rdkeisman

A couple of weeks ago my wife had a nail in her r/r tire (not flat) so I went to put the spare on for her. It was dark and I didn't notice on the spare it said to use different lug bolts for the spare. I put the long ones in although I had to force them a little (mistake) and when I when to tried to drive the car it wouldn't move. Then I read the manual and put the shorter lug bolts on. She started having a vibration at around 65 mph when we got the tire fixed. I thought maybe I warped the rotor so I changed brakes and rotors on the rear but still had the same problem. Thinking that the tire was defective I had new ones put on and balanced but she still has the vibration at 65 mph. The lug bolts were not stripped out. I hate to have to go to the dealership to have it fixed for such a stupid mistake but I don't know what else to do.
It is a 03 C240 sedan.
Any ideas?

mleskovar

Bearing shot, bent rim,or bent axel?

Musikmann

I'm probably the wrong one to comment on this because I like my dealer. However, I would like to say that they are not all out to steal from you (hence the common term stealership on here) or to make fun of you for what is most likely a very common mistake with the spare tire lug nuts.

What comes to my mind is that your owner's manual recommends a precise torque for the lugs (sounds ridiculous I know, but that might be your problem). And as has already been mentioned, maybe you bent the rim when you forced the longer nuts into the wheel.

In any event, good luck!

fixbenz

if you put the wrong bolts on the rear..... long bolts in the spare...it will destroy the parking brake assembly , and most of the major players on the axle, it's
been a while since ive done one of these...so i cant recall all the damaged parts.

does the parking brake still work..??..
if you arent sure..always get a second opinion

i have seen this problem happen several times..so you arent the only one, that has done this

hineywineries

I concur. Used to happen all the time when MB went from steel to alloys.

autobuzz

have you check the mercedes axle? it could be bad and needs a replacement. also try checking transmission mount and the motor mounts. good luck, hope you'll figure it out soon.