Shimmy with new tires

[kyoko]

I recently replaced the tires on my 2003 530i sport model and noticed a shimmy at higher speeds. I took the car back to Costco where the tires were installed and they found that the two front tires were severely out of balance and one of the rear tires was slightly out of balance. Obviously they didn't balance them to begin with. They "re-balanced " them, but there is still a little shimmy. Not as much at higher speeds now, but now on lower speeds as well and you can feel it under the seats as well. I had the alignment checked prior to purchasing the tires because of tire noise on the old ones and bmw said the alignment was fine. They said the noise was coming from the fact that I needed new tires because low profile tires wear out at around 18 -20,000 miles. I have about 30,000.
The shimmy is not huge, but I notice a difference in the way the car handles, plus I notice a slight pull to the right as well, which I never had before. The tires are Michelin's. Any advice?

 

[Big Daddy]

You don't say how many miles are on your car, nor what Michelin tire or sizes? If I purchased new tires and noticed a shimmy that I had never noticed before I would demand that they find the problem or refund the tire purchase. However that said depending on your mileage you could have a strut, bushing, or rotor issue. Give us some more information and I am sure you will get tons of suggestions!

 

[MyHarley]

People may disagree, but I still say a good alignment shop and a good tire service shop are better at alignments and tires than a dealership. Each has their own forte. If you feel it in the steering wheel, it is the front tires, if you feel it in the seat, it is the back tires. Anyone performing an alignment should of noticed if there was a control arm/bushing problem and not performed the alignment. My car was a CPO purchased on 07-28 and I have had two alignments and two balancing since that time.......it drives me crazy to have a shimmy at any speed. Now the car is perfect, just took time and money to find the correct shops with the correct expertise.

 

[kyoko]

You don't say how many miles are on your car, nor what Michelin tire or sizes? If I purchased new tires and noticed a shimmy that I had never noticed before I would demand that they find the problem or refund the tire purchase. However that said depending on your mileage you could have a strut, bushing, or rotor issue. Give us some more information and I am sure you will get tons of suggestions!

sorry it took me so long in replying.
The original tires were Michelin Primacys,(thats what the full size spare is) and the new ones purchased at Costco are Pilot Sport 2. Both the originals and the new ones are 235/45 ZR 17. At the time of replacement in July 07 I had 35,000 miles and now have approx 36,000.
The shimmy is still there, but not quite as bad as before they re-balanced the tires, but I still feel a sort of bumpity-bump in the seats. The car handles much differently than with the original tires. There is a much rougher ride as well. The ride even felt smoother before they re-balanced them. How could they have gotten so out of balance in this short of time? Oh, also I was just looking at the sales slip and warranty card and the four dot numbers are puzzling to me. there are 2 with 3R4CJRHX0407, ONE WITH THE LAST FOUR DIGITS AS 3406 AND ONE WITH 2906. Why are they different than the other 2? What does this mean? I'm thinking of going back to Costco and asking for new tires. Maybe I just should have purchased the tires from BMW dealership. They said they put their tires through more rigorous testing.
I was just reading though, that the Michelin Sport 2's are supposed to be a top of the line tire, and that's what Tire Rack recommends for the 530i sport.
Oh, also, the Michelin booklet they give you with the tires says that you should go back after 25 miles to have the lug nuts tightened. Would that be a factor, ,because I didn't do that? I just now read this. Also, Costco last told me after they re-balanced them that if that didn't take care of the problem, they could put weights on the wheels, but they said that dealers don't like to do that.
Any thoughts are appreciated. Thanks

 

[E30m42cab]

Who knows, the problem could be with the tire itself. The guy who balanced it might not be doing it properly, putting the wrong weights on, or putting them on the wrong spot. The lugnuts shouldn't need retightening at all. They should be torqued on with the correct specs, and that might be the problem.

 

[Big Daddy]

The dealership has overpriced tires of no better quality, they do not test tires that statement is BS. You may have gotten a bad tire from Costco, have them check the balance again, if it takes excessive weight to balance the tire demand a different tire. The DOT numbers are just identification and they have no bearing on ride etc. What is with the "weight on the wheels" statement, you have to use weights to balance them! Are there no weights on the wheels? And The Tire Rack is correct, the Michelin Piolt Sports are a top of the line tire and very high performance, they will have a rougher ride but should not cause a shimmy.

 

[kyoko]

So you're saying that the pilot sports will have a rougher ride than the primacys? Does Michelin still make the primacys?
Would the tires being out of balance have an effect on my gas mileage? My gas mileage on the last check has gone down for in city driving from 20mpg to 16mpgs!
I don't know if there are weights on the wheels. How can you tell?

 

[Big Daddy]

They could differ but here are some photos, it depends on your wheels and the quality of the balancer!

 

[M.C. Sketuls]

First off i love costco but i would never trust them with my my cars. I work For Big O Tires and know that the balance on tires is crucial. A high speed vibration is a balancing issue. Low speed is a wheel or road issue. Also some tire companies that sell tires for less also sell less quality tires. Some tires are not perfect. Some are actually out of round and with a nice riding car you will notice it. Road forcing the tires, a process that puts the tire and wheels under pressure like unto driving on them, is the best way to balance them. In las Vegas they have Big O Tires. I would go to them and see what they have to say. Now keep in mind that the Quality of the "shop" has nothing to do with the name but the people that actually work on your car. We at the North Orem Big O Tire shop have won "Best Shop in the northwest" awards for the past 10 years straight so of course i have a bias.

 

[kyoko]

My husband took the car back to Costco and the supervisor performed a match mount on all wheels. He said all had over 2 ounces to begin. He reduced L/F & R/R to zero weight, and L/R & R/F to only one ounce each. He apologized to us about the number of times we have had to come in, and said they wanted to make us happy. He couldn't do anything about changing the tires out, because his boss was the one that would have to approve that, and he as not there that day. I asked what we do next if they still weren't right, and he said to come back when his boss is there.
Now, when I dive the car, the car overall feels much more solid, but there is still a vibration in the steering wheel, in the seats, the gearshift, and even the pedals. And I get that slight shimmy sensation at most speeds. The car still, at very, very low speeds feels as if all four tires are a little wobbly, not all going around evenly.
Does anyone think I should go back and ask that they change the tires to the Michelin Primacys? They were the kind that were on the car when it was new, and that is what the spare is? Am I being too picky? I just want the smooth ride that I had prior to these new tires. These Pilot Sports feel very rough and loud.
I appreciate anyone's opinion, and thanks for everyones input so far!

 

[M.C. Sketuls]

Pilot sports are exactly that. Sport tires. Not the most "fluid" drive you will have. What wheels do you have on there? Custom? Stock? Could be the tires are out of round. Sometimes there's a bad batch of tires. Make sure the lug studs are torqued to the right spec and make sure the wheel isn't bent. I know that sometimes at my shop we put "tape weights" on each others drive shafts to make a crappy ride. Just a thought. It's kind of hard to diagnose tire issues without actually have he tires and wheels with me. If all else fails get different tires. That is the only things i can think of right this second. Good luck and let us know further info.

 

[Big Daddy]

Sounds more like they do not have the rims hub centric.

 

[M.C. Sketuls]

True Big Daddy. If they are custom or after market wheels make sure you have hub centric rings. Thats helps A LOT!

 

[kyoko]

As far as I know, the wheels are stock. They are the wheels that were on the car when I bought it new from the bmw dealership in 2003, and the tires that were on it were the Michelin Primacy.

 

[Doughnut]

Imo, I'm suspecting a faulty tire balencer at the shop...

 

[kyoko]

After driving the car again today, I am definitely taking the car back to Costco for the fourth time, and asking them to change out the tires for the Michelin Primacys. I also inspected the wheels today, and found that two of the wheels have gouges and scratches in them that weren't there before the last time they tried to fix the problem. What can you do about that? Do I ask them to replace the rims, or can they fix them? My husband says they can sand them out..
All I know is that I want my car back to driving the way it was before the new tires. The only problem I had before is that the original tires developed a horrible noise of wear at about 20,000 miles, and I put up with it till 35,000 before getting new tires. I just hope that if they do change them out and fix the rims, that the car will be like it was before. A great car.

 

[Big Daddy]

Costco will not fix your rims, they may pay to have it done (I doubt it) but they have no means to repair them and no you cannot sand them out, they should have a clear coat finish on they and will need to have the gouges filled. Good luck!

 

[DaddyKuel]

Sounds like they tried to put clip-on weights on the rims instead of stick-on weights. That could account for the gouges; either way I don't think they know what they are doing and just trying hit or miss. I recently put on Toyo tires comparable to the Michilins in rating and had to have them rebalanced once-actually it was one tire. All tires will give you a different ride depending on the composition. eg. run flats are much rougher than reg tires. Good luck

 

[kyoko]

Sounds like they tried to put clip-on weights on the rims instead of stick-on weights. That could account for the gouges; either way I don't think they know what they are doing and just trying hit or miss. I recently put on Toyo tires comparable to the Michilins in rating and had to have them rebalanced once-actually it was one tire. All tires will give you a different ride depending on the composition. eg. run flats are much rougher than reg tires. Good luck

Sorry I didn't respond for awhile. We took the car out of town, and the car performed very well, except there was still a vibration at about 40-60, but after they did a match mount the car seemed to sit on the road more soldidly. However I had already asked Costco to replace the sports with the primacys. Now, after having the primacys put on, the car shimmys at most speeds again, and the solid feel is gone again. I am at about my wits end with this whole thing. I asked the guy when I picked up my car from Costco if they had them balanced correctly, and he said they did their "high spin balance "which he alluded was the best they had. Does anyone think I should return and have them do a match mount again? That's what they did to the other tires when the car seemed to be back to its solid feel.
Also, one guy told me when he offered to replace them with different tires, that if I still had problems, that it must be my car that's the problem. I don't feel that it is my car, especially when they did the last balance on the sports and it made the situation better, not perfect, but better.