Shaking car query

Zapho

I'm a motor newbie, so go easy on me! My fiesta has started to vibrate when
I reach speeds of between 55 and 65 mph. Anything below that, its fine,
and anything above that, its fine. I thought it might be the wheel balancing,
so I got them balanced, but its still shaking.

The shaking seams to be coming from the rear left tyre, so I thought it might
be the shocks. I ran up a ford dealer and they mentioned thats more likely
to be the rubber bushing on the shock thats come off. Is this likely to be the
case? The reason I ask is because I could just buy the rubber and have a
friend of mine fit it for me rather than having to book it into a garage.

unkel

It probably needs tracking. Any tyre specialist should be able to do that for you

franksm

dunno - sounds like wheel balance right 'nuff, or tracking like the Unkel says

Are tyre pressures spot on ? They need to be completely even on some cars. Jack up the car and take the wheels off one-by-one and make sure there's no dirt or anything between the wheel and the hub (which could cause the wheel to be mounted unevenly). With the wheel back on and the car in the air, spin the wheel by hand and see if it's spinning properly - have seen tyres that were bulging badly (although mainly in cars that have been sat for a while).

ninty9er

I get it above 65 on the Corsa, it's just a matter of the car being at or near it's limit really as far as I'm concerned....a gentle reminder that it's not an S-Calss

CtrlSource

Yep, sounds like balancing and maybe tracking of the steering too (?)

Could the whole wheel be buckled? Steel or alloy?

Avns1s

Most likely to be balancing. Unlikely to be tracking. It wouldn't normally cause shaking.

Sometimes there are tyres that just "refuse" to balance. If you can identify the wheel that is offending, it might be best to change the tyre. Also, check for any bulges on the tyres and any sign of buckling of the wheels.

cujimmy

check to make sure one or more of your wheels isnt loose

Zapho

I've had all four wheels balanced last week, I thought that would fix it, but it didn't. And all the tyre pressures are even, I've put 28 in the front two, and 30 in the back (psi). The shaking seams to be coming from the the rear left tyre though, could that still mean tracking?

About the top speed bit, a friend of mine owns an older fiesta which can happily reach 80mph if it needs to, without complaining. My car is newer, and has a better engine so I'd assume 55-60 should be a comfortable speed for it!

apw99

Hi - Sounds like a bent rim (wheel) to me. Take the wheel off and put it on the front and see if the vibration moves to the front. If so then then you might get away with wheel balence (EU10) or possibly a wheel from the breakers (E20). If there is still a problem then it sounds like a collapsed bushing or somthing badly out of alignment. In that case go to Dave McCann in Clonsilla (if you are in Dublin area) who will do a decent alignment job (EU60 for 4 wheel alignment).
My bet is the wheel as if it was suspension it would not go away after the 55mph.
Let us all know - cheers;)

fifth

I had that problem in an Opel Corsa at the speed limit and my tracking was off.

Zapho

apw99 wrote:

Hi - Sounds like a bent rim (wheel) to me. Take the wheel off and put it on the front and see if the vibration moves to the front. If so then then you might get away with wheel balence (EU10) or possibly a wheel from the breakers (E20). If there is still a problem then it sounds like a collapsed bushing or somthing badly out of alignment. In that case go to Dave McCann in Clonsilla (if you are in Dublin area) who will do a decent alignment job (EU60 for 4 wheel alignment).
My bet is the wheel as if it was suspension it would not go away after the 55mph.
Let us all know - cheers;)

I tried switching the tyres this morning, but the vibration is still coming from the back. Luckily I happened to meet the guy who sold me the car yesterday, he sussed it out and turns out that it is a compromised bushing. He's going to sort it for me. Thanks for all the advice!