Have an 04 Sports. One owner, full dealer service. Not using the stock 18s (yet). Running new Michelin Premiers on 17 stock rims (bought used). Drives great. Smooth and quiet (no vibration) up to 60. After that I can feel a slight vibration in the steering wheel. Gets a little worse 70-75 then gone. No problems at higher speeds. I have had the tire shop balance tires 2x (to 1/4 oz). Helped a little. Worn LCA's are a standard problem but they have been replaced. Tire pressure is 35 (done cold w/ gauge). Replace any parts? Do an alignment? Suggests appreciated.

 

Was there any vibration before the new Premiers and or are the used rims new to you with the mounted Premiers? Can you did you get em road force balances? Torque lugs to specs?

 

get a road force balancing before you replace any parts.you have used wheels it will be money well spent.

 

Thanks for the suggests. Car came with 18s and worn out Michelin Primacies. Loud tires, rough ride so difficult to tell if there were existing problems.

I know the 17 Michelin Premiers work well. I don't know the 17 rims but only minor scratches, almost new quality tires, no uneven wear. Torque is correct. Have been balanced 2x. Second time was to 1/4 oz and that did help some.

Slight drift to right so am going to have shop do an alignment and swap tires front to rear. Hopefully this solves the problems. Will force balance next time at dealer (it's a long drive)

 

I talked to my service rep at the Lex dealer. They want 175 to force balance. Reasonable price? Sounds like a good idea

 

That seems insane. It is 80 bucks at my Yota dealer.

 

I remember Discount Tire road force balanced my tires for free. But I also had a tire warranty through Discount Tire.

 

Sounds similar to my car. Does it ALWAYS vibrate at those speeds? I guess a better way to ask is if the vibration frequency every change? I ask because the lower control arm bushings are known to crack and cause play which is almost certain what i'm experiencing. The vibration can vary.

 

. FYI I have cracked LCA bushings since I purchased my car 7 years ago. I'm very particular on how my car performs. It steers straight, no steering vibrations or drifting. My last cross rotation performed last week was the very first time I didn't have my tire's balanced. No steering shake. Unless you are getting front end clunking or a poor ride replacing LCA bushings does not always resolve a front end problem unless the rubber is really bad. Tire's usually play a big part on how a car rides and handles. Is it possible you have a shifted belt in one of your tire's? I would switch sides on your front tire's and see if that helps with any drifting you may have. A slight bent rim can offset the wheel balance that is not always correctable by balancing Good luck.

 

On my 01, vibration was always noticeable at 58 - 60. Never failed. Drove the local tire shop nuts w/ rebalance, swap front>rear, etc. Had the lower control arm bushings replaced. End of problem and car was "Lexus smooth" at all speeds.

On the 04, the vibration isn't always at the same speed or the same amount. Lower control arm bushings have been replaced. The car is "Lexus smooth" up to 60 then vibration kicks in. It's slight but noticeable in the steering wheel. Am going to have tires (new Michelins) force balanced and do a front end alignment (slight drift to the right). Hopefully this solves the problem

 

Also swap front to rear.

 

Shopped around. You're right, forget the dealer. Local 'yota dealer doesn't do. Les Schwab wanted 120 (no appointment, long wait). Local shop wanted 75. Turns out my Goodyear guy now has an road force machine (recent purchase). They're doing alignment for 99 so threw in road force for 48.

 

I agree that anything more than $75-80 for that balance is excessive. I had it done once on my Lexus, but realized I wasn't going to be a slave to this excessive expensive for a regular routine as a wheel balance. I have never done it again, and most recently I had a cross rotation done without any balance ($9.95 special at Infiniti) and my steering wheel is steady at all speeds. I know I'm lucky at 126,000 miles. Everything underneath is tight other than the common LCA bushing cracking and one torn lower ball joint cover (no play yet).

 

Problem solved. Local Goodyear tire shop went thru the car again. Checked the alignment (w/in specs). All 4 tires were slightly out of balance. The shop manager apologized. He personally rebalanced them and got it right. Rotated tires front to rear. No road force balance because machine/spoke clearance issues. Not an issue at this point. It's now "Lexus smooth" from 0 -100.

 

not sure what the dealer does special, but $89.95 for alignment here at Lexus....we have AAA operating their own service centers out here, they get $17 per wheel to mount balance, but not road force, which they have. Tire Rack road forces their tires supposedly, but the BMW dealer told me unnecessary unless you have an issue, which it often DOES NOT correct. I've always noticed some cheap tires have dots on them, never really investigated what they meant, but the tech is supposed to take notice....hope you get sorted out...

edit: just thought of this, I think I have the same issue and will need to address LCA's at some point anyway. I have brand new Michelin Xice Xi3's road force balanced on new rims. Let's see if there is ANY difference....when I put them on...