I bought my cobra two weeks ago brand new with seven miles on it. As soon as I drove it home I noticed a noise like the tires weren't balanced. Checked tires and noticed a slice in the sidewall. Had tire and wheel replaced with no problem from dealer. The noise is still there when I decelerate from 45mph or above. The car does vibrate at around 65mph. I thought this vibration problem (ssm16341) was taken care of with the newer production cars. Anybody with new cobras having this problem? Btw going to dealer fri. 2nd time in two weeks.
Brand new cobra with old problem?
- Thread starter Tin Knocker
- Start date
Thats funny... I had a slice in my side wall too... Divers side front I think.....
I have a vibration that seems to be greatest at about 62 mph. It is gone by the time I drop the speed to 54 or ramp it up to 70. There is no vibration below 54 or above 70.
The dealer never could get it out.
It is so mild that I did not want to risk the dealer working on it too much.
I'm close to 13000 miles now and the vibration is still there. But it is not worth worrying about. Yours might be worse.
The dealer never could get it out.
It is so mild that I did not want to risk the dealer working on it too much.
I'm close to 13000 miles now and the vibration is still there. But it is not worth worrying about. Yours might be worse.
Check that your anti-theft lug nuts are tight. Mine were loose. Also, had to have all 4 tires rebalanced (one required a humongous exterior weight). Many owners have experienced these problems.
My car was built March 5 2003. I have been in the dealership twice with a vibration that occurs around 55 and stays untill around 65. Not a bad vibration but enough to bring it to the dealer.
The first time at the deal they changed the two front tires due to flat spots.
The second time at the dealer they balanced the tires again and change one rear tire due to flat spot.
My problem is better, but is still there. I will be bringing it back to the dealership for it's 3000 mile oil change and requesting that they check out the vib again.
The first time at the deal they changed the two front tires due to flat spots.
The second time at the dealer they balanced the tires again and change one rear tire due to flat spot.
My problem is better, but is still there. I will be bringing it back to the dealership for it's 3000 mile oil change and requesting that they check out the vib again.
There are a series of problems that cause vibrations at different speeds including tires out of balance, drive shaft imbalance and rear-end problems. The good news is that yours doesn't seem to be the rear end, that vibe occurs around 80MPH. My friend's car just got out of the shop for the 80MPH vibe, hopefully his is better now.
hey realsmith,
could you find out how your friend got the dealership to fix the 80MPH vibe?
my dealership said they can't do anything since going 80MPH is against the law and that's their policy... I say B.S.
my car is pretty darn smooth up to about 83MPH, then vvvvrrrrrrr's sooo bad ya can't see squat out the rear view mirror.
:cuss:
You guys ain't seen nothing yet! Had both my 99's bought back by Ford for the same problem. Between the two cars they spent 4 months of the 12 I had them in the shop getting different things swapped out looking for a fix. My fix turned out to be a Lightning. 0-140mph smooth as glass! With or without the boat behind me.;-)
Last edited:
update
Took into dealer this morning. Just got back. Rear pass.tire was out of balance. The same one that was replaced because of slice. Go figure. I didn't hear it at all on the way home. :thumbsup:
Took into dealer this morning. Just got back. Rear pass.tire was out of balance. The same one that was replaced because of slice. Go figure. I didn't hear it at all on the way home. :thumbsup:
mine vibrates at 65 too, replaced rear tires and had balanced, never fixed though
Got the noise back again. Dealer said it's"normal tire sound." I've never heard tires make that noise and be normal.
The dealer said ? Take it back. I average 2 or 3 trips, this might be a 5 or 6 tripper. My IRS was totally out of wack, the first tard I talked to didn't grasp the concept of the IRS and that it was adjustable. I hung up the phone, called back, and someone that didn't ride the short school bus helped me. Fixed one of two problems. A record.
What kind of noises are they making? Like rumbling sounds? high pitched whinning sounds? Does it change on different parts of the road?
It's making a vroomp vroomp vroomp sound. Not real loud. I can hear it more when I'm decelerating. It will start as low as 25mph and as high as 65mph after I let off the gas. I just talked to Mark at SVT and he said that this is not normal tire sound. T
I too did not know the rear was adjustable as I dont do suspension adjustments,only big brakes,springs,bars etc...I have a Vibe problem at 80 mph on the nose.As soon as I paid to have all 4 tires Road Force balanced and added the 50.00 SHM rear bushings and added Koni 12 way adj. it went away I cant say which 1 helped but I suspect balancing and bushings are the answer,but I will ask Ford about adjustment or my Ford Tech just to educate myself a bit.Dave S.
PS Just got another 1 for the shop and it vibes at 80 on the nose,Dave
PS Just got another 1 for the shop and it vibes at 80 on the nose,Dave
Please educate us on "Road Force balance"
The 80 MPH vibe-mobile is starting to get me p.o'd
was anyones 80 MPH vibe at a low or high frequency (e.g. burrr or vrrrrr) ? Mine's high, like vvvvvvrrrrrrrrr w/ rearview mirror doing zzzrrrrrrrr ...like on crack or something.
I've heard that replacing or indexing driveshaft can help.
WTF'sUp?
The 80 MPH vibe-mobile is starting to get me p.o'd
was anyones 80 MPH vibe at a low or high frequency (e.g. burrr or vrrrrr) ? Mine's high, like vvvvvvrrrrrrrrr w/ rearview mirror doing zzzrrrrrrrr ...like on crack or something.
I've heard that replacing or indexing driveshaft can help.
WTF'sUp?
Hey guys -- Realsmith mentioned my car getting fixed -- new rear end installed with 1600 miles on the car.
The way I handled it was to first let the dealer know that I had called SVT to talk to them and that they had acknowledged that the vibration was a known issue. I then asked the service rep to check out the TSB that Ford put out on vibrations in the 03 Cobras before I brought my car in.
The service rep filled out the job sheet with the statement that vibration occurs at 70mph. (my vibe started at 78 mph and was constant through 100mph.) 70 mph is legal in Texas. The techs then took the car out with vibration sensors on it and determined that it was the rear end that had to be replaced.
As I understand it, the TSB states that vibration at 45 mph that escalates up as speed increases is due to a defective drive shaft. Vibrations in the 80 mph range are due to a defective rear end. Vibrations that are not systematic (fairly random) are due to exhaust issues.
My car is much better now with the new rear end. I only get vibration as I coast down from high speed (say from 100 coasting down to 70.) I can live with it though because it is very minor. Hope this helps.
The way I handled it was to first let the dealer know that I had called SVT to talk to them and that they had acknowledged that the vibration was a known issue. I then asked the service rep to check out the TSB that Ford put out on vibrations in the 03 Cobras before I brought my car in.
The service rep filled out the job sheet with the statement that vibration occurs at 70mph. (my vibe started at 78 mph and was constant through 100mph.) 70 mph is legal in Texas. The techs then took the car out with vibration sensors on it and determined that it was the rear end that had to be replaced.
As I understand it, the TSB states that vibration at 45 mph that escalates up as speed increases is due to a defective drive shaft. Vibrations in the 80 mph range are due to a defective rear end. Vibrations that are not systematic (fairly random) are due to exhaust issues.
My car is much better now with the new rear end. I only get vibration as I coast down from high speed (say from 100 coasting down to 70.) I can live with it though because it is very minor. Hope this helps.
Road Force Variation is a measurement of the surface of the tire and the rim together. On a RFV measuring machine, a big roller comes down on top of the tire and rolls along the surface, then the wheel is balanced. Some tires will have higher RFV than others (usually aggressive tires are higher). Higher RFV can cause vibrations depending on the vehicle. Some wheels can be balanced perfectly (with weights) but if the tire has a flat spot on it or the tread surface is for some reason or another uneven, obviously you will feel this when driving the car. Also RFV can tell you if you have a bad rim or tire. Again you can balance to 0 but if the rim is slightly bent and cannot be seen by looking at it, the RFV capable balancer will record high RFV. The machine will give you a warning depending on the size of the rim and tire and how much RFV it has. If you have a huge truck tire then higher RFV will not set the warning. If the warning is set then you can measure the rim runout and then the machine will tell you if the rim or the tire is bad. I know this was long but I hope it helps. Good luck with the Ford dealer, they are full of sh*t. :burn:
Oh yeah forgot to mention that it shows you how to spin the tire on the rim in order to lower the RFV if possible. I work for a Lexus Dealer, we charge $115.00 for a 4-wheel balance. 
Users who are viewing this thread
