Live axle steering wobble, they say it's tyres

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Originally Posted by newhue

According to Goodyear, each time the wheel goes on the machine it is not the same as the last. I got the impression this could happen 5 minutes apart, as I would expect it to be different after 10K km.

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No. The tyres shouldn't go straight out of balance unless the weights fall off or the tyre rotates on the rim. It should be gradual as the tyre wears.

Do your tyres wear evenly? Do you still have standard suspension?

I would be checking swivel preload as others have mentioned.

An option to stop it (but not cure the problem) is to use dynamic balancing. Basically you put polymer beads in the tyre instead of weight on the outside. Above about 50 km/h it should balance perfectly, so no need to continually re-balance the tyres.

I would try another balancing shop. If they are getting different results remounting the same wheel, then there is a big problem they aren't spotting.

which I would call operator incompetence or they havent calibrated their machine for that size tyre....

ask them if you can have a bo-peep at the cal records for the balancing machine that they use, Odds are you'll get a quizzical blank stare.

i can't believe that balancing is the problem, you seem to swap tyres around a bit,so surely some of them might be in balance.
but having said that,
we have often come home from a trip where there is major mud stuck to the inside of the rims and no real balance problems felt through the steering wheel.

i can't believe that the tyre placard would say 65 psi for a vehicle in standard trim,
dunno about this 3 psi rule, never heard of it.

i can't see why your defender should have 65 psi in the front tyres.
please look at your tyres and see what the maximum pressure is written on the sidewall of the tyre.

if you drive around with 65 psi, you will feel every bump in the road,
this may be your steering wheel problem.
you may also find that the truck is frightening to drive around corners in the wet, to the extent of being downright dangerous.

your defender cannot weigh much more or less than a similar engined disco,
mine is a 300 tdi or the other a v8,
tyre pressures are book 28 front 34 rear with the standard small tyres,
up the tyre size and the pressure goes down.

sure in a disco they are looking at a boulevard ride for the punters, but the axle weights between the defe and disco must be nearly the same.

i suggest you drop the pressures and enjoy the ride.

Harry I do, Front 45psi, Rear 55psi, I carry around 350kg daily.
I agree with you regarding weights, but generally 7.50 x 16 don't run at 28 or 34 for normal road use.

Dougal, I agree as well. I think my local tyre shop has run it's race. Seems an honest, but dumb thin to say in light of my problem.

Isuzurover, yes I run standard suspension, and the rears wear square and even. Put them on the front and tracks badly and shudddddders over 95klm.

I think it's time to get the swivel pre-loads and wheel bearing checked as has been mentioned.

Dave what ya doing this weekend?

Just checked the tyre placard again
Front 45psi, Rear 65psi. Max pressure on side wall of tyre is 75 psi.

Harry the 3 psi rule is the measure of a tyres temperature at a given pressure and weight.
If that given pressure is to low the temp is reflected buy an increase of more than 3 psi. So add a couple psi.
If the given pressure has not moved up by 3 psi your starting pressure is to high. So drop a couple psi.

I have found carrying around 350 to 500kg, 45 and 56psi work pretty well.

They are very high pressures in my book,loaded I never go over 45 in the back,actually I can't remember going over 40. Pat