Rabbi Mike

Drove the silver champ ('11 V6 Pony vert) from New York to California. Made it to Oakland feeling fine.

I love the driving in Northern California . . . but I started to feel like the car "floated" a bit in turns. The OEM Pirellis had 35k, and were worn out on the outer edges up front, so I figured new tires and an alignment would settle all issues.

Did the uneven wear mean there was a problem? No, the tech at Mark Morris Tires (a small chain here in the Bay Area) assured me. Just needed that alignment.

Splurged on a set of (union made!) BFGoodrich gForce Sport Comp2s. Feels better, but (maybe?) still not quite right . . . not tracking sure . . . still that floaty feeling, like a mild hydroplaning (?) . . . Brought it back to Mark Morris, who rechecked it and said it was fine.

Sooooo . . . Could it be something in the electric power steering? Maybe I'm imagining it? Am I crazy? (always a possibility) . . . Or has anyone else felt something similar?

Michael Broadway

Mike - I have a 2012 GT and I've never experienced what you're describing. The only thing I can suggest is that you may be experiencing what is known as tramlining. I don't want to insult you by explaining it, but a lot of people aren't familiar with the term or the symptoms, so don't be insulted if I explain. Tramlining is the tendency of the front end to "wander" and it is especially noticeable when you have wide tires and a bit of an uneven road surface. My Corvette with the 35 width tires was terrible about it. I've noticed it some on the Mustang but not as bad. I don't know if this might be what you're experiencing or not, but I just thought I'd throw it out since no one else had replied.

Rabbi Mike

Not insulted at all . . . fascinating. I never heard of this, so I looked it up. Tirerack has a comprehensive article, but I'm not sure of the solution.

Not so keen on replacing the tires, as I just spent $1000 on this set. Could bushings or shock mounts be at fault? Seems unlikely at 43000 miles, no?

Am I reading their article right in that it's saying I should have the car re-aligned with negative camber and toe? Did you try that with the Vette?

Hmmm . . . .

laserred38

The negative camber will help. I live in San Leandro and my '00 on 275s (also on BFG...SuperSport A/S) wandered all over the place. It isn't as bad on the 245s, but it goes with the territory. Our roads have a lot of lines running through them, running the same direction as the lane. It's for rain dissipation. Try driving on 880 towards San Jose, you won't feel it as much on the newer black top. The older parts of 580 and 880 though, especially in Oakland, you'll get a lot of wander. I had my '00 set at -1.5* camber but I don't remember the toe settings.