Anybody experiencing difficulty balancing the Pirelli's provided by Ford under the 'voluntary replacement' program?
I have less than 10k miles on them (only 46k on the X) and am finding that I get a lot of vibration. When driving slowly (brakes NOT applied), up to 35mph, with hands off the wheel I can see the steering wheel 'shimmy' a little. When traveling fast on the freeway, the vibration is very noticable. I have the dealer service the X (prepaid maintenance program) and they rotated the tires at the last oil change. That is when it became noticeable. I brought it back to the dealer and they said the tires were balanced correctly and the front end was aligned within spec.
I took it to my local tire shop and they said the tires were cupped and that nothing could be done except to replace the tires. I don't think the tires are cupped, although there is more wear on the inside edges.
Anybody else have this problem with Pirelli's or any suggestions? I have had good experience with them on my wife's van.
Thanks in advance.
Len
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2002 Excursion PSD Limited, 4X4, Aspen Green, Cortex Tuner, Walker BTM, A pillar gauges, Bilstein shocks, Ford finned diff cover, Hellwig Sway Bar, and BFG LT285/75R16E tires.
One thing I noticed about the Pirelli tires is they have nylon in the plys of the tire. I had a set of nylon ply tires years ago and they flat spotted every time it was parked. It was so bad in the morning it would shake the coffee out of my cup but eventually it would settle down once the tires warmed up. I would try to find a tire store or dealer who has one of these Road Force Balancers.
I see a lot of these tires on Ford's trucks and have not seen any cupping yet. Personally I would go back to the dealer who installed the tires and complain about it.
FMT
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coldpizza we had the same problem with our Scorps soon as we got down a couple blocks at 35-45 mph so we turned around and went back to the dealer.
We come to find out the tire psi was at 50-55 psi which is like the Ford recommended pressure and the employees could not put in anymore than recommended so I bumped it to 65-70 and the shimmy cleared right up but we did have the tires rebalanced first just in case they boo booed [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]
Bump the psi up some till it clears up,it shouldn't have to go over 70psi.
Bill
__________________ 2002 Ford Excursion 7.3L 4x4 XLT 9th Annual Powerstroke Rally this Oct 3-5 2008 in Caddo Mills,Texas CLICK HERE for more Information & Register Here
Thanks for the feedback. I'll check air pressure and 'pump up' tonight. I'll brind it back to dealer, again, if that doesn't fix it. I just don't like to be without the car when I know that the dealer is probably just jacking me around. The problem became very noticable after they rotated the tires. It is very apparent at speed over 70, which the dealer says they can't check going that fast. I will make sure to point out the shimmy at slower speeds if/when I bring it back.
Of course, this could be a good reason to get a new set of 'bigger' tires (285,295, or?) [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]
Len
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2002 Excursion PSD Limited, 4X4, Aspen Green, Cortex Tuner, Walker BTM, A pillar gauges, Bilstein shocks, Ford finned diff cover, Hellwig Sway Bar, and BFG LT285/75R16E tires.
The one thing that the dealer truck shop and I agreed on is how "sharp" the tread to sidewall edge is,since we have alot of concrete roads in our area the shimmy was more pronounced on concrete versus asphalt,we believe the tread edge was grabbing the roadway abit more thus the shimmy increased.
It's just about summer weather so the 285 TKO's will be going back on and the winter Scorpions come off.
Assuming you are driving slowly over a very flat, even surface with your hands off the wheel, what you are is observing is an effect of uneven tire wear. Most likely, the cause is underinflation. The tires (Pirelli) you got in the recall are the same ones I did. I used a pyrometer to determine correct pressures. An empty (driver only) 2001 PSD 4WD Ex needs 65psi front/68psi rear (cold). Towing an 8000 lb trailer with WD hitch requires 78psi front/ 80psi rear (cold). Anything less causes the shoulder temps to far exceed the center temps. This causes uneven wear on the shoulders. 8,000 miles is plenty to do this. You can easily confirm the damage by mounting the wheels on a tire balancer that runs true (or any type of true spindle) and holding a straight edge exactly horizontally just above the tire. Spin the tire at a slow, constant speed and you will immediately see the problem.
So what can you do? A smart tire guy won't waranty them because they will know why, underinflation. However, Ford may want to improve good will, so it won't hurt to try. Barring free new tires, if you can find someone who "shaves" tires, they will make them round again for you, albeit at the loss of 2-3/32's of tread depth.
Just running them at the right pressures won't "wear them round", but it will slow down the rate a bit at which they get worse. You can successfully dynamically balance them, but because they will continue to wear unevenly, they will quickly lose their balance. Here's where a "lifetime balance" like NTB's pays dividends. You pay once to have them balanced and they have to keep rebalancing for free, ad infinitum.
Do you know what the recommended tire pressure is on the stock tires? Truck says 50 front, 55 rear, but tires say 80. What do I go by? And how did you figure out the correct pressure empty and towing?
Bruce
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2003 X Limited 4x4, 6.0 w/5sp TorqShift, modified K&N FIPK, SCMT, 4" turbo back MBRP exhaust, Ranchhand w/4 KC Daylighters, Rancho steering stabilizer, Rancho RS9000X shocks, Magellan GPS, XM Radio, BD Power X-Monitor guages, Fumoto, remote start/cool down, Air Lift front/rear airbags, rear Hellwig sway bar, LANDYOT radius rods, Amsoil, Amsoil bypass oil filter, ART front rotors/pads, powerflow mud flaps and TEXAS "God Bless America" plates.
Pulling a 39', 11k lb Terry Quantum AX6 TT w/Hensley Arrow.
I know the 50/55 is not enough for 80 psi max tires but for towing/non-towing I'd keep the tires no more than 70psi to give that room for tire heating but still keep an eye on em Bruce.
Our Scorps are at 68-70psi and ride/handle great both tow and non-tow with no tire shimmy.
__________________ 2002 Ford Excursion 7.3L 4x4 XLT 9th Annual Powerstroke Rally this Oct 3-5 2008 in Caddo Mills,Texas CLICK HERE for more Information & Register Here
You're only about 30 minutes away. Feel free to stop by and borrow a pyrometer. (I have two.) I assume your rig came with "E" load tires. (If you have "D"'s in the stock size, you are asking for trouble. An empty 7.3 on OEM [D] tires pumped to the max (65 psi) overheats the shoulders!) Anyway, I doubt you will have a problem if you just run stock size E's at the pressures listed in my post. The 6.0 has about 300 less pounds on the front end so you might need 2-3 psi less on that end, but maybe not. Depending on which brand tire you have, it could also vary slightly.
The only way to get it perfect on any vehicle is run for 30 minutes at constant highway speed, then take the temps. Even temps (assuming good alignment) across the face is the goal. Hotter in the center, bleed some air. Hotter on the shoulders, add air. Hotter on only one shoulder, camber is probably off.
Seriously, come on by. I have Landyot's radius rods. You might find them interesting. The newer Ex's like yours seem to have less severe directional stability problems. I'd be curious to try yours.
Do you know what the recommended tire pressure is on the stock tires? Truck says 50 front, 55 rear, but tires say 80. What do I go by? And how did you figure out the correct pressure empty and towing?
Bruce
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I'm running about what Bill is. I run 65-68 psi if I've got the in-laws in the car and 70psi for pretty much everything else. Seems to tow well there too.
Have a good one,
Dave
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2002 Excursion Limited - 7.3 PSD, 4x4, Auto. Tekonsha Prodigy Controller. ISSPRO EV Gauges in A-Pillar mount. Diesel Turbo Lifesaver. Pre-pump Mod. SCMT-Trimode. AIC. Back Door storage bins. Banks 3 1/2 inch Monster Exhaust. AIS. "U-Code" Springs. Powerstroker Exhaust Brake. Husky Liners. Bilstein Shocks. ART Brakes, Helwig Rear Anti-swaybar. Zoodad Mod. Airlift Rear Airbags. Racor 3550 CCV. Forest River Wildcat 26FBS TT.
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Feel free to stop by and borrow a pyrometer. (I have two.) I assume your rig came with "E" load tires. (If you have "D"'s in the stock size, you are asking for trouble. An empty 7.3 on OEM [D] tires pumped to the max (65 psi) overheats the shoulders!)
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My X has E rated BFGoodrich 265's on it, replaced under recall at 29k, currently have 52k on the truck.
Doc-I'll give you a call in the next couple weeks, should be able to find some time to swing on by!
Thanks,
Bruce
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2003 X Limited 4x4, 6.0 w/5sp TorqShift, modified K&N FIPK, SCMT, 4" turbo back MBRP exhaust, Ranchhand w/4 KC Daylighters, Rancho steering stabilizer, Rancho RS9000X shocks, Magellan GPS, XM Radio, BD Power X-Monitor guages, Fumoto, remote start/cool down, Air Lift front/rear airbags, rear Hellwig sway bar, LANDYOT radius rods, Amsoil, Amsoil bypass oil filter, ART front rotors/pads, powerflow mud flaps and TEXAS "God Bless America" plates.
Pulling a 39', 11k lb Terry Quantum AX6 TT w/Hensley Arrow.
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