Help! Corvette "road feel"?

[jibaro]

Hey guys im new to the forums, picked up my vette about a week ago 2010 1lt 6 spd, and ran into a small issue thats been bugging me...

The car when I first got it after 60mph i would feel a slight shimmy/vibration in the steering wheel when driving, the car would still go straight but the vibration would bother me..I brought it to a local dealer where they balanced 3 out of 4 tires- still felt it- brought it back to the dealer where i bought it 200 miles away, where they road force balanced it- and to be honest I couldnt feel much of a difference, they told me its the way the cars are, i even test drove another vette and it felt the same as well..i only have 800 miles on this car now

My main question is are c6s meant to feel everything in the road after a certain mph? is the steering wheel going to give me that slight shimmy/vibration in correlation with the roads all the time? thanks for your responses!

 

[vett boy]

I'm a very sensitive person and I've never felt such a vibration .Nope I don't have a cure If it we're me I'd do a road trip to Old Fort NC .

 

[leftyvette]

I don't think that is correct!! I have test driven several C6s (don't tell my C5 that I'm driving other Vettes!!). All put 1 of them were fine -- no shake at any speed. I did drive a 2007 that had a steering wheel shake at 50mph. That car had been repoed and I thought something may have been messed up during the recorvey of the car.

 

[jibaro]

this is insane- i feel kind of lost that the daeler is saying there is nothing wrong. what i might have to do is video tape it, put it up on a forum, show feedback on it, or bring it to an entirely different dealership

 

[tim414]

this is insane- i feel kind of lost that the daeler is saying there is nothing wrong. what i might have to do is video tape it, put it up on a forum, show feedback on it, or bring it to an entirely different dealership

Don't worry too much about it. I had a '09 Z51 Roadster and it had a small vibration around 80-110mph....it slowly corrected itself where it was smooth at about 4500 miles. (Bought new) You'll probably find it's different on changing road surfaces as well. Find a smooth surface highway and put some miles on it and you might find it smooths out a lil later....

 

[jibaro]

hey orange, of coruse on different roadways it feels different, but that constant small vibration is there, if i grab on the steering wheel hard , you dont see or feel anything - i dont know if its the eagle f1 runflats that do it? why would they smooth out later? seems odd but thats what the guy who sold me the car said as well-but he said about 50 miles later...

Just weird that it would do dead on at around 60mph and up

 

[Oz's 59]

Not normal... My '06 Z51 is smooth at ALL speeds, even at 160mph (w/o the wife).

 

[jibaro]

argh- :bash oz are you from Long Island at all?

 

[Oz's 59]

30 miles north of Syracuse, NY

 

[74bigblock]

Just my 2 cents...

I would have the dealer you purchased from pick it up from you on flat bed or enclosed trailer (my dealer will do this for me even just for an oil change).

Have them keep it until they fix it. If they can't fix it, replace it.

 

[tim414]

hey orange, of coruse on different roadways it feels different, but that constant small vibration is there, if i grab on the steering wheel hard , you dont see or feel anything - i dont know if its the eagle f1 runflats that do it? why would they smooth out later? seems odd but thats what the guy who sold me the car said as well-but he said about 50 miles later...

Just weird that it would do dead on at around 60mph and up

You say it's a "small" vibration? They have rotated the tires? Sounds like to me they have the same problem as the Pirelli's I had on my Yukon....would not stay true/round at certain temps. No matter how many times they were balanced when put back on the vehicle and the outside temp from 75 up they would vibrate. Finally the dealer took them off and put Goodrich's back on it. The Pirelli's were comped to me because my Yukon only had 21k at the time and the orginal tires were not wearing correctly (after doing all prudent maint) and it was during time Ford having problems with SUV roll-overs. The Pirelli's would get "flat spots" on them after sitting more than twenty four hours and when temp was what stated above, not matter what ya did they would vibrate. When temps cool/cold outside they would 'even out' after a few miles and be very smooth. Come to find out it was a new chemical process they were using for high mileage tires and they all did this I learned after having read Consumer Reports. But, the tires were free repl. to begin with.

Give the car back to them and tell them to fix the vibration or they can keep the car. Go to where you bought the car if possible. Leave it with them if you can.
My '09 Vette did have a vibration at speed stated but it cleared up after they had a lil bit of wear, that's why I said to put some miles on it. If it bothering you so much then take it back and tell them fix or keep. I bet they fix. Sorry for your problems. Most new cars are smooth. Vettes are no exception.
meant to say "balanced" tires above

 

[jibaro]

Hey, yea its a bit of a vibration, and yea im crazy with these vibrations.. if i leave the steering wheel alone, itll shake and vibrate on the highway. I called the dealer again and I told him im pretty much done with this car and I want no parts of it. Its really driving me nuts and Im thinking i shouldve spent the extra money for a GS instead. When i brought the car to the dealer last weekend and road forc@e balanced them, they said it was perfect. The service manager even went on a ride with me and said thats how the car is. So if the service manager says theres nothing wrong and I still feel it, what could i do?

 

[tim414]

Hey, yea its a bit of a vibration, and yea im crazy with these vibrations.. if i leave the steering wheel alone, itll shake and vibrate on the highway. I called the dealer again and I told him im pretty much done with this car and I want no parts of it. Its really driving me nuts and Im thinking i shouldve spent the extra money for a GS instead. When i brought the car to the dealer last weekend and road forc@e balanced them, they said it was perfect. The service manager even went on a ride with me and said thats how the car is. So if the service manager says theres nothing wrong and I still feel it, what could i do?

The service manager cannot redefine the word 'smooth'. If it's vibrating take it to them and leave it there if possible. Buying the GS could have been the same issue. That is not your issue. Hold the line and make them do right. If they continue tell them your going to invoke the lemon law. Maybe ask one the real knowledgeable guys on here.
Hib, you see this? (he's the technical writer and might know what to do.)
Seems as though this is a simple problem causing a big headache. Try to stay happy w/your Vette. It's the jerks that don't do right the first time causing your problem.

 

[jibaro]

Funny you mention the lemon law..i told them about it and looking at the invoice from the second time the car got balanced....it said took car to 85mph with no vibration, when in fact they road force balanced them and he said there was a tire that was off...the front right tire..same tire that the local tire shop showed me it was "hopping"on the balancer.

 

[catbert]

I've had 2 C6s, and neither had a front end shimmy. It's the tires - if they aren't out of balance, they're out of round.

 

[74bigblock]

Perhaps you could try to convince the dealership to swap wheels and tires from an identical car on the lot, then see if your shimmy goes away (which I bet it does).

As I said before, and others as well.... Hold your ground and do not take no for an answer.

Let us know how it turns out!

 

[tim414]

Funny you mention the lemon law..i told them about it and looking at the invoice from the second time the car got balanced....it said took car to 85mph with no vibration, when in fact they road force balanced them and he said there was a tire that was off...the front right tire..same tire that the local tire shop showed me it was "hopping"on the balancer.

What is a "road force balance"????? Never heard of it. maybe it's something else by a different name.

 

[Hib Halverson]

It is very difficult to diagnose vibration via the internet.

Is this 2010 a coupe or a convertible?

That said, is what you feel only in the steering wheel? Is it a "buzz" (a higher frequency) or a "vibration" (lower frequncy) or maybe a "chatter" even lower frequency.

When it happens, can you hear it, too? Can you "see it" in the rearview mirror?

The first post implies this is above 60 mph. Do you only feel it above 60? Does it peak at a certain speed then become less or go away?

Is the vibration the same regardless of road surface?

 

[Bronze85]

What is a "road force balance"????? Never heard of it. maybe it's something else by a different name.

It's a type of wheel balancer that applies a roller against the wheel/tire assembly to simulate "road force". Mainly used to phase in the wheel to tire relationship for optimal concentricity.

 

[mike m]

front end alignment?