Hi,

I find my M35-sport steering to be very jumpy especially at low speeds. When the car is rolling to a halt at traffic lights, the steering moves wildly if the road is uneven. Even slight ridges/groves on the road (which is common at intersections) makes the steering and the wheels move left or right. It is as if the car is trying to follow the grooves on the road. If I am not holding the steering with both hands, it can put me in the next lane. Very scary sometimes.

Even at highway speeds, if the pavement is uneven, the wheels turn on their own. Anyone else having the same problem?

thanks.

yeah, i have the same exact issue. the car would struggle to stay straight on uneven pavement and would wander off. how many miles do you have on your car because it might be a time to get a alignment.

It has 24K miles on it. I doubt if this is alignment issue. It doesn't pull if the road surface is smooth.

I searched on the internet for this and there seems to be good number of people complaining about the same problem. Looks like 2006 M35s have a known steering rack problem. In some cases, the problem was fixed by switching from goodyears to Michelin MXV4s (I think this is for non-sport version). 2007 models are supposed to have updated steering rack. Since my car is still under factory warranty, I will get it checked anyway.

palincal,

Please let us know what you hear back from your dealer. I would be interested to know if a change in tires helps.

Scott

Read about "tramlining." The OEM Goodyear RSA's appear to be the chief culprit. If you've got them, you've got a problem. I went w/the ContiExtremeContacts and my machine now tracks true; enormous difference-like day and night.

Yes, "tramlining" is the keyword here. Thanks. Found a lot of info about this problem on Ms mostly on sport and AWD versions.

I got my car with 24K miles on it. I have Bridgestone Potenza tires on my car with hardly any tread left on them. Are these the OEM tires on 2007 sport models? or the previous owner changed them?

palincal wrote:Yes, "tramlining" is the keyword here. Thanks. Found a lot of info about this problem on Ms mostly on sport and AWD versions.

I got my car with 24K miles on it. I have Bridgestone Potenza tires on my car with hardly any tread left on them. Are these the OEM tires on 2007 sport models? or the previous owner changed them?

As I recall, the Bridgestone Potenza RE-050A tires are the OEM brand for the Sport models. These should not be prone to tramlining - they are good tires! Way better than the Goodyear Eagle RS-A.

However, if your tread is below 3/32, then this may be only partly to blame. Definitely get those tires replaced, drive about 500 miles to get the tire broken-in and then see how it goes for handling.

Z

The most low profile tires with aggressive alignment like your car will have this problem. Problem is in alignment from the factory. it is set up more aggressively them other companies, to give you better response from steering. The responsiveness from putting less sporty tires will go away, it will get mooshy feel which will make car drive a little better/straighter. but first of all i would find alignment shop that will alignment the car so it will drive to your needs. Dealer will not, because they got the specs. to go by. even big chain places will not do the alignment to your needs.i got the guy that knows what is up due to the racing experience, he did all my cars. that is how i know all this.you should be able to find shop like that and talk to them.at lease it will be cheaper then buying new set of tires.good luck.
Modified by saeedakobiakov at 4:36 PM 10/14/2008

I have a new 2008 Infiniti M35x. Current mileage 2700. OEM tires are Goodyear RS-A.

I just returned from a trip from Central New Jersey to Charlotte and back. 1250 miles at an average of 22.5 MPG. My speed was always within 10 MPH of the posted limit.

The issue of directional stability or tramlining was notably evident. The scariest time was on the New Jersey Turnpike with a truck to my right. The car wanted to leap to the right or to the left. NJ Turnpike is a heavily traveled roadway that has developed some minor ruts from heavy trucks. My wife drove infrequently, not noticed it and my son (who owns a new 2009 Acura TSX) also noticed it right a way. On a smooth level road the car tracks fine, it’s on roads with tire ruts (even minor ones) that will cause white-knuckle driving. More to the point, this is a serious safety hazard. Consider the implications of jumping to the right with a large truck very close to the traffic line!

I consider this a very serious safety issue. I will be taking the car back to Ray Catena in Edison ASAP to have them look at it. I read somewhere that replacing the OEM Goodyear RS-A's with Michelin Primacy MXV4 will solve the problem. Does anyone have any information about the Michelin MXV4's and Tramlining?

Thanks!

Pinspector wrote:OEM tires are Goodyear RS-A.

I consider this a very serious safety issue. I will be taking the car back to Ray Catena in Edison ASAP to have them look at it. I read somewhere that replacing the OEM Goodyear RS-A's with Michelin Primacy MXV4 will solve the problem. Does anyone have any information about the Michelin MXV4's and Tramlining?

The MXV4 is somewhat better than the Eagle RS-A, but not by enough to make me happy with it as a replacement. I have used both these tires (albeit on a smaller and lighter car), but I was not particularly impressed by the MXV4 either.

To get substantially better handling (albeit quicker wear than the RS-A), I would recommend one of the higher end tires from the list in the stickies I have here in this forum. Something like the Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3 or the Michelin Pilot PS2 or the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S (secondary choice) will do much better in this regard.

Z

Quicker wearing tires than the RS-A is not an option. I have to believe that there are good and long lasting tires out there that will not exhibit tramlining. BTW I got 60,000 on my Goodyears on my 04 Murano. I expect nothing less than that level of excellence in an excellent car!

I have an appointment with my dealer for next week (11-5). I'll keep the site advised.

N.

read my post above..find good alignment shop and talk to them.dealer will do nothing, but charge you more money for new tires plus the same specs alignment, but good luck to you anyways.

Hi,

This is great info, I thought it was just me that noticed this on my 07 and 08 M!! Now I have a name for it ...Thanks chaz

Just picked up my M35x from dealer. He put new Michelin Primary tires on the car under warranty and did an alignment. Just the drive back from the dealer seemed to be smoother. I cannot say if this is the "placebo effect" or not, but the drive home was smoother than the drive to the dealer! Ray Catena INFINITI in Edison did this at NO COST. This is a $1000 tire exchange. I have to admit that they are seriously trying to satisfy the consumer. So far so good. Will keep the forum informed.

It is the tires. I just put on a set of Michelin Pilot Sport A/S and the difference is amazing. Trammeling is gone. No more 'hunting for the groove'. That drove me crazy and a bit nervous behind the wheel. Anyhow, I don't really know if the alignment helps, but I do know the tires DID make a difference.

Dear Pinspector:

The news is not good. My dealer changed the OEM tires to Michelins Primacy, and there was no effect on the tramlining problem. But I would like to raise another issue: Who mentioned to you that the Primacys can solve this problem? If it was a dealer, or anyone related to Infiniti, I suspect the suggestion is part of a typical auto industry conspiracy to keep the problem form surfacing. Tramlining in the M35s is the result of a design flaw with the steering rack, and has little to do with tires (although some tires could alleviate the problem a bit).

I have reported the tramlining problem to the NHTSA as a safety concern and I would urge those who follow this thread to do the same. If NHTSA receives enough formal complaints it may decide to force a recall or, at a minimum, a Technical Service Bulletin for those drivers who are concerned about this serious defect.

NAIHOXI--November 13

Perhaps too soon to tell. On a similar note, something in the dealer's work order that really caught my attention. They said the test drove the car and determined the alignment was off and as a result did a full 4-wheel alignment. A brand new $50+k car that was delivered with an incorrect wheel alignment! That really frosted me!Where did I see the recommendation for Michelin? I recall a few blogs on other sites (consumer reports and edmunds) that talked about substituting Michelin's for the OEM Goodyears. The Michelins are supposed to be a grand touring tire (softer ride) rather than the OEM which is a performance tire. I also plan to submit a notice to NHTSA as a safety problem. I hate to think lemon law, but the dealer did have the car for a total of 7 days already. Interesting that the service advisor knew exactly what I was talking about. He said he had heard that complaint from others. I asked if the G had the same problem and he said it did not. Any one know if the RWD version of the M has the same problem? Is it a function of the AWD system?

I'd like to offer a contrasting view...

The M is a SPORT sedan, period. It's not a Lexus or a Cadillac. In a sports car you expect to get great feedback from the steering wheel, as well as very finely honed handling. You expect that you will be involved in the driving experience all the time and you expect the car to give a lot back to make the experience worthwhile. For some, this is too much and in your case I would say you bought the wrong car, period. The M with the Sport package is one of the finest handling cars I've ever driven and that includes a lot of BMW's. The byproduct of a Sport suspension with sensitive steering and wide tires is exactly what has been described here. It's not a "safety issue" or something to get hysterical about and call a lawyer. The car was setup this way on purpose to HANDLE. If you don't like it or it bothers you that you can't drive with one finger while drinking latte - sell the car and buy something more to your liking.

Tires alone will not solve this issue. Getting the car aligned differently may help more, but why dumb this car down ? I just don't get some people...

exbmwdude2006 M35S

Primacy is a great tire for a Buick, but not so much so for a Intiniti M, unless you believe in the tooth fairy, Santa Claus, andthe "all season" marketing euphemism.

Like the post above says, the M is a sport sedan, so get performance tires or winter tires for snow as the season demands. Don't know which Primacy, but the Primacy MXV4 are 620 A A rated. Way too hard for any decent performance, but they will last like a billiard ball. Be ready for increased stopping distances over the Bridgestones RE50A and worse wet weather performance.

Personally, I would have a serious discussion with the dealer about inappropriate tires and the dealer's assumed liabilities.

my car is in for service right now, and i mentioned the "jumpy steering" and the service guy told me that i need new tires and an alignment.

Now thats TOP NOTCH!

When I bought my M used and drove it home for the 900 mile trip I just couldn't comprehend how the previous owner put up w/the bizarre road behavior (tramlining). I had purchased it sight unseen on E-Bay and was really discouraged. Luckily I still had 18 mos of warranty left.

I read about the tramlining problem on these sites, it sounded like my problem and so I purchased a set of ContiExtremeContacts. The problem completely disappeared-completely!

I have read about many others achieving the same thing w/some different tire brands. Apparently, not all tires will solve the problem (i.e. the Primacy).

I've also read about "steering rack" problems as well. For me it was definitely the tires. The difference was literally like day and night.

Agreed. In almost all cases that I have heard of, it has proven to be the tires. Yeah, I suppose a given car might have a steering rack issue, but this has not been the general case.

Frankly, the Michelin Primacy is not a particularly interesting tire. Remember that the M is a sports sedan ... saddling it with a "Grand Touring Tire" like the Primacy will not really be the right thing to do for the best outcome. I suspect the dealer put these on to give a long-lasting and softer/quieter ride, but they are middling tires.

Note, unfortunately, one of the posters in this thread wanted long-lasting tires and faster wearing (but better) tires was not an acceptable answer. Well, both RS-A and the Primacy will probably give him that longevity. But, they will not solve the handling issues that can occur with their use on a heavy car like ours.

High-performance cars need high-performance tires, folks. And high-performance tires will wear faster.

Z

DO NOT TALK TO DEALER. THEY ALL WILL SAY TIRES AND ALIGMENT.

GOOD aligment shop will listen to your problem and will fix it.

i had it done to my cars. 1.auto cross set up was just like what you all complaning about. conners was good, straight line was all over the road.2. street set up drive straght good , conners bad.

call to any race shops/suspenssion shops/ koni, bilstein, tokkicos and talk to them. you will learn a lot.

tires only 30%, the rest is in aligment.caug

saeedakobiakov wrote:
...tires only 30%, the rest is in aligment.caug

You know I hear ya'. But honest to gawd, my machine was all over the place. I put on the new tires, and the problem completely disappeared.

Quite possibly different machines, different characteristics. In searching for the cure, I would suggest the cheapest approach first; do an alignment. Thereafter if no cure, get a set of ultra high performance tires that others have noted cure the problem (i.e. ContiExtremeContacts).

And finally if no cure still, go for a new steering rack (a rare cure...).

Still no cure, call me, we'll arrange for some Prozac...

ultra hi. perfm. tires will have very firm sidewalls for better response during steering. which will also will make better road feel which will make car follow every bump, groove in the road which will bring it back to where we started.you wanna taller, softer side wall which will make the car less responsive there for car will drive better in straight line, bad in cornering , but that not what they worried about. that's whats up.

saeedakobiakov wrote:ultra hi. perfm. tires will have very firm sidewalls for better response during steering. which will also will make better road feel which will make car follow every bump, groove in the road which will bring it back to where we started.you wanna taller, softer side wall which will make the car less responsive there for car will drive better in straight line, bad in cornering , but that not what they worried about. that's whats up.

I repeat: "...get a set of ultra high performance tires that others have noted cure the problem (i.e. ContiExtremeContacts)."

fine,if you think that spending $700 to $800 for new tire is better then $100 for alignment is better way to go, then go for it.

Sport pkgs. in most car companies usually comes with bigger wheels and sportier tires, so you can get better road feel and enhanced cornering ability.

p.s. Antzrus,what tires/size and what condition were your original tires?did you do alignment?what you got now for tires/size?i want to do some comparing.Thanks,Caug.


Modified by saeedakobiakov at 9:22 AM 11/15/2008

Certainly, doing a $100 alignment will not hurt, of course. And it is a good thing to have properly aligned wheels!

But, it will not help the tramlining problems that people experience with the Goodyear RS-A tires. Only changing the tire will help that.

We have many, many people here who have experienced this ... and not just with the M either.

Hence, our usual advice is to change the tire ... the Goodyear RS-A is a poor tire and simply not worth the money (it is expensive too).

Z

saeedakobiakov wrote:fine,if you think that spending $700 to $800 for new tire is better then $100 for alignment is better way to go, then go for it.

Sport pkgs. in most car companies usually comes with bigger wheels and sportier tires, so you can get better road feel and enhanced cornering ability.

p.s. Antzrus,what tires and what condition were your original tires?did you do alignment?what you got now for tires?i want to do some comparing.Thanks,Caug.

When I purchased my M35x it had approx 32K miles on the OEM Goodyear RSA's. They were wearing real well, a lot of tread left. However, I had read about the tramlining problems on this and other sites and so naturally I went immediately w/the new tires. Yes, as I've noted in a previous post above, it would have been wiser to do an alignment first-but I had read so much about the problem w/the RSA's that I figured why waste $100 US. I figured right.

I think a good question would be: Has anyone herein tried changing to ContiExtremeContacts and not cured the tramlining? And again as I've noted in a previous post above, the tire change is not an absolute fix, it could be the alignment and steering rack too. Just a wise choice for the fix might be:

"do an alignment. Thereafter if no cure, get a set of ultra high performance tires that others have noted cure the problem (i.e. ContiExtremeContacts).

And finally if no cure still, go for a new steering rack (a rare cure...).

Still no cure, call me, we'll arrange for some Prozac..."

what is the size on conti ex.?is it the same as rs-a?