A steering wheel & rear end vibration at 50-55 mph. Dealer service dept. claims that there is nothing wrong with it and I must spend $170 to get a "road Force Balance" done on the wheels. Service dept. claims there is a known problem of 01 converts. doing this with no explanation and no resolution. They claim some of the convs. do this from wind force on the rear end of the car while driving.(it did not occur until I owned it over a year at approx. 50,000miles). They say there is not service bulliten other than a "service suggestion" of getting the road force balance done. It is under warranty and they say this is maintenance issue and a non covered problem. PLEASE HELP ME. I ADORE MY BEAUTIFUL YELLOW CAR AND I FEEL I'M GETTING BLOWN OFF BECAUSE I'M A BLONDE IN A PRETTY CAR. LIZA E
If it is under waranty then i would pressure them to fix it under waranty. I think that a balance and rotate may fix it but may not is not a good answer.
There are some simple tests you can do that will help others help you: (1) The airodynamics of your car are vastly different with the top up and down. Are the vibrations identical both ways? If yes, I am not buying the "downforce" theory. And I don't believe the '01 the convertble body is any different than '00, '02, or '03. (2) Accelerate past the speed where the vibration occurs (perhaps to 65 in your case). Then shift to neutral and coast through the range where you feel the vibration. Does it feel the same as it did in gear? If yes, this tends to eliminate engine/transmission causes. I recommend starting with the least expensive "fixes" first. How many miles on your tires and when were they last balanced? A wheel weight might have fallen off, or you could have a shifted belt within a tire (both are common problems). If the tires are not near the end of life, start with a standard 4 wheel dynamic rebalance and rotation (should be less than $50), and see what happens. If the tires do not have much tread left, I would consider a new set.
if it shakes in a given mph range or from a given mph upwards its a rim balance issue get them balanced for around 30 bucks and it may totaly remove the problem, if your tires are out of round then.... it may be more of a problem make sure the place that balances the rims checks for the tires being out of round.
