Vito w639 wheel vibration

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danhar707

New Member
Joined
Jan 25, 2017
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25
Car
Vito 639
Looking for fresh ideas... my 2012 vito 113cdi auto dualiner has a vibration that starts around 60mph on motorway. Ive had all four wheels balanced. Twice. I’ve had the propshaft checked for balance by a specialist. Still there. Felt through the while van, not just steering wheel. Its a real annoyance unless you can get above 80mph which Ive only done in Germany obviously!
Definately nothing to do with engine or box as the frequency is road speed related and still same when knocking into neutral, unchanged whether on throttle or off.
The wheels are aftermarket wolfrace ones 18” that were brand new on the van when we bought it off a dealer a year ago. The tyres were new then, cheap chinese ones AAA brand. I do suspect it’s something to do with these but they balance up ok at two different places. I could do with getting hold of a known good vito wheel/tyre and move it round the van to try find a bad one, but I dont have any spare and dont know anyone else with a vito or c class or e class etc to borrow off.


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If all the wheels balance up it would seem to be something else. How about a set of standard wheels from a breaker to try? What width are they are they, too wide given the 15" wheels the suspension was built for? Failing that you are in to the suspension set up. Does it all check out? By the way could you do me a favour? I want to access the Mercedes EPC for parts for a dualiner but need a model number which consists of the first six letters of your VIN. Really appreciate it if you could.
 
I’ve had cheapo tyres do this on a car before despite seeming ok on the balancer. One of them cases where the tyre place were adamant they weren’t to blame, but as it only started when them tyres were fitted I was persistent (and correct in that case).
 
I’ve had cheapo tyres do this on a car before despite seeming ok on the balancer. One of them cases where the tyre place were adamant they weren’t to blame, but as it only started when them tyres were fitted I was persistent (and correct in that case).
Tyres would be my starting point. Was the problem there when you bought the van or has it developed since ? I've had " good "Chinese ditchfinders on a Volvo I bought, they were low profile and I hit a speed bump on a drive which was camouflaged ! The result was a horrible wobble. The problem was that one had gone out of shape, it had a very slight ovality which caused the problem. I detest these cheap Chinese bits of lethal cwap. I'll not criticise all those made in that country as you will find that some premium makes are produced there, but if you have tyres fitted which have the ridiculous names that seen then you need to take care, in my opinion !
Sorry, going off subject here. Other potential area's are suspension ball joints, dampers, ( shock absorbers ), coil spring broken to name some possibilities.
I'll look out for your diagnosis ! Where are you ? re the spare wheel try out. Cliff.
 
I could do with getting hold of a known good vito wheel/tyre and move it round the van to try find a bad one, but I dont have any spare

Not even a standard steel one??
 
Looking for fresh ideas... my 2012 vito 113cdi auto dualiner has a vibration that starts around 60mph on motorway. Ive had all four wheels balanced. Twice. I’ve had the propshaft checked for balance by a specialist. Still there. Felt through the while van, not just steering wheel. Its a real annoyance unless you can get above 80mph which Ive only done in Germany obviously!
Definately nothing to do with engine or box as the frequency is road speed related and still same when knocking into neutral, unchanged whether on throttle or off.
The wheels are aftermarket wolfrace ones 18” that were brand new on the van when we bought it off a dealer a year ago. The tyres were new then, cheap chinese ones AAA brand. I do suspect it’s something to do with these but they balance up ok at two different places. I could do with getting hold of a known good vito wheel/tyre and move it round the van to try find a bad one, but I dont have any spare and dont know anyone else with a vito or c class or e class etc to borrow off.


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Any success in rectifying your vibes ? Cliff
 
Just an update for you ..about to try another set of wheels on mine.. last night at 60mph there was a massive drumming in the van, it can be driven through and gets better. but it shudders badly when braking although nothing is felt through the brake pedal and the Steering wheel.. so I'm about to try a borrowed set of wheels.. will advise..
 
Just an update for you ..about to try another set of wheels on mine.. last night at 60mph there was a massive drumming in the van, it can be driven through and gets better. but it shudders badly when braking although nothing is felt through the brake pedal and the Steering wheel.. so I'm about to try a borrowed set of wheels.. will advise..
Thanks for the reply. I hadn't heard and hoped that all was well, sorry to hear that it's not. Sounds like a rear end problem, perhaps. As it seems speed related, rather than engine speed related it's got to be from prop through to roadwheels including suspension, of course. Be interested in how it goes from here. Cliff
 
Just had a thought ! The local MOT test station I use will check steering and suspension joints etc at minimal cost. The test equipment includes " shaker plates ", similar to those used at HGV test stations. What it means is that the joints can be checked with powered plates while the weight is still on the tyres, giving resistance to the movement. I used this method to find a rattle in my Volvo's front suspension, it was the only way I could find the problem. The tester had the car shaking like a wet dog ! Maybe worth a try if you're still having trouble !
 
Just an update for you ..about to try another set of wheels on mine.. last night at 60mph there was a massive drumming in the van, it can be driven through and gets better. but it shudders badly when braking although nothing is felt through the brake pedal and the Steering wheel.. so I'm about to try a borrowed set of wheels.. will advise..

I thought the rear bearings were shot on mine with the droning. A swap back to summer tyres (and wheels) showed it to be the 18 month old Nokian winters, worn to 6mm.
So not always cheapo tyres.
 
I thought the rear bearings were shot on mine with the droning. A swap back to summer tyres (and wheels) showed it to be the 18 month old Nokian winters, worn to 6mm.
So not always cheapo tyres.
Agree, not always cheapo, but still Chinese ?
 
Agree, not always cheapo, but still Chinese ?

I don't do the research to see where they are manufactured but trust more in reputation.
I see though that although there is some outsourcing to China, like many companies do but still keep a grip on QA, of 2016 86% were manufactured in Russia. After all that is next door to Finland, well over the icy swamp anyway.

Many swear by their quality and performance but my experience is a disappointment as I don't skimp on tyres wanting them to be performing well when the need might arise. The Nokians were also supposed to be a quite ride which is high on my priority list. I'll be returning to Kleber for winter footwear in future.

A friend fitted some 'winters' from Malaysia and swore by them, I couldn't see how they could effectively develop a winter tyre at with their high temperatures. Not as well as the colder countries could anyway.
 
I can see that many of us get " hooked " on certain makes of tyres, likewise some of us dislike some , ( like my dislike for Chinese ditchfinders ! ) I do understand that not all come from that country are poor, but do not have any facts to back that up, just some relative experience !
The design and compound of winter tyres are more important than where the manufacturers or brand originate from. The main problem with summer tyres in winter is that the tread material goes hard in temperatures under about 7 degrees C. What about all weather tyres where they are a mix of compounds ? I've not tried them, but could they be a solution to having two sets ? If the major companies produce them, do we accept that they must be good ? Healthy discussions ? Cliff
 
I've run good quality all seasons with more than acceptable results, but it does follow that there must be an element of compromise.
They were Kleber Quadraxer. I've been happy with Kleber Transalp (winters) also, good performance and quite.

I opted to run winters all year a while back due to them lasting much longer with all year use than the Khumo summers I had swapped out with. They were more costly but more economical.
I've seen test results that actually show winters to have longer stopping distances in summer, a bit of a surprise there. How we are supposed to deal with our wildly fluctuating temperatures now becomes a mystery. 14 degrees yesterday and expected freezing temps again as the week progresses.
I understand why many darn sarf don't see a need for winters. Living in Buxton Derbyshire I have experienced the benefit.
 
Buxton ! That brings back memories, it rained throughout the week that I caravanned there last year, you have my sympathy ! I agree with what you say about compromise. I have used Avon ice whatever they were called on a BM and found them to allow normal use of the car during winter conditions. I've also used Michelin and Goodyear winter offerings on a Volvo which were also good. My experience in temperatures over about 10 degrees is that I could slide both cars in enthusiastic cornering and for that reason I wouldn't use them in seasons that should be warm ! As you say, wildly fluctuating conditions prevail ! All season tyres anyone ?
 
Just read this thread ,I had same problem with a car of mine vibrated at same speed and could drive through it at around 80 mph and sounded like shot bearings,was told it due to ever so slightly distorted tyres on the rear which is common in front wheel drive vicheles,anyway new set of tyres fitted and problem solved no vibration and no droanning either
 

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