Ekona Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 A full alignment at a specialist should probably be your first port of call over changing your tyres if you want to narrow down the possibilities at minimum cost. Spending £100 for a decent setup will be more beneficial to the fault finding process at this point than swapping tyres, although personally I would do both. Whereabouts in the world are you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neilp Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 fight for new rubber at the spec that is suggested. I got a brand new set of wheels and tyres from bmw mini after contacting bmw uk and the finance company to suggest that the car wasnt fit for purpose and i was rejecting it. If i remember correctly you have 2weeks to return the vehicle after purchase. I may be wrong Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrumbMC Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 I'm in kendal, South cumbria (good roads round here ) The dealer said "try to wear in the tyres a bit and see if it goes away" - i am aware that tyres have a releasing agent on them but that would have gone by now and every other time i have got new (decent) tyres for previous cars there has been an obvious increase, not decrease in perormance. - i think theyre maybe trying to just eek out their time till i give up. (which i almost have) Also as mentioned above the cheeky bastard tried to tell me that it was because i couldnt handle the car. They refuse to allow me to use a garage of my choice and forward the bill on to them and the one they use is, in my opinion, incompetant. I'm not totally sure where i stand on my rights as a buyer from a 2nd hand dealer, but; These are not the manufacturers specified tyres and when i test drove the car it was running on bridgestones all round. Allbeit they were worn on the back. it was only when they took the car for its MOT before i picked it up that it came back with these tyres and this problem. the car was partly purchased on finance. would you suggest that i contact them if the dealer continues to mess me about? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bronzee Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 Stand your ground mate. Don't let them get away with it. The stock Bridgestone's aren't that much chop in my opinion, but will be better than what they're trying to pull one over with. See how you go with getting the tyres changed over, if that solves it, great, if not, let us know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris`I Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 As the others have said, stand your ground and force them for proper tyres at least to OEM spec. We have a few members around your way, hopefully one of them can suggest a compentant garage to have a look at the car. Shouldnt take a good mech long to identify the problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrumbMC Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 yeah, after getting the car back the tyres are definately not fit for purpose. also the clutch is slipping, i had noticed the revs rising ahead of the speed increasing before today but i thought this may be to do with the shitty tyres. but now i am sure that it is the clutch. i put my foot down in 4th at about 40mph today and the revs just screamed up, then i got the distinctive smell of clutch. i have just written an E-mail to the dealer stating: "I picked the car up from the garage after they had had it 3 days on thursday night. I think part of the problem was that the tyre pressures had only been topped up to 28PSI, (they should have been 35) this making the car very unstable As you sugeested i thought i would try to let the tyres bed in, however the tyres that were installed on the rear are definately unsuitable for the vehicle. This is why the manufacturer states that Bridgestone RE040 or RE050 must be used. When i test drove the car, it had manufacturers spec tyres on so i think it is only right that these should be installed. Also after picking the car up on thursday i noticed what felt like the clutch was slipping, i had noticed this prior to taking it to your specified garage but it seemed a lot more noticable after i picked it up. Now after using the car this evening i am sure that the clutch is slipping. if i press the accellerator while the car is in 3rd gear or higher, the revs rise dramatically before the clutch catches before the revs return to what they should be. Considering i only picked the car up last friday, after it apparently having a service and MOT, and in that week of owning it these problems have occurred, I feel that the vehicle is unfit for purpose and these problems should be rectified. I hope that we can come to an agreement to rectify the issues i have stated here." i can see this being a real pain in the arse to sort out and i just hope i dont end up out of pocket. this is the first car i have bought from a dealer and not privately and so far the experience has not been good. thanks again for your support and advice. Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrumbMC Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 not only this but my mate saw my car being completely ringed out whilst it was at the garage and he was working at a site nearby. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bronzee Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 Perhaps one of the kind souls that's had their car for a few years or so might take your car for a drive. Or take it to someone worthy. If you feel these things are not right don't accept it. Don't back down. Having those tyres only inflated to 28psi, is idiocy. not only this but my mate saw my car being completely ringed out whilst it was at the garage and he was working at a site nearby. You know there are valet keys available that restrict the revs, not cheap, but very useful so that type of thing doesn't happen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrumbMC Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 good news. they have taken back the car and are going to fit the pirrelis and sort out the clutch. i just hope it gets done quickly and correctly. I have really warmed to the handling of the Z over the past few days. driving my GTI again makes me really appreciate the Z. especially the steering. anything else i drive feels so numb and disconnected. cant wait till the clutch is sorted so i can actually put some power down Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bronzee Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 So will have the Pirelli's all round now? That should improve things a lot. Let us know how you get on, when you get the car back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrumbMC Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 i meant bridgestones. my heads a bit pickled... bit of a hectic day Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bronzee Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 i meant bridgestones. my heads a bit pickled... bit of a hectic day Lol, ok. If they're the RE040's you're best advised to be a bit cautious in the rain, but they're ok, if not a bit on the noisy side. Better than other tyres and certainly better than Nankangs and the like, imo. They're not a cheap tyre to replace, just so you know. But come to time when you need new tyres, up to you what you try. Anyway, let us know how you get on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrumbMC Posted February 5, 2011 Share Posted February 5, 2011 Clutch is sorted eventually HAPPY DAYS. what a beast. drove it quite a bit last night. going to go for a propper srive out today though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bronzee Posted February 6, 2011 Share Posted February 6, 2011 Yay, happy customer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrumbMC Posted February 15, 2011 Share Posted February 15, 2011 i have also got some new tyres on now which has relaxed any worries i had about there being some suspension troubles. it was so bad before hand and thee car feels like it has been given a complete overhaul. the new tyres are michelin PS3s. i have put a post up on "Tyre guide: post your tyre review here" if you want to have a little read about them. - i was rather giddy when i wrote this review after coming back from an amazing drive out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeilMH Posted February 15, 2011 Share Posted February 15, 2011 Very pleased you got it all sorted out. This is the perfect demonstration of how much difference tyres can make to a car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waltzinblack Posted September 21, 2011 Share Posted September 21, 2011 Thought I'd revive this thread (I successfully used the search funtction ) as I am having the same problem stated in the first post here: Once on the motorway, at speeds over 70mph the steering wheel vibrates and vibration felt through the footwell/legs. Once past 80mph, it's much worse. It gets worse as speed increases. So I got wheel balancing checked and that helped alittle. At the time, i was convinced it would be wheel balancing so i got it done again. So I went to another place and it slightly better. There is def. no brake wobble and brakes are nicely bedded in. Apart from wheel balancing, what causes vibration/poor ride? I get this vibration in exactly the same way, but I couldn't find a completely conclusive answer on this thread as to what it might be. Car was down at Abbey today for a service, but I forgot to mention this problem to them (as I'd forgotten about it, you don't often get up to 80+ on the M25 anymore!!) but noticed it on the way home. The vibration also makes the front and steering feel a little light. Service confirmed that all the tyres were more than legal and only the fronts would need changing in a few K miles, but aren't in desperate need. The car was given a lookover underneath, and the bushes were on the way out and changed for SuperPro. This made the car MUCH better over bumpy B roads, much more settled, but hasn't affected the vibration and lightness on the motorway. All tyres are RE040s, all at correct pressures and with safe amounts of tread, so I can't imagine it's the tyres. All I can think now is geometry and alignment.. saw one or two suggestions of this earlier in the thread but nothing conclusive. Could that really cause this sort of vibration and lightness at speed? Thanks for bearing with my long post and necropost Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keyser Posted September 21, 2011 Share Posted September 21, 2011 Get your wheels balanced - Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MK-Ultra Posted September 21, 2011 Share Posted September 21, 2011 Hi matey, as stated get your wheels balanced, but just as importantly get them aligined properly. When i first got my car i had almost exactly the same issues. Felt fine until i got upto motorway speeds when the backend felt like it had a mind of its own!!! Very scarey!!!! I took it to a garage near me that has the proper laser alignment tool. Turns out the rear wheels where off my a few degrees, way over acceptable levels. The car nows feels perfect to drive, made such a massive difference. Also got the dealer to refund the work as it wasn't sold to me as it should have been. If you haven't had the alignment done yet that would be my first thing too do. Hope it helps. Regards, Lionel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bronzee Posted September 22, 2011 Share Posted September 22, 2011 350's are very sensitive to alignment and balance and some drivers are more tuned into what their car is doing too. There are a few other things that can cause harmonics in the car, but make sure that alignment and balance are bang on first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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