2005 Civic SE wheels are garbage

"Howard" > wrote in message >...
> The retail price has no relevance to the quality of the wheels. What has
> you convinced it's the wheels that are your problem?The problem you have is
> most likely in the tires. That is where more than 90% of imbalance or
> vibration problems will occur.
> Go to another dealer if that one can't solve your problem. I would also go
> to a tire store that sells the brand of tires on your car. If you have a
> tire problem, they can warranty your tires. Honda does not warranty tires.
> That is not to say they can't warranty your tires, but often they refer you
> to the manufacturers representative which is the tire store selling your
> brand. Unless, of course the dealer actually sells tires. Not all dealers
> do. Check your owners manual and papers you got with your car. You will see
> the warranty is with the tire manufacturer.
> Howard
> "Daryl Herkin" > wrote in message
> ...
> > I got a EX SE sedan a few weeks ago and it had bad vibrations. Dealer
> took
> > a shot at balancing and it didn't work. Today (2nd visit), they gave me
> > the wheels off a new vehicle. It drove great.
> >
> > I get home and I start thinking...hmmm, I have to be sure...so, I rotated
> > the wheels. Damn it! I knew it was too good to be true...there is a
> > slight vibration in the steering wheel. Not as bad as before, but still
> > there. I have an appt at a non-Honda shop tomorrow night to do a road-
> > force balance test on the set. Hopefully, they can nail the exact
> wheel(s)
> > in question.
> >
> > Some of these wheels have so much weight on them.
> >
> > Salesman: "Look, you get all of this in the EX SE for a just $400 more!"
> >
> > Reality: The wheels are crap, costing 1/3 of those on the EX ($428 vs
> $157
> > MSRP).
> >

Honda is dropping the ball on quality again. A vehicle with bad
wheels should never have left the plant, let alone dealership! In
this case, you're lucky it was just wheels...

"Daryl Herkin" > wrote in message
. ..
> "Pars" > wrote in
> :
>
> > The problem is most likely caused by the tires, not the rims.
> >
> > The last time I replaced my tires, the new ones were out of round and
> > the tire shop immediately request a replacement to be sent. However,
> > the replacement was also 'out of round'. It appeared that the entire
> > shipment from the supplier was bad...
>
> What brand of tires were they?

They're my tried a true Toyo Proxes FZ4 195/15/50. I've already gone through
2 sets and in the summer, I'll have to order another set. With my low
profile setup and tight suspension, the balance on those tires have to be
absolutely perfect or it'll register.

>
> > The tricky aspect about these tires that are 'out of round' is that
> > they'll appear acceptable when new, but rapidly get worst over time.
> > So, a shady tire shop could sell these defective tires and it would
> > take several month for the defect to become apparent (in the form of
> > vibration), at which point, it would be too late for you to get your
> > money back.
>
> These problems started immediately. Some of the shaking was at low speeds

I drove on the 'out of round' tire while waiting for the replace to arrive.
The guy at the Tire Shop balanced it so that it would only vibrate at low
speeds which was less intrusive then having it vibrate at higher speeds.

Pars
98 Civic Hatch

> which could be a belt problem I guess, but I still think the wheels are
> f**ked.

Good advice and thanks for the info.

Pars

"Dan Beaton" > wrote in message
...
>
> Daryl,
> There are many factors that can cause vibration. Honda has joined the
> rest of the world in going to MacPherson strut suspension, which is more
> susceptible to vibration. Front wheels are more susceptible than rear
wheels.
>
> Imbalance is the most obvious cause of vibration, but it can also be
caused
> by tire and wheel defects. Suspension defects are unlikely in a brand new
car.
>
> Tires can have a misaligned belt; this can sometimes be seen as a
> side-to-side motion when the tire is rotated slowly on the car.
>
> Tires and wheels are not perfectly round. In the factory, the tire high
> spot is matched to the wheel low spot to minimize the total variation.
>
> Wheel runout can be measured and reduced by a wheel repair shop, although
> this is normally done only after hitting a pothole or curb. Runout of the
> mounted tire can also be measured, and a tire lathe used to remove rubber
> to bring it true. This obviously reduces the life of the tire, and is
> usually done only in racing or for vintage or antique cars.
>
> It can be a real challenge to find a shop that is willing and able to
> diagnose these problems. Mostly, dealers and tire shops just play with
> wheel location and tire swaps until the problem is solved or the customer
> just gives up, and accepts the vibration as 'normal'.
>
> Good luck.
> Dan
>
> (This account is not used for email.)
>
>
> Daryl Herkin ) writes:
> > I got a EX SE sedan a few weeks ago and it had bad vibrations. Dealer
took
> > a shot at balancing and it didn't work. Today (2nd visit), they gave me
> > the wheels off a new vehicle. It drove great.
> >
> > I get home and I start thinking...hmmm, I have to be sure...so, I
rotated
> > the wheels. Damn it! I knew it was too good to be true...there is a
> > slight vibration in the steering wheel. Not as bad as before, but still
> > there. I have an appt at a non-Honda shop tomorrow night to do a road-
> > force balance test on the set. Hopefully, they can nail the exact
wheel(s)
> > in question.
> >
> > Some of these wheels have so much weight on them.
> >
> > Salesman: "Look, you get all of this in the EX SE for a just $400
more!"
> >
> > Reality: The wheels are crap, costing 1/3 of those on the EX ($428 vs
$157
> > MSRP).
> >
>