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Hi folks, my car (GLS550 2019, 48k miles) has been sent to the dealership for repairing issues that possiblely cause by "wheel misalignment, tire imbalance, toe misalignment". However, the dealer fixed twice but still failed.
Following are the symptoms:
When driving slowly (20-30 mph) on the local road (very smooth asphalt road), I heard a noise that sounded like interior or seat friction. I suspect it is caused by some kind of lightweight vibration.
When driving on the highway (very smooth asphalt road), at around 68 +/- 5 mph, I felt strong vibration from both the steering wheel and driver seat.
When driving on the highway, the passenger headrest is vibrating. When the speed is around 80 mph, the vibration sometimes is strong enough to make noise.
When driving on the highway, at around 60 mph, I can hear a rhythmic, constant droning/thumping noise from the chassis. This noise is quite different from plain road noise or wind noise.
Very appreciate if you could share your insights on these issues. Attach the overview of the nice red SUV:-)
2012 C63;1971 280SE 3.5(Sold);2023 EQS 450 SUV 4 Matic (Wife's)
Sounds like a bad tire(s) to me. Maybe get a road force balance to see if you can determine which tire(s) if any is out of spec. From the sound of it (vibration through the steering wheel) at least one suspect tire is on the front axle.
Sounds like a bad tire(s) to me. Maybe get a road force balance to see if you can determine which tire(s) if any is out of spec. From the sound of it (vibration through the steering wheel) at least one suspect tire is on the front axle.
Thanks Mort for the quick reply.
May I ask what "bad tire" means? Different spec (e.g. weight, wear) from other 3 tires, or imbalance, misalignment?
I double checked the CPO service history from the dealership when I bought the car (Jan 2021). There are two items related to tires:
I have no idea about what they exactly means, but seems the dealer indeed adjusted 3 tires (maybe another tire is bad?) I really appreciate any insights.
Bent wheel? And what tires? The OEM Continentals are terrible, they would never balance out right. I got some Michelin Pilot Sport A/S and they're smooth as glass.
Bent wheel? And what tires? The OEM Continentals are terrible, they would never balance out right. I got some Michelin Pilot Sport A/S and they're smooth as glass.
Thank FWP! for your insights.
Yeah, the tire is Continental Cross-Contact. Your suggestion inspired me to check the manufacture date of each tire, as the dealer only replaced 3 out of 4 tires when CPO service.
The car was made in Nov 2018, and the manufacture date of 4 tires are:
44th week 2018
39th week 2020
40th week 2020
2nd week 2021
The car was purchase in Jan 2021, with mileage of 38k, and the dealer replaced 3 tires. The remaining one must be made at 44th week 2018.
I just checked the tire tread, the 2018's tire tread has not reached the 2/32 inchs, but it's 2mm less than 2020's tire. Notable the older tire runs 38k miles than other three. I suspect tread gap might cause imbalance and vibration, does that make sense? Thanks!
Yeah, the tire is Continental Cross-Contact. Your suggestion inspired me to check the manufacture date of each tire, as the dealer only replaced 3 out of 4 tires when CPO service.
The car was made in Nov 2018, and the manufacture date of 4 tires are:
44th week 2018
39th week 2020
40th week 2020
2nd week 2021
The car was purchase in Jan 2021, with mileage of 38k, and the dealer replaced 3 tires. The remaining one must be made at 44th week 2018.
I just checked the tire tread, the 2018's tire tread has not reached the 2/32 inchs, but it's 2mm less than 2020's tire. Notable the older tire runs 38k miles than other three. I suspect tread gap might cause imbalance and vibration, does that make sense? Thanks!
If a wheel isn't bent, then I'd be willing to bet money that if you put new, different tires on, the vibrations would stop. The cross contacts are notorious for never being able to get balanced properly, even after being put on the most up to date versions of the road force balancers.
If a wheel isn't bent, then I'd be willing to bet money that if you put new, different tires on, the vibrations would stop. The cross contacts are notorious for this.
That makes sense! Thank you for the suggestion. I think the bent is fixed, as the dealership tole me. I will contact the dealership about the tire issue.
The dealer returned the car to me, and the issue was fixed. The root cause is the continental tire!
The dealer happend to have another GLS550. They replaced my tires with the ones from another GLS550, and did road test. After rounds of replacement with different combinations (e.g. front left + right rear), they identified my front two tires were problematic.
Then the dealer ordered two new continental tires from their tire distributor. However, the issue was still there. Seems the brand new continental tires were also prolbematic. The dealer send all tires (including two new ones and my all four ties) back to the distributor, and the distributor did full quality test on these tires.
Finally, the distributor gave up the forementioned 2 new ties and relaced 3 of 4 tires. The issue was gone.
I'll add that as many know, the GLS550 with the huge 21" wheels will probably always manifest tire noise / issues. I took mine to an independent repair / alignment shop and asked them to set the camber as close to zero as possible especially on the back. Factory spec for the camber is pretty significant which leads to the inside edges of the tires cupping early. This cupping leads to the droning / pulsing noise - very annoying on a nice vehicle like yours.
So, I had the four-wheel alignment done by an independent shop with the camber all around set as close to zero as they could (rear camber IS adjustable on the 550), and I had all four tires replaced with Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4's. No more cyclical droning and less tire cupping.
The dealer returned the car to me, and the issue was fixed. The root cause is the continental tire!
The dealer happend to have another GLS550. They replaced my tires with the ones from another GLS550, and did road test. After rounds of replacement with different combinations (e.g. front left + right rear), they identified my front two tires were problematic.
Then the dealer ordered two new continental tires from their tire distributor. However, the issue was still there. Seems the brand new continental tires were also prolbematic. The dealer send all tires (including two new ones and my all four ties) back to the distributor, and the distributor did full quality test on these tires.
Finally, the distributor gave up the forementioned 2 new ties and relaced 3 of 4 tires. The issue was gone.
Yea, not surprised at all. But you're stuck with the Continentals still though?
I should have gone for michelin or Perilli. There was some legal argument between the dealer and me. According to the settlement, the dealer covers all labor fees until the vibration issue is fixed, and I just need to pay for new tires.
I aksed the dealer if they replace with Michelin, according to FWP!'s suggestion above. However, the dealer can only replace with Continentals, as it's MB's OEM supplier.
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