Bad tire or front end issue?

[SpatiallyAware]

I have a beater truck, 98 ranger, that I put maybe 3000 miles a year on. This is a 2wd with coil spring, similar to a car, not the torsion bar 4wd setup.

I've been having some odd front end issues and am curious what you guys think.

It started with odd vibrations almost as if the tires were out of balance, except they would go 'in balance' every 10-15 seconds for about 3-4 seconds. So it will shudder and shake, then sort of slowly smooth out, then go back to shuddering.

It also has some front end rattling when going over washboard-type bumps.. So a speedbump wouldn't cause the rattle, but brick-paved roads cause it a lot. It sounded and felt a LOT like balljoints, even though they were all replaced with moog about a year ago. It doesn't require full decompression of the spring to make the rattle show up.

I had a noisy wheel bearing and it needed brakes, so I went ahead and did all that in hopes of solving the rattle with no change. I've done all the tests for balljoints and tie rod ends and everything looks fine (push/pull at 3 and 9, and 12 and 6).


Long story short, I took it to my alignment/suspension guy (excellent shop, typically works on supercars, he had a lamborghini and older ferrari in the bay when I pulled up) who said the front end is absolutely perfect, and this is all related to tires.. The rattle, the shuddering, every bit of it. He sent me off with a bill for $550 for tires. He also said that these old trucks rattle.. Keep in mind it has ~140k, but I've had the truck a long time and it's never rattled like this until recently.



So... I'm a little hesitant to replace the tires since I've never seen an out of balance tire go in and out of balance.. His explanation was the tire shows on the machine as balanced, but radials can deteriorate internally after 5-6 years which causes these symptoms. He recommends replacing ANY tire older than 6 years no matter the condition.


Ok I get it, except these tires are maybe halfway worn although they are a bit dry rotted. I have a sinking suspicion that the shuddering and rattling is related, maybe to an inner tie rod, even though they all feel nice and tight.

I've also read that these rangers can have steering rack issues that cause this.. IE on the rack it seems fine since the pump isn't doing anything, but at speed there's play in the rack.


Any guesses? I'm going to swap tires front/rear this weekend to see if it follows the tire...

 

[Vetterin]

Why not just try switching front tires with the rears and see if there is any difference?

 

[Lotheron]

Bad/out of balance tires typically show up at certain speeds. At one speed they might be very erratic and +/5 mph they're fine.

That being said, 6 years is time to change the tires regardless of mileage. Tires actually do have an expiration date as older tires are prone to dry rotting/miswear etc.

That being said, tires most definitely can go in and out of balance, especially consider differing wear, not enough rotations, bald spots, etc.

First thing to do is to swap the tire and see if it changes and it might not be a bad idea to swap the tires anyway.

 

[JCH13]

If one of your tire treads split, or there's a bulge/rupture in the tire structure, you might see these symptoms.

 

[SpatiallyAware]

Ok a bit of an update.. Had a buddy bounce the truck up and down while I crawled around underneath.. There is definitely play in my driver's side inner tie rod (or steering rack internals..)

 

[Raduque]

If one of your tire treads split, or there's a bulge/rupture in the tire structure, you might see these symptoms.

I was going to post something like this. Had a bubble on the outer edge of my driver's side front tire, and at low speeds (up to 30mph) it felt like rolling on an oval instead of round tire, and at 50-55 a bad vibration, gone between 55-70, and anything above 70 was a VERY nasty vibration.

 

[SpatiallyAware]

Thanks for the advice everyone, it was 95% tire. Rotated front/back and most of the issues followed the tire.


I still have some knocking noise when going over certain washboard bumps. I traced it to the inner tie rod end. I cut the power steering rack boot off, and forced grease inside the inner tie rod end = no noise (for now)

 

[SpatiallyAware]

What are your thoughts on tires?


It's also sometimes used to access fireroads... So gravel, packed dirt and trails near the lakes or mountains, but I never go mudding or whatever.

I occasionally load it down fairly heavy. However, 90% of what it does in on the road, no weight, in the rain.



Any thoughts? I lean towards michelins, was thinking maybe a set of LTX except this truck probably doesn't get 3000 miles in a year. This means tires dry rot and come apart well before tread is an issue, and it makes me feel like ~$700 for a set of michelins is overkill.

My trusted tire guy agrees, and recommends car tires. Either Toyo extensa A/S, or Hankook h724. I'm a little concerned about weight limits, as he said I really should keep an eye on weight in the bed.


I have a buddy who sells cars to junkyards, he recommends finding a good set of used tires - pay $150, use for 1-2 years and cycle out. That sounds like a pain the ass to me.

 

[bruceb]

Tires can go out of round and still be close to in balance. Also you can have what is known as Belt Seperation. I would swap the tires and see what happens. Other than that, something is worn out. Maybe tie rods, steering box, shocks.