Thumping Noise From Wheel After Hard Bump
01-11-2011, 08:35 PM
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2002 C32 amg
Thumping Noise From Wheel After Hard Bump
This thread isn't so specific to AMG, I'm writing it merely for the entertainment of you guys and for people who google it. I know if someone else wrote this, I'd think: idiot. and get a good laugh.
Last week I was flying up a hill in the C32 and out of nowhere is a speed hump. I brake hard, skid a little and hit the hump. I didn't think it was so bad. Heading home I heard a loud thumping noise and felt it in the seat.
I figured it was a seperated belt in the tire or loose lug bolts. Considering that the tires were very very old and very worn I was lead to believe that it was a tire issue. I ordered new tires, specially ordered pirelli's, 300 a pop, they said it would be 2 weeks. For 2 weeks not drive?? I gotta eat and stuff!!!
In the meantime, I did not do an adequate examination of the lug bolts. I looked at the wheel, the lugs, felt around but never took out the tool like I should have. The crappy tire was so suspect to me, and when i drove at 5mph, I felt what I'd describe as a bubble every time.
As I'm waiting for my new tires, I only drive the car nice and easy and close to home. Over the weekend, I'm driving at about 35mph thinking that I'm only risking a blown tire when I hear a subtle pop and I slow the car down. "Dammmit, I blew the tire"... I get out of the car and walk to the suspect wheel, but the tire isn't flat. All 5 lugs had sheared off, the rotor/hub dropped the 4" gap and the wheel is sitting there in place with the rotor resting gently on the inside of it, on the rim. I couldn't believe it.
I still don't know exactly why this happened other than a disturbance in the even motion of the wheel causing the laws of physics to put unecessary stress on very cold pieces of relatively thin metal. Two remaining lugs, freshly snapped were dangling there, the others were nowhere to be found. They must have snapped off one by one. I couldn't even put on the spare because the tips of all 5 lugs were still in the rotor.
This was likely a stupid mistake on my part as I'm leaning towards loose lugs that I never thoroughly checked as the culprit. I just wanted to remind people that car problems are like health problems, many of the symptoms can overlap and can cause a misdiagnosis. Just a reminder never to be too sure about an issue.
To reword the entire story on a brighter note: I completely lost one of my wheels at 35 mph and came away without a scratch the the car, even the rim is absolutely fine.
It's the first time that I've felt the C32 on brand new tires, the wheels are spinning so damn fast!!!!!!! WOW!!!! /////AMG POWER!!!!
Last week I was flying up a hill in the C32 and out of nowhere is a speed hump. I brake hard, skid a little and hit the hump. I didn't think it was so bad. Heading home I heard a loud thumping noise and felt it in the seat.
I figured it was a seperated belt in the tire or loose lug bolts. Considering that the tires were very very old and very worn I was lead to believe that it was a tire issue. I ordered new tires, specially ordered pirelli's, 300 a pop, they said it would be 2 weeks. For 2 weeks not drive?? I gotta eat and stuff!!!
In the meantime, I did not do an adequate examination of the lug bolts. I looked at the wheel, the lugs, felt around but never took out the tool like I should have. The crappy tire was so suspect to me, and when i drove at 5mph, I felt what I'd describe as a bubble every time.
As I'm waiting for my new tires, I only drive the car nice and easy and close to home. Over the weekend, I'm driving at about 35mph thinking that I'm only risking a blown tire when I hear a subtle pop and I slow the car down. "Dammmit, I blew the tire"... I get out of the car and walk to the suspect wheel, but the tire isn't flat. All 5 lugs had sheared off, the rotor/hub dropped the 4" gap and the wheel is sitting there in place with the rotor resting gently on the inside of it, on the rim. I couldn't believe it.
I still don't know exactly why this happened other than a disturbance in the even motion of the wheel causing the laws of physics to put unecessary stress on very cold pieces of relatively thin metal. Two remaining lugs, freshly snapped were dangling there, the others were nowhere to be found. They must have snapped off one by one. I couldn't even put on the spare because the tips of all 5 lugs were still in the rotor.
This was likely a stupid mistake on my part as I'm leaning towards loose lugs that I never thoroughly checked as the culprit. I just wanted to remind people that car problems are like health problems, many of the symptoms can overlap and can cause a misdiagnosis. Just a reminder never to be too sure about an issue.
To reword the entire story on a brighter note: I completely lost one of my wheels at 35 mph and came away without a scratch the the car, even the rim is absolutely fine.
It's the first time that I've felt the C32 on brand new tires, the wheels are spinning so damn fast!!!!!!! WOW!!!! /////AMG POWER!!!!
Last edited by 400+ HPC32 AMG; 01-11-2011 at 08:52 PM.
