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Highway vibration - 2014 4x4 Limited w/air suspension :(

8K views 13 replies 11 participants last post by  Canadianguy 
#1 ·
My Ram 1500 has had a minor vibration at highway speed since I bought it. It's got about 3,000 miles now.

To be pre-emptive, I went ahead and bought a lifetime balance/rotation from discount tire and had them check it. They said one tire was off a little, and they fixed it. The vibration persisted, so I took it to another tire place that had a road force balancer. They said everything passed well within spec. So, I took it back to the dealer...

The dealer said all four tires were off balance, they re-balanced them, did a road test and said it's much better and that any vibration that's left is natural to the goodyear tires and 20" wheels.

I drove it and the vibration was the same. I took it back in, this time, they said two of the tires were bad and they replaced them. I drove it again, this time it was indeed much better, but certainly not what it should be.

The vibration is quite minor now at 70, it certainly noticeable at 75 and higher. I took it to 85 to see if it was indeed some kind of balance (be it the rim, tire, or whatever). It got progressively worse as I went faster. So, I took it back to the dealer and reported the issue. I said, if two tires were bad, maybe the other two were bad as well (potentially a bad batch). They drove it and said they can't tell any issues now and that can't do anything else...

I've requested the district manager to ride with me in a few days since I find it wholly unacceptable that a new $50k truck that touted a smooth ride can't drive 75 miles and hour without a vibration...

I've had it in the shop three times now in 3,000 miles. I'm extremely frustrated at this point :(
 
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#3 ·
I've had my Limited for a month roughly 2000 km on it so far....honestly even a slight vibration doesn't seem right. Mine rides smooth. Unfortunately, I don't have an answer to your issue, but checking the tires is a good start...maybe drive shaft? transmission? Can you tell if the vibration is in the front or back? I feel your pain when it comes to having to deal with the dealership. I had a radio issue from day 1,where a message came up "check antenna connection see dealer for service" well it took 4 visits ,radio was replaced, antenna was replaced...then on the 4rth visit they replaced the antenna wiring, which fixed it. In my head I was questioning the competency of the people working on my sweet ride. I hope I never have to bring it in for any type of major repair.
 
#5 ·
Have them swap 4 tires off another '14 so you can move past the tire BS, and they can sink their teeth into looking for the root cause.

How about a u-joint?


Good luck man,

Var
 
#6 ·
I know what you are talking about. I bought my new Laramie feb. 1 and noticed it had a vibration on my way home. it now has 800 miles on it, I called the dealer and service advisor told me he had a ram in last week that did the same. he said they determined it was the characteristic of the truck. this is b.s. check your tach, do it vibrate about 2000 rpms? it sems to vibrate right after an upshift.
 
#7 ·
There are two vibrations I have - and they're completely different. The first is one that's been reported on many times in the forums, which is - at lower speeds (30-40 mph) where the vehicle feels like it needs to downshift, but stays in the top gear for fuel efficiency. That doesn't bother me too much, since I just press the button on the steering wheel to downshift it to gear 7 (which resolves that issue).


The issue that annoyed me was the highway vibration that was a balance issue. Here's the latest on that. The dealer was pretty much done with what they could do, they were going to call the district manager so I could show him the issue. As a last ditch effort, since the vibration was greatly reduced after they replaced two of the tires. I asked them to rotate the tires again to see if that shifted where the vibration was, and to see if we could track it down further.

Well, after they rotated them, the manager called me back and said to his surprise, that all the vibration was gone now. I was skeptical, but I've just got back from a drive on the interstate going up to 90, and there was no vibration at all any more. I have no idea how rotating the tires now after everything I've done before fixed the remaining issues -- but I'll take it!! :smileup:

The only issue I have left on the truck is that steering wheel makes a minor (almost rubbing) noise when turning the wheel. I took it in a couple of months ago for that (which was shortly after I bought it). They replaced the clockspring, but it did the same thing. So, they ordered another clockspring, but it did the same thing after that. They said the noise was gone when the clockspring was out, so they're sure it's the clockspring - but they don't know what to do since they've tried two new ones.

I left that issue alone then, but will revisit it soon as it's beginning to annoy me more and more.
 
#9 ·
I am just wondering, how do you get a lifetime balance and rotate from discount tire on your factory tires?

You pay $20 a tire. I ended up paying $24 per tire since it was only $4 more to get road hazard protection. Normally I wouldn't get the road hazard protection, but for $4, I figured, why not.
 
#10 ·
Well, after they rotated them, the manager called me back and said to his surprise, that all the vibration was gone now. I was skeptical, but I've just got back from a drive on the interstate going up to 90, and there was no vibration at all any more. I have no idea how rotating the tires now after everything I've done before fixed the remaining issues -- but I'll take it!! :smileup:


I would ask them to replace the other two tires also, next time you rotate the tires your vibration will probably return.
 
#11 ·
Now that it's smooth, after all the effort I've gone through. I might just drive on these without rotating - for as long as possible. Then, when they're worn out (prematurely no doubt), I'll get new ones of another brand.

I'd just hate to have them replace the other two tires, and the vibration come back for some reason... It certainly makes sense to press for it... but dammit, it's finally smooth!!
 
#14 ·
Hi guys, I just picked up my 2017 Ram 1500 Sport (Pre-owned) from my local Dodge dealership 2 days ago. I feel I’m having the same “vibration “ issue. I found this service bulletin which I’ve attached. I think it specifies 2013 models!? But it seems bang on for what I’m experiencing.
 

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