My 2014 cayenne 78k miles has a steering wheel vibrating at any speed above 60mps even the road is smooth, my wheel balance is good. What causes the steering wheel to vibrate? I suspect engine or transmission mount or bushing linkage.

Thank you for your feedback.

 

Why are you confident with your wheel balance? Did you get new tires before the vibration started?

 

Thank you for feedback. Yes, I had new set of 4 tires last year with American tires, alignment was done by Porsche dealer. I had a wheel balance last Tuesday for my LA trip from SF. I noticed I had a vibration at 65-80. when I am at 85-95, the vibration ls none due to firm steering wheel at hig speed. I will bring my car to Porsche to recheck alignment, wheel balancing and linkage. BTW, i cleaned the wheels very well inside and outside to make sure there was no brake dust when they balanced the wheels. I have

SCORPION VERDE ALL SEASON

 

If the vibration doesnt appear at a certain RPM, aka driveline / engine / trans, then the problem is in the wheels or something stationary. As you mentioned possible bearing issue, alignment, wheel balance. Could be a bent rim, maybe tie rod end? Sometimes when they don't clean the rotor surface and reposition/ rotate the wheel it causes vibration at higher speeds; worth the time to take em off, clean the surface again, and reinstal.

J

 

Does the vibration track with rolling speed or engine RPM? As in, change the transmission to a different gear (manually with the paddles/shifter) and see if the vibration changes. If it doesn't then it's not likely engine or transmission related. There is the in-between 'cardan' joint on the driveshaft that can wear, but iirc, the vibrations from it would be felt more broadly under other situations.

If you can find a stretch of road that'd let you do it safely, see if the vibration changes any during turns. If it gets better/worse under steering load then various parts of the suspension could be worn (tie rod ends, control arm bushings or wheel bearings). But if the vibration stays mostly "the same" during those tests then you're left with the tires, rims or hubs having problems.

A test for runout on the tires, rims and hubs would probably be in order. That'd help determine if there's an uneven aspect of them causing vibration.

 

Thank you for your feedback. I will find out when I drop off my car at Freemont Porsche. They will let me know and $$ to correct it ...

 

Okay then, here’s a dirty secret about wheel balancing.

Most tire stores these days have a computer spin balancer. The machine has several modes to include a static mode and a dynamic mode. Most shops use the static mode with weights used only on the inside of the wheel. It Is quicker for them but does a balance that is no better than an old bubble balancer. This type of balance is inadequate on a car with a nimble suspension like our Porsches.

You need to demand a dynamic balance which uses weights on both the inner and outer plane of the wheel. To keep from scratching the wheel, use tape weights just behind the spokes of the wheel for the outer plane.

In my younger years I drove A LOT! I got so tired of fighting with the tire stores about this, that I bought a used computer balancer so I could do it myself. You can drive any vehicle I own 100 MPH and they roll silk smooth.

 

Thank you so much, I will head to American tire on Monday to demand the dynamic balance as you said, I will report it back. That is FREE for me since I bought the tire from American tire.

 

I think that is a good step! It might not be your problem, but if not you will have eliminated it as a possibility.

 

LOL ... Are you serious you had the wheel balancer to balanace your own wheels? You are the BEST ... I noticed that the outer rim facing me it does not have weight despite it has the old mark. I only see the weight innern of the wheels. I remembered that when Porsche Fremont Fletcher Jones rebalanced my wheels year ago when the car was under warranty I saw the weights inner and outer. Mak sense now. I will ask American Tire to perform Dynamic Balance. Porsche dealer will probably charge me $100+ for 4. Either way, I will bring my car in for rechecking the alignment, linkage and engine/transmission mounts.
Many Thanks.

 

Yes, I bought a used balancer about 20 years ago for $800. I had two kids driving plus my wife and myself. I didn’t buy it to save money on balancing. It was a case of “if you want it done right, do it yourself.”

Even if a modern wheel is properly dynamically balanced you won’t see a weight on the outer rim. There will be tape weights just behind the spokes.

In some tough cases, even a dunamic balance won’t Ave care of it. This is usually with cheap tires. There is something called Road Force Variation(RFV.). This is basically stiff spots in the tire. All tires have a point where the belt comes together. Sometimes that makes a stiff spot that will cause a vibration. Hunter makes a machine called the Elite. It has a pressure roller that can find and analyze the stiff spots. In some cases the RFV is corrected with weights. Going to a shop with an Elite machine is a last resort. The Hunter website has ashop locker where you can enter your zip code and find the Elite equipped shop near you.

Don't worry though, if you’re buying quality tires like Michelin, Continental and Yokohama, it is highly unlikely that you will have to resort to an RFV analysis.

 

I just pick up my car from American tires. The shop manager is a great guy. I bought tires from him for the last 15 years for my Porsches, MB, BMW. He balanced all the wheels this time. Yes, they are doing Dynamic and RFV as usual with Hunter machine, the mountain view American tire is very good, they do all GREAT cars. The conclusion is the balanced was off all wheels varied from 1.5 or 3.25 I was there and I saw the number. He said the machine was not celebrated last Tuesday, they just calibrated the Hunter on Saturday. They calibrate the machine every 2 weeks. I always give the manager and technician starbuck cards every time they do wheel balancing and rotation. A token appreciation return for GREAT VIP service. I never have a problem with Panamera and 911. I just balanced the 2 cars before Christmas.

So I will test drive tomorrow to see how it is …
Thank you for your suggestion.

 

Excellent! In my experience anything an ounce or more out of balance will produce a vibration. 3.25 oz. off is a guaranteed vibration.

Most other vibration source are not felt through the steering wheel. What you feel in the steering wheel i the front tires. That is not to say that the rear tires can’t be felt if out of balance.

Anxious to hear the report after the test drive.

BTW, when I do my own I almost always spend enough time to get the machine to show zero imbalance. Iwill settle for 7 grams (1/4 oz.) if I have to. Anything I drive will drive silk smooth at 90 MPH.

Are you talking about Mountain View, CA? I spent a lot of time in Mountain View and Paso Alto in the late seventies. I worked for a scientific instrument company that had a facility on the Stanford campus.

 

smooth @65 Mps on the smooth freeway. I will run more tomorrow and report it back.
Thanks.

 

Yes, indeed mountain view ca, near palo alto stanford, i am 4 miles away. I just finished HS in the late 70, LOL ... and started college ... you were professional engineer already ... my neighbor 81 worked for SLAC told me the same thing. I am glad I went to American tire to complaint about it this morning at Lunch.
Many thanks.