I am looking for someone in the NoVA, DC, MD areas to let me borrow a set of wheels for about 30 minutes to help with troubleshooting a high speed vibration. I am willing to repay your kindness with beer, lunch, or money

I would bring all of the tools, and perform all of the work required for the swap. Of course I will provide whatever guarantees you require to make sure that your wheels are returned in perfect condition; or you can just come along for the ride while I troubleshoot. My troubleshooting procedure involves driving in the 70-80 mph range, that’s all; no hard braking or anything tire damaging.

Thanks in advance!

 

Virginia is tough on speeders...80mph is considered a misdemeanor. They also have detectors and jammers as illegal...good luck!

 

Virgnia is definitely not a good place to speed. However, some sections of 95 and HOV lanes are 65 mph, so I can always use those.

 

check your motor mounts - worn ones can cause a vibration.

 

I say check the mounts too.

If you are south of Richmond I may be able to help.

 

Thanks for your kind offer. I am located in Northern Virginia, so Richmond is a little out of the way. However, if I cannot find anyone closer I will take you up on your offer. Also, the motor/ tranny mounts were on my troubleshooting list as well, but getting to these requires quite a bit of work, so I wanted to make sure that my wheels were not the culprit of the problem before I start with any more involved checks.

 

what are the symptoms that you are noticing.

 

Yeah I realized its a long ride and would take you most of the day.

Isn't your car still under warranty?

 

My symptoms are a persistent vibration at 70 mph+. I had an alignment done, and the wheels balanced a number of times. As far as the warranty, “Yes” I still have AcuraCare, but every time I mentioned this to the dealership they stated that they could not replicate the problem or that it was “road-feel”. Furthermore, there are few roads around here on which the dealership would be able to replicate the problem, so that ads to the troubleshooting difficulty.

 

Ahh, ok... I was hoping the dealer would be more help.

 

Have you tried a road force balancing? I had a very noticeable vibration in the steering wheel at about 60-65 mph. A road force balancing revealed that my vibrations were caused by two tires out of round. The vibrations are only noticeable when the bad tires were on the front. Moved to the rear, you don't really notice it. Non roadforce balancing did not reveal any imperfections because the wheels balanced out perfectly.

 

I live in Ashburn, VA, you can use my wheels for troubleshooting your vibration problem. The wheels are currently on my RL, so you will need to take them off and put them back on.

No need for tools I have all we need, just bring your torque wrench.

 

Thanks a bunch man, I will definitely take you up on that offer! My car is currently in the shop getting its bumper repainted, but it should be ready by next weekend. What day/ time works for you?
Cheers, Alex

 

7:00 PM on weekdays or anytime next weekend except on Sunday 17th. I will be at Radley Acura for a NSX meet.

 

Do you have aftermarket rims?

I worked for Michelin in the '90's on the GM account in Detroit. High speed shake was a huge issue on many of their luxury platforms back then. They did have some dealers that had in-house "On Car Balance" machines. You will pay a premium if you can find a dealer with this, but it may be worth it. A high end custom wheel dealer should also have this equipment.