Tire dilema on the Q7

[Goldmember]

I took the Q in to get a road force balance performed. I had taken it in to a tire shop I have been using with for over 7 years now with no problems to have it balanced. They perform a regular balance, but the shake was still in the steering wheel. For me this was nothing odd as I have had other Audis with similar problems that just needed a road force balance to make it smooth.

They go to road force the Q and the Hunter Balancer alerts that 3 of the 4 Tires are unable to be balanced and that 1 of the tires is so bad it is recommending that the tire be replaced. I watched the entire setup and the screens come up on the Hunter as it was being balanced and sure enough when he put the second tire on red Alerts come up.

One positive all the rims came out perfect. That is the machine reported that the rims were perfectly weighted and round.

After moving the one tire that was labeled bad to the rear of the Q the ride quality improved drastically. Question is do I push to have all 3 tires replaced or just the 1 that the machine alerted to. The tires have a little less than 3000 miles on them. They are the 21" Dunlops.

[mksap11]

Dunlop Tire Contact Page and number: 1-800-321-2136

[pagpc]

[Jusforfun]

and I accepted the balanced job. The problem came a few months later when a weight got knocked off and this time they said it was outside the limit.
I had to pay for a new tire.
I am sorry i didnt push for the replacement in the beginning.

Tires of same spec are made in different countries even by the same manufacturers and there can be huge differences in batches.

This is a heavy car with high performance and balance is very important.

I say fight for the replacement.

[twnmango]

I just got a '07 3.6 Q7, S-Line with 21" Dunlop Sports Maxx tires.

I've noticed that at around 65mph on the highway, the steering wheel will shake slightly.

Is this the same problem you are experiencing? Should I also bring my car into an alignment shop? What is a "road force balance"?

Since I just took delivery last week, its prob not too late for me to go back to the dealership and get them to fix it.

JC

[Goldmember]

If you have had them balanced on a standard tire balancer and still have a noticible shake the next step is to have it balanced on a Hunter Road Force Balancer. This machine is like a balancer but has a wheel that puts pressure on the Tire while it is being balanced and is able to measure the roundness of the rim and the density of the tire. Its goal is to match up the low spot of the tire to the high spot of the rim. They make markings on the wheel and rim, remove the tire from the rim and then remount it on the rim in the correct position as directed by the machine.

[jackfrost]

I have a similar problem with my 2 week old Q7. The steering vibrates or shakes at speeds over 100KMS per hour. I took it to an independent wheel and tire shop as I could'nt wait another week to get in the dealership, that first wheel balancing didn't work and the shop recommended I get a road force wheel balance. The result was the same I still have the vibration. Tires and wheels checked out fine with some minor adjustments but still a problem. I have an appointment scheduled for Monday with the Audi dealership we'll see what happens. I don't know what it could be other than the balancing any ideas?