2000 Anniv Q45 Vibrates to no end

[thesarge7]

My 2000 Q vibrates to no end. In the morning on a cold start the front end vibrates and it will not stop until the tires are warmed. It will drive smooth for a short period and the vibration returns. I have replaced the tires two times. I replaced the tires with dunlop 5000 series but this did not resolve the problem. I've had the front end align at the dealer to eliminate this as being a caused of the vibratiion. I feel the vibration in the steering wheel. I think to sums this up is that the vibration will not go away. I am to a point of wanting to get rid of this 2000 Q. I had an 1992 Q prior to this on and the different is light years apart. Bring back my old Q!!!! Your help would be greatly appreciated.

[maxnix]

Well the Dunlops do not have a good reputation on the Q45, despite producing and OEM tire for the G50 which were recalled.

Please post some more details as to tire size, tire pressure, wheels, suspension maintenance, and balancing techniques.

I wouldn't throw out your baby because it has soiled diapers.

There are extensive posts about tire selection. suspension maitenance and alignment, and tire balancing in the previous posts. A search on tires might be in order.

Welcome to the premier source for Infiniti beyond the FSM and TSB. NICO is like the glue that holds all of it together and fills-in the gaps.

[duck3986]

At what speeds are you experiencing vibration?

You should rotate the fronts to the rear to see if you notice a difference. You could have a damage wheel in which case balancing and alignement won't help.

If the vibration goes from the steering wheel to the seat of your pants, then you probably have an out of balance wheel or a distorted wheel.

[Q45tech]

Only Michelins work on 97-05 Q at least a Pilot Z4 or The Pilot H4...........Dunlop 5000 are an awful tire for the heavy Q because of high caster creating camber gain.

Because of the different front suspension you will need to have the tire wheel combo radial force compensated on a Hunter 9700 machine ........make sure the total radial force is below 10 pounds 5 is better [usually only Michelin can make that lower number!

Many times the front rotors will be out of spec [runout exceeds 0.0028"]and coupled with the tires/wheels this gets unbearable till the tires warm up and that depends on ambient. Get that phase changing coming and going as the speed varies.

[duck3986]

I recently put new Michelin Energy MXV4's on my '98Q. Expensive but they are quiet and ride very nicely.

[Trung1130]

I have 99T with similiar problems. I went to the dealer and they inspected the rims. If you have wide five (5) spokes those rims get flat spots very often. I am in the process of replacing them with new six spoke I35 rims. You may want to check out the rims. As anybody ever wondered why for an a luxury car why Infiniti does not provide a full size spare?

[qship96]

why provide a full size spare,takes more room out of the trunk!previous g20,drove 150,000 miles-never used spare-current q45 146,000 miles,again,never have used spare yet! tires are soo much better than the old days,flats and blowouts are uncommon if you get good tires and replace before totally worn.

[q45roadwarrior]

I believe that the wheels on your "Anniversary Edition" are the same as my '01 Q45T, so maybe this will help. 1st I had the dealer replace the tires,(which helped)but the problem was still there. Then, there was a factory recall on the wheels...that really helped, but the vibration continued...Finally the Guys at the Charlotte NC dealership called the factory rep, who said there was a TSB conserning an adjustment of the steering rack !!Sounded nuts to me, but it fixed the vibration...after almost a year with numerous rebalances, alignments, Jason at the Charlotte, NC Infiniti store solved my problem. Hope this helps someone else.

[Trung1130]

I had no idea there was a recall on this generation Q regarding the wheels. Can you provide me some info on that.

THanx

[Q451990]

http://www.nissan-techinfo.com...6.asp

http://www.nissan-techinfo.com...0.asp

I suspect a dealership can run your VIN to see if your car is in the recall, and if so if it was already completed.

Heath

[jamesmost]

had similar prob on 95q qas upper control arm going bad

[Q45tech]

Except 97-01 Q don't have upper control arms and 95 Q only have the angled upper link which some mistake for an upper control arm [which usually have 2 separated mounting points].

Wheels cause vibrations at all temps -----Tires [maybe rotors] are the only temperature sensitive components!

[Jesda]

If the tires are out of round in any way, does it still vibrate no matter what temperature?

[Q45tech]

Of course! Temperature changes in sidewall stiffnesss and tread create [allow] vibrations that vary as the tire warms up and stiffness changes.

Tires are a spring and as long as perfectly round [same stiffness at every point around circumference] and fitted to a perfectly round and in plane wheel [axial and radial runout = zero] the forces are balanced. As the tire rolls on a perfectly flat road there is no change in upward pressure on the metal springs.

When a tire or wheel is not round or doesn't have an equal distrubuted mass [heavy spot].............these locations create a unequal force as the tire rotates so the tire pushes up on the spring with more force OR in and out on the wheel bearing which transfers force to the lower suspension arm.

Shock absorbers are desisned to work at very low frequencies [zero>1-2 Hz] they cannot keep up with 13 Hz [26" tire rotation at 60 mph] same with spring and steering rack.......it/they just pass the vibration thru to body.

Members don't realize that most tires are BAD, they are not perfect when they leave the factory and just get worse for every mile used. Same with wheels, they all bend and become less round. Factory wheels tend to be stronger than aftermarket wheels because they need to last thru the warranty period.......why you never see a warranty on aftermarket wheels, you never even see written roundness/runout specifications.

Michelin uses special expensive materials in their sidewalls that are 1.5-2 times stronger per inch thickness than conventional tires. That and expensive robotics creates a rounder more consistant tire, then QC rejects the failures instead of shipping them........for buyers to sort out.

It is extremely expensive to test every tire.Tires made by humans always have variations because the mold area is very warm [hot working enviroment]...........getting the dougnut off 1/16" in the mold creates a bad tire.

1 in 10 tires made by humans have problems* [1 in 100 have severe problems] as opposed to 1 in 1000 by robots [numbers given to me by Michelin].* depends on YOUR standards of perfection, obviously the tire industry assumes American don't care as long as they don't blow out.

Every tire that gets mounted on a Nissan wheel at the factory gets tested and match mounted..............that doesn't guarantee much after it sits on the boat and get to dealership.

The Hunter 9700 has caused serious financial hardships [they cannot just ship their failures without recourse] for wheel and tire manufacturers, now that accurate testing is available to the masses for low cost.

[Tgvince]

Of course! Temperature changes in sidewall stiffnesss and tread create [allow] vibrations that vary as the tire warms up and stiffness changes.

Tires are a spring and as long as perfectly round [same stiffness at every point around circumference] and fitted to a perfectly round and in plane wheel [axial and radial runout = zero] the forces are balanced. As the tire rolls on a perfectly flat road there is no change in upward pressure on the metal springs.

When a tire or wheel is not round or doesn't have an equal distrubuted mass [heavy spot].............these locations create a unequal force as the tire rotates so the tire pushes up on the spring with more force OR in and out on the wheel bearing which transfers force to the lower suspension arm.

Shock absorbers are desisned to work at very low frequencies [zero>1-2 Hz] they cannot keep up with 13 Hz [26" tire rotation at 60 mph] same with spring and steering rack.......it/they just pass the vibration thru to body.

Members don't realize that most tires are BAD, they are not perfect when they leave the factory and just get worse for every mile used. Same with wheels, they all bend and become less round. Factory wheels tend to be stronger than aftermarket wheels because they need to last thru the warranty period.......why you never see a warranty on aftermarket wheels, you never even see written roundness/runout specifications.

Michelin uses special expensive materials in their sidewalls that are 1.5-2 times stronger per inch thickness than conventional tires. That and expensive robotics creates a rounder more consistant tire, then QC rejects the failures instead of shipping them........for buyers to sort out.

It is extremely expensive to test every tire.Tires made by humans always have variations because the mold area is very warm [hot working enviroment]...........getting the dougnut off 1/16" in the mold creates a bad tire.

1 in 10 tires made by humans have problems* [1 in 100 have severe problems] as opposed to 1 in 1000 by robots [numbers given to me by Michelin].* depends on YOUR standards of perfection, obviously the tire industry assumes American don't care as long as they don't blow out.

Every tire that gets mounted on a Nissan wheel at the factory gets tested and match mounted..............that doesn't guarantee much after it sits on the boat and get to dealership.

The Hunter 9700 has caused serious financial hardships [they cannot just ship their failures without recourse] for wheel and tire manufacturers, now that accurate testing is available to the masses for low cost.

Awesome info! I to chase vibrations in my 97Q. Ive got Michelins and that by far made the biggest improvement.

Terry