was so smooth in comparison...I think I'd test out someone else 17" wheel in place of the one yer man said was buckled before I''d go replacing the whole lot....jus make sure the wheel your checking is the exact same size or has the same rolling radius.

imalwayshappy

Ah no ive just bought the car i really like the alloys on it and the hassle ive gone through to get the car at this time dont know if ill get them replaces. Can any garage adjust the suspension for me? is it expensive? then if i got the alloy repaired will this solve the problem of the shaky steering wheel?? thanks again!!

fletch

Just test out n alloy that you know is okay on your car first....jus make sure it's the same dimensions etc....that way you'll know if it is just a buckled alloy causing you trouble.....if the problem goes when your tryin out this temporary wheel, well then it's up to you to decide whether you want to repair or replace the offending wheel.

imalwayshappy

ive no spare alloy but have da spare wheel should i throw it on and head down the m50 and see if the problem is solved? soz bout da questions as ya can guess i dont know much about cars

fletch

imalwayshappy wrote:

ive no spare alloy but have da spare wheel should i throw it on and head down the m50 and see if the problem is solved? soz bout da questions as ya can guess i dont know much about cars

The spare wheel may not have the same rolling radius...you can use this Tyre Size Calculator to check that the two wheels are the same size (circumference wise)

Abelloid

You could try fiiting it on the back (if the tyres and offset are the same), and see if it changes anything.

mmenarry

imalwayshappy wrote:

ive no spare alloy but have da spare wheel should i throw it on and head down the m50 and see if the problem is solved? soz bout da questions as ya can guess i dont know much about cars

Everyone has to learn somehow!

Your spare is probably a steel wheel, so might not be much help (see wieght problem above) - but then again it sin't going to cost you anything to try it. You could also swap the "buckled" wheel to the other axle, see if the problem "moves" - again, this isn't going to cost you anything.

M.

fletch

When I had a buckled front wheel and moved it to the back it was very noticable that the steering wheel no longer shook, instead the whole car did from the rear...so it's not a bad idea to just move it to the back which will help you ascertain that it is the wheel that is causing the problem

Dagon

At the moment I'm testing a set of 17" allows on my Honda Civic.

The car is pulling to the left a bit, and I have to steer it right just a bit to keep going straight.

When I had my normal wheels I didn't notice this, but it's quite a big jump going from regular 15s to the 17s, so could it be magnifying something wrong with my steering?

Or is it just an alloy problem? I recently checked the air in the tyres.

P.S. Is it really necessary to change shocks and suspension now with these new wheels? if so, think I may not bother buying them.

franksm

Here's the company that can work on alloys

Aluweld Ltd.
Unit 1, Blackhorse Ind Est
Blackhorse Ave Dublin 7.
Telephone: +353 (0) 1 8681100.
Fax: +353 (0) 1 8681118

They can fix dents, dints, dinges, cracks, creaks, etc. Bring the wheel to them and see what they reckon.

I put 16" wheels on my MX5 and must say I'm regretting it - the tyres are 45 profile (215x45) and they're just too harsh for Irish roads. Luckily I'm in Belfast 1/2 the time so the tarmac up there is a bit smoother than in Dublin. Anyway, given the choice next time, I'll stick with 15's.

Good luck with the unbuckling

Seth Brundle

imalwayshappy wrote:

ive no spare alloy but have da spare wheel should i throw it on and head down the m50 and see if the problem is solved? soz bout da questions as ya can guess i dont know much about cars

fletch wrote:

The spare wheel may not have the same rolling radius...you can use this Tyre Size Calculator to check that the two wheels are the same size (circumference wise)

The spare wheel is likely to be 14 or 15 inches with a large profile tyre. Running this with 17" on low profiles is not recommended unless it is a 'get me home' job. The car will not be balanced properly.

Do the 17" rims have the correct offset etc for the astra? Are they of a repuable make? Putting crappy rims on can affect handling to the extent that they damage steering/suspension components. Larger rims will also increase the likleihood of tramlining but that is irrelevant to your problem.

imalwayshappy

kbannon wrote:

The spare wheel is likely to be 14 or 15 inches with a large profile tyre. Running this with 17" on low profiles is not recommended unless it is a 'get me home' job. The car will not be balanced properly.

Do the 17" rims have the correct offset etc for the astra? Are they of a repuable make? Putting crappy rims on can affect handling to the extent that they damage steering/suspension components. Larger rims will also increase the likleihood of tramlining but that is irrelevant to your problem.

The rims on the astra are 17" smiths performance alloys 5 spoke. What do you mean by the offset??? Sorry but like i said ive no idea bout these things I dont have a clue if these are good or bad. At the end of the day i just want to stop the steering wheel shaking cause its really annoying. The chap in advance showed me the buckle but he balanced the wheels it but it didnt make much difference. Ill prob bring it to aluweld and see what they say do they balance the wheels as well?? So if i get this alloy fixed and get the wheels balanced again should this sort the problem???? thanks again for the help lads

current alloys 205-60z-17
spare wheel 185-65-14

Would it be safe to drive with this spare wheel on while i get the alloy repaired? the sizes are what concerns me.

stevenmu

imalwayshappy wrote:

The chap in advanced told me to go to some chap in Cabra who fixes alloys anyone know who he is??

He probably means the guy on the cappagh road. Take the navan road in towards town, you'll go past a few car dealers on your right, then the library and mcdonalds, turn left here, go straight through the 2 small and 1 big roundabout, you'll cross a set of train tracks and a f**ked up bendy bridge (watch out for buses/trucks ) and he'll be just in to the left after that.

imalwayshappy

stevenmu wrote:

He probably means the guy on the cappagh road. Take the navan road in towards town, you'll go past a few car dealers on your right, then the library and mcdonalds, turn left here, go straight through the 2 small and 1 big roundabout, you'll cross a set of train tracks and a f**ked up bendy bridge (watch out for buses/trucks ) and he'll be just in to the left after that.

Kool do you have a number 4 him????

franksm

imalwayshappy wrote:

Ill prob bring it to aluweld and see what they say do they balance the wheels as well??

Aluweld won't balance them - in fact you'll need to give them the wheel minus the tyre. All they will do is they'll make the wheel "straight and true". I think this involves lots of banging of hammers, welding, and running a lathe over it.

They also have an X-ray machine that will find hidden cracks and things - but they told me that powering that thing up would cost €250 (which *I* would have to pay for :eek:) so I elected not to go that far.

Reason they don't do balancing and such is that they're a pure engineering firm.

kluivert

Your all talking **** about the Astra again get a grip.

My Astra rocks. 1999 silver bullet.

17's will fit straight onto the Astra no problem unless its 1998 or older then the max is 15's.

You do not have to adjsut the suspension set up. So long as the offset is correct as well as the diamater.

I was thinking about getting alloys to replace the 15's i have now, 16's are a good comprise for Irish roads.

205-60-17 seem like the wrong tires for the car.

215-45-17, same wheel radius i know but might help.

mik_da_man

I have 16"s on my Astra and got a buckle in 1 of them
getting it repaired in that place in cabra

Campbells Garage 01-8304694

I'm also getting the wheels balanced and tracking done after.
Prob getting that done tmrw so I'll post back and let ya know how I get on

They came recommended from a few sources

Mik