Tire Noise/Wobble/Vibration on 2010 3 i Touring (2 Weeks old)
 

New to the forum and searched around a bit in the forums for my issue, didn't really see anything that was right on for my situation, but saw that there are a lot of very knowledgeable and helpful people here. So here it goes...

I bought a 2010 Mazda 3 i Touring about 2 weeks ago (traded in my 2008 Civic... the two don't even compare... wake up Honda!). I love it so far, BUT I have a nagging Tire/Wheel/Suspension (?) issue. Vibrations are like nails on a chalkboard for me.

Issue:
- Above 50 mph I get a vibration that I can feel in the floor and if I turn the wheel slightly to the left or right I can feel a vibration in the steering wheel that is in sync with the vibration in the floor.
- It gets worse the more the car warms up (mornings are about 32 deg F around here right now... so I have about 5-10 min of waiting for the flat spots to even out on the tires then I have about 10-15 min of fairly smooth driving and then the vibrations start... BTW the first 10 min is city driving, the rest of the time is highway up until the stop and go as I enter the city).
- It is also causing a wierd noise - the tire noise is in sync with the vibrations (quieter/louder on/off - but at a quick pace of course). In addition, if I let off the gas as I go down a hill, the vibrations get worse, the vibrations travel to the steering wheel and the noise gets a lot worse (sounds like a Semi Engine Braking).

The noise/vibrations have been present since day one but I thought it might of been just hard spots that had to wear out/break in. But after 500 miles they didn't so I took it back to the dealer I bought it from. They replaced the front passenger tire (they said it was bad - they didn't say why). But I thought they had nailed it because I never said that I suspected that it was the front right. I picked it up, drove home, same issue.

Any thoughts?

Thanks!!

The dealer knows how to drive right? tell them to fix it and test drive it to make sure. If they can't fix it to your liking, swap your 2010 with another new one that doesn't have this issue.

I've heard many people have issues with the engine mounts, sometimes they are broken, other times the one that's basically under the steering column will get rocks stuck on it which prevents it from dampening engine vibration. I'd assume your issue is with the tires / steering, but just something else to keep in mind as a potential issue.

you will need to explain the issues exactly as you have described on this forum. most times the mechanics will just drive around the block and if they don't immediately recognize anything (like your car catching on fire) they'll just call it a day and tell you nothing is wrong.

tell them to inspect the motor mounts
tell them to inspect the brakes (especially the runout)
tell them to inspect the alignment of the car
tell them to re-balance the tires

a new car should not have the mounts or the brakes go bad so soon but that is why mazda provides a warranty.

I was reseaching vibration issues this morning and was just wondering, did you get this resolved?

you also might want to get a good torque wrench and properly torque the lugnuts on all the wheels. i know it seems silly but you'd be surprized how often shops forget to torque down the lugnuts. in most cases they overtorque my lugnuts but i have been victim of a wobbly wheel for about 30-40 miles before i pulled over and realized the lugnuts were loose.