Temporary wheel imbalance in cold weather...

I posted a thread about this some time ago (and couldn't find it again), but after using my car this morning I am convinced that water is freezing somewhere inside the wheels and causing a really severe imbalance: Above 50 mph the car was virtually undrivable - and that was after 25 miles! I came off the M40 after an interminable period of embarassment being overtaken by every truck and even a 3-wheeled car (sod's law that I was on one of the longest sections between junctions) , and pulled into a petrol station to have a good look around. It was so bad, I even pulled on to the hard shoulder to see if I had a flat tyre, or someone had undone my wheelnuts! Couldn't see anything at all, so had a Costa coffee and decided to take the slow route home (job was cancelled at the bottom of the M40 slip :frustrated: ) and the problem had cleared completely :dont know: No vibration - even at a speed that I wouldn't care to mention on here :?: It absolutely must have been ice inside the tyre... I really cannot think of any other cause - especially after 30 miles of driving (way too far to be 'flat-spotting' after parking), yet it cleared after 5 minutes of 'hot soak'... Any other suggestions? :?:

Have you thought about getting the tryes off, cleaning inside and then reinflating with nitrogen? The pressures at least should be more stable and may hold less moisture than air [nitrogen & oxygen]. TB

Strange one! If there's ice in the tyre, the is it safe to say that once melted it turns to water. In which case, perhaps you should investigate a little further by having the tyres removed, checked for water then re-seated and balanced. Its a strange one this particularly if you've checked the balance, steering bushes, damage to the wheels/tyres, engine mounts perhaps a list of things to check might be helpful (Albeit some will not explain why it is intermittant!) Engine misfiring! Engine Mounts Front and rear suspension Wheel alignment (not enough camber) Wheel Balance/Damage Drive shaft misalignment/loose! Steering Rod ends steering and suspension Bushes CV Joints Loose Bolts to steering assembly Brakes binding Perplexed I think!

Just athought but do you use a compressor without a moisture filter to inflate the tyres ? TB

I'm semi convinced it's bushes. In the cold they stiffen up and allow more play. Once warmed up a bit or manipulated the issue will become unnoticeable perhaps....

Think it could be time for you to take off wheels and check for water inside tyres. If imbalance is as bad as you describe,there should be a reasonable amount? This will test your theory but....if no water apparent. Where do you go from there??..........It's a strange one this!

Honestly the wheel wobble was unbelievable... at 60 mph I couldn't hold on to the steering wheel - yet it tracks absolutely straight, proper self-centering, and it's not that long ago that I had a full geo. Then after it had stood for 5 minutes it was literally perfect - absolutely no vibration at all right up to *** mph... It is bizarre, and I really don't think it's bushes - as they would surely soften after a few miles of driving - especially with that much vibration, there is no way that they would still be cold after 30 miles! Ice inside the tyre however, may stay frozen simply because for most of that mileage the tyre was running on snow or water at zero degrees or thereabouts! Have to say I have never had this problem before in over 30 years of driving - covering close to a million miles! Car's due a service, so maybe I'll get them to whip the fronts off and re-balance at the same time.

Next time it happens, drive to QuickFit or similar and ask them to put a wheel on the balance machine. Should be an easy way to rule your theory in or out. :thumb:

Out of interest, does the vibration initially start when you are making a turn? I had something similar in a Peugeot 205GTI I once had. It's difficult to explain but it was a bolt that had loosened slightly on the off side hub. I'll see if I can find an image...

Wattie, similar thing happened to me recently - it turned out to be the gunge from one of those leak repair canisters - you know the thing you put in a tyre in an emergency to fix a leak. Admittedly it was on my mini cooper and not my C4S. The recommendation to go to a tyre shop and get the balance checked is a wise move. uh:

All the advice and potrential solutions have already been posted. However if the offending wheel is removed, the Shrader Valve removed from the Inflator Body, and the wheel turned so the valve is at its lowest point then with a bit of shaking any evidence of water will be revealed, although you wont get it all out by this method, but you will know simply and quickly if the wheel and tyre need separating to get rid of water and crap. Was this tyre a little low on pressure before the drive, certainly in the cold weather a little more set in the tyre (ie "only flat at botton gag") will take longer to reform because of the added stiffness in the tyre carcass. Once the tyre warms the tyre will go back to shape more easily. My thoughts anyway. Regards Big Bob

The 'flat-spot' theory has already been dismissed by me as there is absolutely no vibration below 40 mph - because of the snow, it was only when I got onto the M40 that I was able to go fast enough to discover it. That was 20-odd miles into my journey! I'm convinced it's water, but no idea how it got there - although, unusually (I normally clean the cross-drill holes in the discs while the wheels are off), I didn't watch when the tyre fitters in Jersey fitted these ones: Maybe they use loads more soapy water than my local place?

easy one..... Have the valve on the tyre at the 6 o'clock mark, remove the valve and deflate the tyre. Tape some light kitchen/toilet roll to a thin piece of wire(leave a few mm of un taped kitchen roll at the end(the tip). Insert the wire through the valve hole until the tip touches the bottom of the tyre(where any water will be). Remove immediately and check the tip....effectively you are "dipping" for water. Re-inset the value and re-inflate