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Vibration at various speeds (Rear)

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ben_m

Ready to race!
Took it to a shop to the get the rear wheels rebalanced and they said balance was fine but both rear rims were bent. I did a visual inspection of the rear tires (front/back) but saw nothing. Is that possible?

I also inspected the rear bushings, but I couldn't tell if they were broken. Is it possible that the alignment is off which is causing the wheels to pull? I had winter rims/tires on and felt a similiar kind of vibration at certain speeds too. Def becomes more pronounced the faster I go.

I have an appointment with VW Huntington for a 4 wheel alignment, but I don't want to waste $100 if indeed it is the tires. Anyone have any other suggestions. I don't mind paying the $$ to get things smooth again, just want to spend it on the right fix.

thanks all for your help and sorry if this was posted before, I have 2 little children <2 and time isin't something I have a lot of.
 
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ben_m

Ready to race!
snobrdrdan said:
Sounds like your issue.
They may balance out, but still could cause some vibrations.

An alignment, being off, won't cause vibrations. It'll just increase tire wear
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This is the frustrating part, they showed no sign of any bends in them.
 
snobrdrdan

snobrdrdan

former GTI owner
So they said they were bent, but YOU didn't see the bends?

It's probably a small bend on the inside/barrel lip.
Take the wheel off and you'll probably notice it
 
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ben_m

Ready to race!
snobrdrdan said:
So they said they were bent, but YOU didn't see the bends?

It's probably a small bend on the inside/barrel lip.
Take the wheel off and you'll probably notice it
Click to expand...

I looked over the tires front and back I couldn't see anything. The shop mech said that when you put it on the balance machine at high speed you see the vibration. Its bad enough that it makes me nervous driving at really any speed over 40.
 
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ben_m

Ready to race!
Also, will the 18" Austins from the MKVII fit without any issue? I saw the offset is slightly different. Since the Detroits are hard to track down this seems to be an alternative.
 
ashchuckton

ashchuckton

Ready to race!
Swap the rear wheels to the front. Did the vibration move? If yes > new wheels, if no its something else.
 
snobrdrdan

snobrdrdan

former GTI owner
ben_m said:
I looked over the tires front and back I couldn't see anything. The shop mech said that when you put it on the balance machine at high speed you see the vibration. Its bad enough that it makes me nervous driving at really any speed over 40.
Click to expand...

They wouldn't have any reason to lie about it and you have the vibrations.

Bent wheels, end of story.
 
Purerock Racing

Purerock Racing

New member
snobrdrdan said:
They wouldn't have any reason to lie about it and you have the vibrations.

Bent wheels, end of story.
Click to expand...

I would think it would be obvious to see if a wheel was bent meaning the wheel would wobble like a bent bicycle rim from side to side. You could easily see this by jacking up each wheel and rotating it around and look for it to show some type of wobble.
 
jay745

jay745

What Would Glenn Danzig Do
ben_m said:
Also, will the 18" Austins from the MKVII fit without any issue? I saw the offset is slightly different. Since the Detroits are hard to track down this seems to be an alternative.
Click to expand...

People literally give detroits away for practically nothing. I'm sure if you posted on here looking for some there would be plenty of people willing to sell them.
 
MrFancypants

MrFancypants

Autocross Champion
Rotate the wheels to the front and see if the vibration moves with them (drive carefully). Also, as said.... used Detroits are not expensive. If you’re desperate you can probably score a pair from a local salvage yard for around $100 apiece.
 
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Wascally Wabbit1

Drag Racing Champion
Likely not going to be able to just look at the rim and tell if it is bent unless it is REALLY bent in which case your going to have more than a little vibration. I bent a rim once on my TDI and you couldn't even tell with it off the car until they put just the rim on the balancer by itself and you could see the slight side to side motion. It is odd however that you bent two rims in the rear though. The fronts would seem the more likely target but stranger things have happened.
 
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