Vibrations at 65+ mph - 2003 Tahoe

[DMSchuler]

Wondering about an issue that seems to be getting progressively worse...

at speeds over 65 mph, the truck begins to vibrate significantly. Tire pressure is good, the tires look ok, No noticeable play in the bearings, driveshaft seems tight - no play in the u-joints.

I'm not really a fan of replacing parts until the problem goes away...

Figure I'll start with having the tires balanced. Maybe get a second opinion on the wheel bearings. How common is it for the driveshaft to go out of balance?

Other things I should be looking at? I have read that the pinion bearing can go and cause similar issues - is there an easy check for that?

Thanks,
Doug

 

[ATL]

i think ur getting waaaaay ahead of yourself. my money is on tire balance. if the standard balance doesnt fix it, ask them to road force balance them. you can balance an egg on a balancer, but it wont roll. roadforce checks the roundness of tire and matches the high/low points of the rim and tire

 

[Arctic-Rodz]

x2 on balance

 

[Magnumac]

U-joints, have had several of these and normally there is a front drive shaft joint out, none of them ever felt loose but they get just dry enough to set up a vibration. if you look close, you can see a little bit of rust dust seeping out of a cap seal.

 

[91RS]

Do you have stock wheels/tires? What brand are the tires? Definately don't go rush into replacing parts, most vibrations are caused by tires. Definately take it somewhere that has a roadforce balancer to they can make sure the tires are round. All dealers are required to have roadforce balancers for warranty.

 

[DeepSeaFish]

Sounds like tire balance to me to. If you had a bad wheel bearing, you'd hear a loud whining or roaring sound coming from the hub.

 

[jdj71]

Yes, sounds like you've thrown a balance weight on your wheels. When I bought my 2000 Yuk. I had similar issues. I had the dealer rebalance the wheels,didnt work. Then had the dealer rebalance the shaft. It reduced the prob, but the vibration was still evident. Then had a third party rebalance the GM dealers job on the wheels and the prob went away. GooD Luck!

 

[DMSchuler]

Been a few weeks...

Had the tires balanced. Three need about 1.5oz, the fourth needed .75oz. Not huge, but noticeable. The tire rods were a bit sloppy, so replaced them.

Vibration is still there. When I'm driving alone, the vibration is most apparent between 65 - 70mph. Over 70 is better, but the moment I let up on the gas it comes back. With more people (300lbs+) the vibration does not show up until about 68mph. u-joints? Any point in taking it to a drive shaft shop to have the shafts balanced?

 

[CEN2MENTAL95]

I'm gonna ask how you got the wheel balance done because frankly on any tire made these days, if you want a good shake free balance you NEED a road force balance done by a competent shop on a hunter gsp 9700 machine. And I'm gonna also say that MAVIS tire does not have this machine. Most tire shops dont.

A regular wheel balance doesn't cut it. Every car of mine has had a road force balance or else I get the shakes.

 

[DMSchuler]

A few other comments -

- tires were road force balanced. Didn't get the name of the balancer, but had a nice display that pointed out how much weight to add to the specific location.
- tires are goodyear wrangler - 245/75r16.