Vibrations

[aloha_from_bradley]

Most people would've just traded it in at this point. I suppose because it's from a pot hole you can't have it lemon lawed, can you?

I love the car. It's rare, hard to find in my area, and the ones that are for sale are going for a lot.

Matter of fact, based on the used car market in my area right now, I could actually sell my car for more than I paid for it. Newer Golf Rs with less than 20k miles are selling for close to 40k private party.

This is the last generation of this car until the MK8 comes out, which to be completely honest, I'm not really that excited about. I also don't want to just trade a car in that has issues for someone else to deal with. Bad karma. I can't really think of anything else I would want to drive. If the RS3 hatchback was available in the US, I'd trade for that.

 

[The Dude]

I love the car. It's rare, hard to find in my area, and the ones that are for sale are going for a lot.

Matter of fact, based on the used car market in my area right now, I could actually sell my car for more than I paid for it. Newer Golf Rs with less than 20k miles are selling for close to 40k private party.

This is the last generation of this car until the MK8 comes out, which to be completely honest, I'm not really that excited about. I also don't want to just trade a car in that has issues for someone else to deal with. Bad karma. I can't really think of anything else I would want to drive. If the RS3 hatchback was available in the US, I'd trade for that.

Yea the RS3 avant is pretty dope. The mk8 is supposed to torque vector front to rear and left to right, all 100% of its 315 some odd hp. Might be worth it to look into the lemon law. I think if the dealer tries and fails to fix it 3 times it's considered a lemon. I could be wrong, and frequently am, but that's my understanding. Given how much you've spent trying to fix it and the lengths to which you've gone, it seems reasonable that the dealer will work with you. If I was the sales manager I'd absolutely make sure to keep you as a customer.

 

[aloha_from_bradley]

Yea the RS3 avant is pretty dope. The mk8 is supposed to torque vector front to rear and left to right, all 100% of its 315 some odd hp. Might be worth it to look into the lemon law. I think if the dealer tries and fails to fix it 3 times it's considered a lemon. I could be wrong, and frequently am, but that's my understanding. Given how much you've spent trying to fix it and the lengths to which you've gone, it seems reasonable that the dealer will work with you. If I was the sales manager I'd absolutely make sure to keep you as a customer.

I could look into it. Funny because we lemoned a Tiguan in 2020. I just love the R, really don't wanna get rid of it.

There are only 3 for sale in a 100 mile radius from Phoenix - A 2019 with 25k miles going for $38,000. And two 2013s. The next closest R is in Texas, but I'm only even seeing a handful for sale.

 

[GolfRRRR1]

What was the outcome of your test drive with the engineer on Saturday??

 

[aloha_from_bradley]

What was the outcome of your test drive with the engineer on Saturday??

Funny thing.

I decided to rotate the wheels and retorque everything down myself using progressive tightening in a star pattern to 88lb ft.

Drove the car on several local highways, some of which are new, and I wasn't able to replicate the issue. Either my wheels weren't property seated / torqued, or it was feedback from the road on my way home from the shop the night I picked up the car.

At this point I believe the wheel bearings fixed my issue. I've also read other similar threads where wheel bearings show no sign of being bad but replacing them cures vibration. These cars also seem to be extremely sensitive to balance & properly torqued wheels. I'd say this is probably where about 90% of vibration issues stem from, but in my case it was something mechanical. I can only hope that this was indeed the issue, and that I don't have something else show it's ugly face.

I'd like to point out that the pot holes I hit were bone jarring. I lost my breath I hit the damn thing so hard... three separate times. Once on the driver's side and twice on the passenger. This is obviously the reason it was mechanically related and not just balance. A road force, of done right, will show any imperfection in the wheel or tire.

Last thing and I'll shut up. My alignment seems off a bit after the bearings were replaced. The car tracks straight, but the wheel is slightly off to the left. I find this odd as the bearings are direct bolt parts with no other adjustments to the suspension or tie rod ends. The service manager didn't seem to have an answer for this, but I may be calling them back to have the car properly aligned now that the vibration seems to be situated.

 

[aloha_from_bradley]

For what it's worth, the dealership that replaced the hubs fixed the alignment issue today. The wheel was straightened out and all is well. It was also on the house. Great service department, Earnhardt VW in Gilbert, AZ.

If you are having vibration issues and a legit road force balance doesn't seem to cure the issue, look at the wheel bearings.

 

[Dog Dad Wagon]

Glad you got it resolved man. I don’t even wanna think about how much you spent on wheels and tires in a year.

I can empathize, too. In college I wrecked my MK7 GTI with 1764 miles on the odometer bombing an entry ramp with stock all season tires and non-PP so no e-LSD. The whole front + rear driver suspension required replacement, knuckles, axles, control arms, you name it lol.

as you might imagine, the car never drove the same. Steering feel was gone, loose. And then the vibration issues that were never fully resolved after new rotors, new driver side ball joint, new wheels + tires.

fortunately it was a lease.

the obvious difference between your case and mine being that you didn’t ~cause~ your issues

 

[aloha_from_bradley]

Glad you got it resolved man. I don’t even wanna think about how much you spent on wheels and tires in a year.

I can empathize, too. In college I wrecked my MK7 GTI with 1764 miles on the odometer bombing an entry ramp with stock all season tires and non-PP so no e-LSD. The whole front + rear driver suspension required replacement, knuckles, axles, control arms, you name it lol.

as you might imagine, the car never drove the same. Steering feel was gone, loose. And then the vibration issues that were never fully resolved after new rotors, new driver side ball joint, new wheels + tires.

fortunately it was a lease.

the obvious difference between your case and mine being that you didn’t ~cause~ your issues

Ouch, that hurts. Once you put a car over a curb or bend any part of the suspension, it's just not going to drive the same. I learned that the hard way as well.