[echo mike]

hi, i've a problem i hope someone can help me with. my 2003 echo has a vibration in the front end at highway speeds of 55-60 mph. it fades away over 65 mph, is not rpm dependant. i have done an alignment, balanced tires, rotated tires, changed left front axle(i thought that was the source of vibration). the vibration goes away if i let off the accellerator and resumes if i accellerate. i looked at my motor mounts but am not sure how much movement is ok. i hate to just throw parts at it. this problem started right after i changed the clutch and pressure plate, but if it was a balance issue it would vibrate at a specific rpm, not speed. if you help, i would really appreciate it. thanks

 

[FromBMWtoEcho]

I have the same issue and have done some research. It seems Miata guys have the same issue and from what I have read it has to do with the lightness of these cars and impossible micro wheel balancing. Supposedly that the 60mph is the sweet zone for vibrations and like you have stated once you go past that it smoothes out.

Not sure if this is 100% factual but worth researching into.

 

[ericlp]

when you say vibration... Just how bad is it?

I have a very light vibration at speeds of 45-50 but goes away or fades out after 55 or so. It's more like you can hear it than feel it but can be felt in the steering wheel. I'm thinking mine is wheel bearings.

If you add more air to the tires does it help?

 

[Dave's]

While there are other causes the most common one when the vibration is only over about a 10 MPH range, (IMHO) is an out of balance issue. If your shop insists they are balanced, try another shop. It could be bearings, even worn CV joints or broken internal belts in the tire, but again, a good tire balance solves this problem most of the time. My most recent occurrence is gone after taking it to another shop when the tire place where I purchased them had tried it twice without success. And I've experienced the problem dozens of times over the years. Once it was broken belts and they could move the vibration to different speeds but not eliminate it before admitting those tires had a known problem with belts breaking and replaced them. There have been vibrations for other reasons but they were either intermittent, got worse as speed increased or had other differences rather than just over a 10MPH range. Again, it could be something else but one way to check if it's most likely the tires is to swap them front to rear and see if that makes a change.

 

[echo mike]

i'll try adding more air to the tires to see if that helps. we have switched tires front to rear with no difference, so that tells me its in the front end components.

 

[Rollerscate]

Front End Vibration.

Mike.

A vibration which develops at speeds of 55 to 60 mph is in most cases a balance issue.

Adjust the tire pressure to 32 psi all around.

Check that the tires are not bulged (which would indicate a broken belt), torque the wheel nuts to 76 foot pounds.

And as mentioned before get the wheels re-balanced.

I hope this helps.

Rollerscate.