Vibration Issue Again...

[Cosgrove]

I've been driving my 2007. 5 5. 9 4x4 (stock) for about 6500 miles now and I'm still experiencing a "resonance vibration" between 70 and 75 mph. The obvious answer is to drive 69 or 76 mph, but that is far from practical on Southern California freeways. Has anybody found a solution, or a dealer/independent mechanic in the Southern California area that has addressed this problem and successfully corrected it. I've read all the posts I can find on this subject with little success, and I can't believe I'm the only one rolling around out here with this problem. Everything else about this truck is perfect, and try as I might to "drive it like I stole it" the vibration still gets on my nerves... any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[vonbonds]

I just had my u-joints replaced by an independent mechanic in MD. I had a wicked vibration start around 89,000 miles and by the time I hit 89,500 it was obvious something was going to snap off. I had one u-joint that was "destroyed" in the words of the mechanic. I had them replace all of them with Spicer units. I don't know if this is your problem or not but it might be worth a look.

 

[Jeremiah]

Tires, driveshaft?

You didn't say what brand of tires you are rolling around on. Not all tires are as round as they should be. A vibrating truck with only 6500 miles is a bummer and an indication that something isn't right. It could be u-joints or maybe a driveshaft that needs balancing. Dealerships don't like acknowledging driveshaft problems, even after replacing u-joints. I'd take the truck to an independent shop and have the driveshaft checked. Have you spoken to the folks at Geno's Garage about this?

 

[HLewallen]

I take it you have already been annoyed by the dealer about this problem? I had vibrations at highway speeds on my '05 that always turned out to be tires. If you are on stock tires that are out of round it would be nice to have the dealer replace them. Got a buddy you can swap wheels with short term?



Also, what RPM is the 5. 9 at when you get the vibration? The RPMs the 5. 9 has harmonic problems at has been noted before here somewhere.



And just as a nit - '07. 5 so far is being used to designate the mid-year switch to 6. 7s - a 5. 9 would be an '07. This truck is a 5. 9, right?

 

[Jeremiah]

Vibration stuff

My trouble began with a grinding sound when a u-joint went bad at 48,000 miles. The dealer fixed that under warranty. I asked him to get the driveshaft balanced too under the theory that driveshafts often lose their balance when u-joints are replaced. Dealer didn't do it, said it didn't have to be done. Sure enough, there was a vibration and so I took it back. Dealer sent it out this time and had it balanced. Since then, no problem.



My info on tires comes from Rickson, which rejects 10 out of every 12 Hankook tires because they are out of round. Apparently, this is more of a truck problem than for cars. Good thing, I guess. All I can say is my truck tires are perfectly balanced with nary a vibration, part of which might be attributed to Equal, a powder substance inside the wheel that replaces weights on the outside.



Equal comes in a little bag placed inside the tire as it is mounted on the wheel. The powder dispurses in 10 or 12 miles, balancing the tire perfectly. It's good for the life of the tire. The down side is the powder must be replaced if there is a flat.



I even put it tires I bought for my wife's Honda Pilot. I got a kick out of the tire dealer who looked at me like I was crazy when I said I didn't want the tires balanced. "Huh?" he said, thinking I must be some kind of idiot.



"That's right, I've got this little bag I want you to put inside the tire instead," I said. "The bag has a mouse in it and he runs around inside the wheel and keeps it balanced. I don't need weights as long as I've got him. "



"Course, I've got to feed him every once in awhile, but I do that through the valve stem. Works real good but only as long as I remember to feed the mice in the other wheels too. "



The dealer did as I instructed, but he still thought I was nuts. Anything for a laugh, I always say.

 

[Cosgrove]

I tried rotating the tires with no improvement. They are the stock Michilens, and while I've always had good luck with Michilens it's probably worth having them checked out.

The vibration comes on about 2100 rpm, but when the engine is not under load it's smooth at that speed. I'm going to try running it around in 2nd and 3rd at that engine speed and see what happens.

Thanks for straightening me out on model year.