Sporadic Vibration

[frustrated]

Modified by frustrated at 3:40 PM 4/3/2009

[frustrated]

test

[kamiguy]

zer...ationDoes this describe your symptoms?

[frustrated]

No, its a straight problem, not a turning problem. Thanks.

[dividedhighw]

Welcome to NICO, frustrated - hopefully, we can help you get to the bottom of things!

What size wheels and what type of tires do you have?

David

[gloa2000]

Consumer services says it is a common problem and an unfixable "character" defect of EX35's. I am ready for lemon law.

That can cause "mass lemon" I would file a lemon on my EX maybe if i can get New 09 EX. I also noticed my tires being worn out unevenly at 6k miles.

[Bmore]

In my state, to qualify under the Lemon Law, your car has to be in service (aka totally unavailable to you) for like 30 days of that first year. I think that was it. But it differs from state to state. I doubt the Lemon Law is so easily applied, despite the fact that consumers like to throw the term around. Good luck though.

What car did you come from? I guess you're sure it's not just a ride difference/dissatisfaction type thing as opposed to an actual malfunction. I will take a look at my tires and the wear, though, after a few more miles.

[Bmore]

If it's an unfixable character defect of the EX35s, according to the consumer services person, then why are we all not experiencing it? I think if it was occurring on all cars, and bad enough where it was noticeable and slightly nauseating, then we would know it. Sounds odd. What exactly did the consumer services person say and did she put it in writing?

[SteveTheTech]

what happened to the OP?

http://www.800helpfla.com/lemo....html

Regardless of the state there is a very defined set of hoops that you must jump through. As stated above the vibration on right turns is not a safety concern and that will make it very hard to get a buy back off of this complaint alone.

[rostafoya]

Hi! I am having the exact same issue. I noticed it when I took my winter tires off 2 1/2 weeks ago and put on the factory tires that came with the EX back on. I live in Canada. My EX is the AWD fully loaded version. Anyway the EX was purchased in mid November of lat year (2008). I should point out I never drove the car except for a test drive or a demo without winter tires on it.

Ok, so winters off, summers on...feel vibration, complain to dealership, go back and paid to have tires balanced. Something they advised me I did not need to do when they originally changed tires. The service manager said bc the vehicle is so new I wouldn't need balancing. However, once the tires were changes and I noticed the vibration I decided maybe they did need to be balanced. To no avail. Went back in again, the service manager, technician and dealer manager all drove it and this was their response:

They are all confident with the driving of my EX. They believe the vibration I am feeling is road response. I explained that I feel it consistently, in between any bumps in the road, that it doesn't matter how smooth or rough the road I am driving on is....they said that it could be bc my winter tires were softer and the factory all season tires are firmer and are causing the ride to feel like that. Then the service manager told me when I bring it in for my next oil change they will take a look again if I am still feeling it. I am a little frustrated bc it makes the drive disappointing and I am not really happy with the car. if I had known it was going to feel like it was shaking 24/7 I probably would have reconsidered the purchase.

Any advice would be appreciated!!!

Thanks!!!

[SteveTheTech]

I have a feeling your concern may be something slightly different than the issues discussed here. The noise mentioned frequently in this forum is most prevalent on almost full right turn at <17kph. If your noise matches that than rest assured a fix is on the way and its not a dangerous flaw.

However if, as you described your noise is present all the time than that is not normal. If you could give us a little details maybe we can try to point you in a better direction.

[Bmore]

I felt the 18" tires were pretty jittery. It was a bit alarming for me, coming from a sedan. It was driving me crazy. The dealership swapped me out for a car that had no Luxe package. I am much happier with the ride with the 17" wheels, though my car may not look as stud'ly! Not saying this is your issue, but just remarking that this was my experience. 18" tires aren't that large, so I was surprised they were so noticeable to me. My former sedan had 17s, so you would think it wouldn't be all that different. The USA Today review also said the ride was super jittery with those.
Modified by Bmore at 8:00 AM 4/17/2009

[rostafoya]

Thanks Steve & Bmore!

Steve-I think you are thinking of the "Steering Vibration" posts where drivers are experiencing noise/vibration when turning right. This post by "frustrated" looked to me like it was about always feeling a vibration when driving straight and it's all the time. But maybe I am mistaken and should take this topic elsewhere?

There is no noise. Just a vibration feeling. I feel it in the steering wheel and my seat and under my feet. Kinda like I am driving over rumble tracks that they put in the road to wake you up. But there is no noise associated with it. Just the feeling. Could it be the factory tires? I'd be willing to invest in new tires if I knew this what the case!!! Although I think Infiniti should comp some or all of it. they should be supplying quality tires to begin with. I did not feel this vibration with my winter on.

Thanks so much!!!

[Bmore]

Do you have the 18s?

I recall feeling a little jiggly stuff under my feet as well, even on highways where the road seemed flat/smooth to me in appearance and I didn't recall an issue on the same roads with my old car. It was odd enough to me that I noticed it and was concerned (not that something was wrong with the car but that I had chosen the wrong car). This is all now much improved with the car driving on the 17s. You might want to check your tire pressure. I saw someone mention on some site that they were having a bad jiggly ride and saw their tires were a bit over-inflated and now all is well.

Anyway, I'm not a car expert (at all!) but just wanting to share my thoughts that the 18s were a bit alarming to me in terms of ride (coming from a Saab 9-5 sedan). I felt like a wuss but I'm much happier with the 17s. Others think the 18s drive wonderfully.

Now, with all that said, you could really have a malfunction with your car and none of this rough ride stuff is relevant! But did someone suggest taking out another dealer car with the 18s for a day or two and see if it behaves the same and then get a loaner with the 17s next. Might give you some piece of mind.

[rostafoya]

Yep, I have 18ers. Hm, the 18's are part of the premium package here in Canada and were not an option. And I like all my bells and whistles! I'm pretty sure my winters were 18" too though. But have to check...hey, I'm a girl! We don't pay as much attention to that stuff-well most of us don't anyway.

When I go in for my next oil change I will ask for a loaner EX that is the basic model with 17's and maybe I'll ask if they have one with 18's I can drive too, so I can compare. My BF has a G37 and his car rides smoother then mine...that just doesn't seem right!

Thanks again for the feedback!

[SteveTheTech]

A low speed vibration is not typically a tire balance related issue although since the tires were the last thing that was touched on the car I fear they may be a problem with the tires, or wheels. Tires & Wheels tend to cause a wheel vibration a >45mph, driveline components tend to transfer harmonics at lower speeds. Were the wheels the summer tires were mounted on the same wheels that you had snow tires on? If so I would check and see if all the lug nuts are tight. A vibration

There is no need to take your topic elsewhere. Everyone's welcome here

[dividedhighw]

A big Canadian Welcome to NICO, rostafoya!!

When I got my EX last April, I noticed some vibration in my 18" OEM tires too, but it was bearable. Once I put on my winter tires (Toyo G-02 Plus P225/60R17) with 17" wheels in October, it actually vibrated more. After too tries at balancing, my winter wheels became (again) bearable, but still the vibration is noticeable.

In a couple of weeks, I'll revert to the OEM wheels and report back to this thread thereafter.

Cheers,David

[cjre1]

I called Infiniti head quarters and talked to a senior engineer. The cars that are affected are mainly shipped to Canada and are on the AWD's. More info to follow. I am investigating this issue right now.

[rostafoya]

Thank you cjre1! I appreciate the info.

Still driving my jittery EX. I love the car minus the jitters! I'm finally going to check my tire pressure (I know, I know...took a while to actually get a gauge).

I'll follow up if it helps or not in the next couple days!!

[dividedhighw]

In a couple of weeks, I'll revert to the OEM wheels and report back to this thread thereafter.

It's been 3 weeks since I replaced my winter setup with my OEM wheels/tires and I can report that the slight vibration is still there. If nobody is sitting in the passenger seat, I can see and feel it vibrating while on the highway. Interestingly, I don't feel any vibration in the steering wheel, leading me to believe that it's coming from the rear.

During a recent out-of-town trip, I had another Infiniti dealer check out the tires, etc, and they found no problem with the tires, tire pressure or balance.

So far, I can live with it, but would definitely be happier if some systemic solution was found.

Cheers,David

[kullenberg]

David:Check the tires for "out of round"!Cheers

[dividedhighw]

Thanks for the tip, but the tires have been checked by two Infiniti dealers already.

Hopefully, cjre1 will turn up something.

Cheers,David

[rostafoya]

Checked my tire pressure. Back drivers side was 36psi, other 3 were at 34psi. Adjusted them to 33psi as recommended. Car feels a bit better. Although I don't think the problem is completely solved.

[cjre1]

You are most welcome. I wish that when they do recalls or TSB's that they say for which range in VIN #'s that they cover. Idea: I will start a new topic on this.
Modified by cjre1 at 2:03 PM 5/20/2009

[cjre1]

David and all,

Thanks. I am totally researching this. Heck, I am also worried to for future problems with the car. Who knows where this issue will lead. More to follow........ I hope......

I just found out, that most all the cars that are affected have AWD systems. Most were sent to Canada. I am trying to get some more info....