Well as a follow up on this, I took a close look at my wheels and 3 of the 4 have weights on 2 different places on the outside of the wheel....which from what you said earlier I assume is not correct.

Why would they do this? Lazy? Or maybe just don't know how to properly use the machine?

Anyway, it's frustrating when you pay over $1000 for tires & the shop owner claims he has the latest & greatest in balancing machines, but still can't get it right.

I still plan to take it to another shop, but haven't done it yet.


Rob

 

A lot of techs just don't know any better honestly. The machine says it's good, so it must be good... This may sound ridiculous, but tire balancing is somewhat of an art, you need to interpret what the machine is saying, and go from there, but if it asks for 45g in one spot on the first spin, and then, once there is weight on both sides of the wheel, the check spin says it needs another 20g directly opposite the 45g, basically it means the 45g is 20g too much.

Many techs don't take the time to really play with each wheel, and it usually works out ok, but when the wheel assembly is as heavy as on a Rover, a little bit of counter-balance shows up.

 

Makes sense. Thanks for the good explanation.

The strange thing is that the weights that are separated are not even 180 degrees apart.

I wish I were closer to you....I'd come by your shop and have it done right!

 

Yeah, it usually isn't a full 180, and instead of just lowering one weight, you need to increase it, and shift it to where it wants more, kind of a mix and match type of deal, which is the reason most guys trust the machine when it says it's good.

Thank you, and we'd be glad to help, however the two repairs that we do not do at this time are tires and alignments, just don't have the equipment. That said, we do work closely with one shop whose work I have yet to have issue with.

Good luck getting it taken care of, and when you go to what ever shop you choose, explain the situation up front, and tell them that you don't want it counter balanced. They may charge you a little bit more, to cover the technicians time, but you should finally get it taken care of.

 

I just wanted to post a follow up to this. I had the tires re-balanced and it drove super smooth for a couple of weeks and then the vibration re-appeared.

I just finished an 800 mile trip with the steering wheel vibrating the whole time and it was super annoying. Therefore I may just bite the bullet and go with a different set of tires.

RoverGuy, you mentioned that the Toyo's which I have now are pretty soft tires. Is there a particular brand tire that you recommend as far as balancing out better and that hold up to the weight of the Rover? My tire size is 255 55 19. I am leaning toward the Cooper Zeon's, but other Rover owners are saying that Michelin's seem to do a better job of smoothing out vibrations.


Thanks,


Rob

 

Are you sure your alignment is good? My understanding is that the proper way is at hook up a batter charger, and then use a Land Rover specific scan tool to set the air suspension in tight tolerances mode. If you don't have it in this mode, the alignment might not be 100% accurate. And that could cause your tires to wear funny. (I'm just repeating stuff I've read... so I could be wrong in my understanding.) I'm going to have to figure out this alignment thing soon, because I need to replace a control arm or two I think.

 

Michelin makes good tires, I have had good luck with both Contenintal and Perilli on these trucks also, they're all around 250-300 a tire.

If you want to save a little, look into the Bridgestone Dueler Alenza. I have had several customers go with these and be very pleased. The rubber is on the stiffer side, which can cause cupping of the outer tread if the alignment is off, or they are not rotated regularly. Personally, I would go with these (I have Bridgestone on my car, and have for years) get it aligned when you install them, and rotate them (side to side, front to back does not matter as much) every 10k or so.

 

The tight tolerance mode is somewhat of a joke...

It changes the offset to 3mm, instead of 6mm, which causes the suspension to adjust more during the alignment process, which throws off the measurements. Not to mention, while driving, the tolerance is at 6mm, so having it set when its adjusting based on 3mm, has no bearing once you're on the street.

The whole idea of tight tolerance mode was due to LR not really knowing why the tires were wearing out early on with these trucks, and after they figured out that the alignment settings that they had suggested were wrong, there was really no need for it.

 

I see. That's good to know... makes life easier... Can you post the updated specs when you get a chance?

 

I had it aligned at the time of balance at a shop that specializes in Euro vehicles. Good point about the suspension....I can ask if they did that.

Thanks RoverGuy. The Bridgestones do look pretty nice.