Well a couple of weeks ago I started a thread about a vibration that I felt in the wheels right around 80 mph. It had been driving me crazy as I have had the whole suspension changed and all tires balanced and still the vibration was there.

https://themustangsource.com/f726/sl...n-80-a-486020/

When looking at my wheels the other day. It occurred to me that the locking nut that came with the car is quite larger than the rest of the lugs. So I decided to take them off and compare them to the extra lugs I have. Lo and behold there is a significant weight difference. I did not weigh them but it was noticeable enough when holding one in each hand.

So I put the factory lugs back on and sure enough. No more vibration at 80 or anywhere for that matter.

So just a heads up to all.

Hopefully the vibration for the last 3000 miles has no long term effect. But I will report it to my dealer next time I go in just to make sure.

 

Thats weird...are they all the same size like that? Or did you get one that was made or put in wrong?

I have them on my 05 and have not noticed any difference in their size weight in comparison to the regular lugs.

 

really? will take a look at mine and weigh the differences.

 

Well this explains it, I remember your thread and when I picked up my car I noticed that there was no vibration like you were reporting. Explains why, I don't have the security package.

 

I have the security package and don't notice any vibration. Smooth as silk. The locking lugs ARE installed.

 

Maybe I got the crappy set....lol

Who knows just putting out there what I found out on mine.

But I will say all the vibration is now gone. Maybe you just haven't found the speed at which the vibration shows up. If I zip by 80 and drive at 85 I would not feel it. It was only when I would drive at 78 - 83 that it would rear its ugly head.

 

Well that would be speeding... I'm sure I'd never do that. Again.

 

Maybe your wheel is out of balance and the lug nut is just heavy enough to cause noticeable vibration.

 

Yes, you ought to install the locking lug nuts, and have your Dealer rebalance your wheels. It also could be somthing else causing the vibration. I put mine on last week and so far no vibration......

 

Maybe. they have been balanced already by a shop that is very good. I have been using them for years. The next step was to road force balance. But it appears that is no longer necessary as the problem has stopped. But there is definately a big difference in weight from lug nut to lock nut.

 

Also, isn't there something about some clips on the lug bolts between the wheel and rotor? Seems like when some have changed wheels and had balance probs afterwards they found they needed to remove all the clips from behind the stock wheel...



PS: I have the wheel locks from the factory and mine drives fine throughout the (legal) speed range.

 

Nothing strange about the locking lug being heavier than the rest, every car I've ever owned with locking lugs were a bit heavier.
But what is strange is that would cause vibration when you drive. They are close to the hub and not attached to the wheel.

But if removing them and putting the regular lugs on stopped the vibration, well it's easy to deduce that on your car that's what the issue was.

 

I've also noticed the steering wheel do the same shake as if a wheel needed balancing, and it happened to be at 80mph. Mine also has the security package. Will look into this further.

 

That small difference in the weight of the lugs being so close to the center of the rotation just can't have that much affect on the balance to be causing a vibration. It is more likely that when you changed the lug back to a plain one that the re-torque corrected some mis-alignment or something of that nature. Locking lugs of exactly the same design as the ones from Ford have been used on hundreds of thousands of cars without any out of balance problems so it is just not likely that the problem was the lug.

 

yeah I had them removed when I got the tires balanced. That did not help.

 

Maybe but the tires have been off this car several times already (the whole suspension for that matter) and the problems has always been there. Maybe it has something to do with the extra sensitive steering that they have added to the car. As the vibration is more pronouned when in sport mode.

 

Hmmmm...makes me wonder about my truck if the same principal can be true there also? I have a shutter at 51-54 MPH if I cruise there, not if I just pass by it. I always thought it was Dodges crappy tranny, but I do have locking lugs. Not saying it's true or the issue, just a thought. Back on topic.

 

Funny because I was rooting around the trunk and saw the bag of wheel locks -- The dealer didn't install them but I was going to ask them to when I got my oil changed...

 

I have been using wheel locks for many years, without a problem. I was told, when I first used them, to look at the wheel and put the lock on the stud opposite the wheel weights. I just put a set of McGard (Ford) locks on and have not had any problems.

 

I have run with and without.
With them on I never noticed any vibration.
Many times with them on at 100mph+ and it felt smooth as silk.
Being so close to the center of rotational mass I don't see how much it matters.