Vibration at high speed CAN happen if your rims are bent. You may have brand new tires, but that is irrelevant.

This happens when the rims have changed their shape a little bit and they look like an egg rather than a circle, or one side of them is not as round after you hit a pot hole.

It could be other things, but redoing the front wheels is the cheapest solution, if that doesn't help, then you need to get a mechanic to inspect your car.

 

Seems like an out of round/balance wheel would present itself long before 120. Something as subtle as "a cell phone in vibration mode" could be caused by something as arcane as the tread on your tires causing some sort of harmonic resonance through out the vehicle. The kind of tires you are running and the kind of road surfaces this has occurred on might be some things to consider.

Slightly worn or defective front end parts could be in play as well, perhaps a small flaw in an axle or joint. I would see if over time it gets worse by occasionaly probing the 120 area, but I would not operate at those speeds too often until the problem is resolved.

It will probably take some time/troubleshooting before this is resolved. Small, chronic symptoms are the hardest to diagnose.

Rusty

 

Warm welcome to the forum.

Has the dealer also confirmed the symptom (guess that might be difficult unless they have access to a track!)? Reason I am asking is that sometimes symptoms can be perceived in different ways by different people. I can sense vibration on certain road surfaces even at 70mph and then nothing at the same speed on a different road – in this case I know my car was quite sensitive to feedback from small ripples/ridges in a badly laid out road.

However, if you are feeling the same vibration on different roads then balancing may still be a possibility. I discovered recently that not all wheel balancing equipment is created equal. After getting my wheels balanced at a high street chain, I could still feel vibrations around 80mph. Took it to my dealer who recently invested in specialist balancing equipment for high performance vehicles which somehow factors in a lot more variables and aspects of the wheel and tyres when balancing. After getting the car back from them the vibrations were gone.

Has your dealer eliminated other basics like tyre specification, pressure, alignment and tracking?

 

It could also be a flat spot on one or some of the tires. My GranTurismo seems to have a vibration through the wheel on high speed braking. Dealer doesn't seem to think the rotors are warped, still have no clue on whats wrong exactly.

 

Thank you everybody for your prompt reply and warm welcome. I am very happy with my Maserati and despite I don't have the opportunity to drive it fast often this little problem is like a pebble on the shoe!

I am working with my dealer to troubleshoot this and they have been using the high performance balancing equipment, I believe my dealer should have the right equipment and the technical capacity as they sell and service other high end exotics as well.

I have been able to reproduce this vibration always at 120mph and over under hard acceleration or cruising and any roads. I assume that the vibration is always there but it only becomes perceivable when it is amplified at high speeds.

I will ask my dealer to try the car with different set of wheels and tires, I hope they can arrange that and then we need to find the opportunity to drive the car fast! Once I clear this then we should continue to other parts.

Once again thank you and if you think of something else please let me know.

Regards

 

Hi YanezDavid,
did you get to the bottom of the issue?

I am facing the same on my 09 GTS / had my workshop look at it but problem could not be identified /
going through different threads I understand issue could be tyres flatspots / wheel alignements / wheel bearings so keen to read from you and others on their advices.

cheers
Tonio_1

 

if it's in the wheels tires, try getting them road force balanced. High end shops should have the equipment.

 

I had vibrations that couldn't be remedied until I bought new tires and then did a high-speed "finish balance" at a local shop. They spin them up to 120 mph while on the car. It was silky smooth up to 145 mph ;-)

 

Just reviving this thread as I'm having the same issue. Has anyone experienced different repairs required other than balancing?

 

high speed has got to be tires or rims. Tie rods or other mechanical components would give vibrations at lower speeds.

 

I have this issue as well at speeds around 60mph+. It worse on some roads than others - in fact it is worst on a piece of highway that is freshly paved and really smooth in any other car. it feels like resonance or some sort of harmonic vibration. I suspect I either need new front tires or an alignment.

 

Agreed, this is typically just wheels or tires creating the vibration. In can sometimes be wheel bearings or other issues but usually it's going to be a less than perfect balance job, bent wheels or even defective tires.

Typically you will first check the tire / wheel balance, let the shop know you're having trouble with vibration and want their best guy to do the balance and to not cut corners. Don't be in a hurry and let them take their time to do a good job. Ask them to also look for a bent wheel while spinning them on the balancer, as often you can see the problem.

You can try swapping wheels, but sometimes even after changing to different wheels, you can find that it's actually a tire with a flat spot or some other defect that is causing the issue

It's worth mentioning that if a driver of the car has ever locked up the brakes hard at high speed, you can permanently flat spot the tires which will cause a vibration. Storing the car for long periods can create a flat spot as well but that will usually go away after a bit of driving.

Hope this helps!

 

Sounds good, I'll start by getting the alignment and balance checked. Thanks

 

Ok, new wheels and tires on and fresh alignment done, still noticing some vibration through the steering wheel when both accelerating and coasting at Hwy speeds, have not been back to track to reach very high speed.

Not easy to Internet diagnose I realize but any other comments or ideas are welcome.

 

Well, update on my prior post where I was getting vibration at above 60mph. Today my check air pressure warning came on. Three tires at 29 pounds and one at 27.

After topping up all four tires to 32 pounds, all my vibration is gone...

 

Just to confirm, you now have fresh (new) wheels and (new) tires that are recently balanced or are these just new to you but are used?

Does this vibration happen even when you shift to Neutral? Any noises or anything else worth noting besides a bit of vibration?

 

New wheels and tires, no noises at all. Will check neutral next Hwy trip. Thanks