1993 Buick Park Ave Ultra Supercharged Vibration

[BuickGirlFromMars]

Thanks for your help. Put two new cv axles in. Still vibration.

Started looking at the tires, were new Coopers. Got them exchanged for Kelly AS, 225-60R-16. 100% round, zero sidewall variation.

Tested today at 130 km/hr zero vibration. It was the sh*t Chinese tires.

Thanks for your ideas.

On another subject, do you know a source for the lower belt tensioner on the S/C engine?

Kelly tires are also owned by goodyear. but glad they fixed the problem. 2256016 is larger tire than a 1993 came with, yes?

if the coopers were new, where were the dots on the side wall in relation to the valve stem and how much wheel weights were on them?

 

[geraldfrank]

goodyear bought cooper 2 years ago

Glad to know that. The Cooper tires have Made in China molded in the rubber. So Goodyear is having these made in China. Goodyear just went downhill for me. Thanks for the info.

 

[BuickGirlFromMars]

Glad to know that. The Cooper tires have Made in China molded in the rubber. So Goodyear is having these made in China. Goodyear just went downhill for me. Thanks for the info.

What about the other things I mentioned? just because a tire is made in china doesnt mean its not a quality tire, just like a tire made in the US isnt necesarily a quality tire. But those other things I asked about could very well have affected your experience irrespective of the tire quality

 

[geraldfrank]

Kelly tires are also owned by goodyear. but glad they fixed the problem. 2256016 is larger tire than a 1993 came with, yes?

if the coopers were new, where were the dots on the side wall in relation to the valve stem and how much wheel weights were on them?

Yes the door sticker recommends 215-60R-16, which I asked for but they were having trouble finding the 215's,
anyway I am happy the vibration is gone.

 

[geraldfrank]

Kelly tires are also owned by goodyear. but glad they fixed the problem. 2256016 is larger tire than a 1993 came with, yes?

if the coopers were new, where were the dots on the side wall in relation to the valve stem and how much wheel weights were on them?

no dots on the Coopers nor the Kelly's

small weights only were used during balancing

the one Cooper that was over a half inch out of round was unacceptable.

All the Coopers had in excess of 1/8" outside sidewall variation when rotated on a rear bearing.

Kelly's have Made in USA molded in the rubber.

 

[Ziggy]

I have had this same problem a couple of times. Tires can go bad at higher speeds without anything to show for it. I currently have it on my PA, it has Michelin tires they are the best tires over here and were like $300 a piece. Drove perfectly for a couple of years, not many miles on them. Earlier this year, I also got this terrible shudder front left, which started at ±70mph and only ended at ±130.
But I knew it was the tire, though it looks like new, had it balanced but it was only like 5 grams off still it was done again. No change. I changed the tire from front left to rear right, BIG improvement, but still not like it needs to be. Had it checked again for balance, machine says it's fine. The problem I think is the rotation speed of those balancing machines is very low. Yes, they're fine at like 40 mph. If you could have them checked at 80mph it would show up... and you could possibly correct it with weights. Now I have to get new tires as well..

 

[BuickGirlFromMars]

no dots on the Coopers nor the Kelly's

small weights only were used during balancing

the one Cooper that was over a half inch out of round was unacceptable.

All the Coopers had in excess of 1/8" outside sidewall variation when rotated on a rear bearing.

Kelly's have Made in USA molded in the rubber.

The Kelly’s should have the red and green dots painted on the sidewall which are used to match the high point of the tire to the low point of the wheel in order to minimize the weights needed. They could have already worn off the coopers. Interesting. As long as you have no fitment concerns and your speedometer is close and your issue is resolved, that’s good. I’m glad to hear it!

Were the coopers 215’s too or 225? I wonder if they were low quantity production and made on a Monday lol

 

[BuickGirlFromMars]

I have had this same problem a couple of times. Tires can go bad at higher speeds without anything to show for it. I currently have it on my PA, it has Michelin tires they are the best tires over here and were like $300 a piece. Drove perfectly for a couple of years, not many miles on them. Earlier this year, I also got this terrible shudder front left, which started at ±70mph and only ended at ±130.
But I knew it was the tire, though it looks like new, had it balanced but it was only like 5 grams off still it was done again. No change. I changed the tire from front left to rear right, BIG improvement, but still not like it needs to be. Had it checked again for balance, machine says it's fine. The problem I think is the rotation speed of those balancing machines is very low. Yes, they're fine at like 40 mph. If you could have them checked at 80mph it would show up... and you could possibly correct it with weights. Now I have to get new tires as well..

Road force balancing can be done at a dealer. That balances at high speed

 

[geraldfrank]

I have had this same problem a couple of times. Tires can go bad at higher speeds without anything to show for it. I currently have it on my PA, it has Michelin tires they are the best tires over here and were like $300 a piece. Drove perfectly for a couple of years, not many miles on them. Earlier this year, I also got this terrible shudder front left, which started at ±70mph and only ended at ±130.
But I knew it was the tire, though it looks like new, had it balanced but it was only like 5 grams off still it was done again. No change. I changed the tire from front left to rear right, BIG improvement, but still not like it needs to be. Had it checked again for balance, machine says it's fine. The problem I think is the rotation speed of those balancing machines is very low. Yes, they're fine at like 40 mph. If you could have them checked at 80mph it would show up... and you could possibly correct it with weights. Now I have to get new tires as well..

Have you investigated Road Force Balancing? Search it, there may be a machine close to you.

 

[geraldfrank]

The Kelly’s should have the red and green dots painted on the sidewall which are used to match the high point of the tire to the low point of the wheel in order to minimize the weights needed. They could have already worn off the coopers. Interesting. As long as you have no fitment concerns and your speedometer is close and your issue is resolved, that’s good. I’m glad to hear it!

Were the coopers 215’s too or 225? I wonder if they were low quantity production and made on a Monday lol

Coppers were 225's as well