Many years ago I owned a Pontiac Fiero that had a rear caliper drag while I was on the highway heading home from work. I did question it while it was happening and so when I got home and smelled that famous smell, I thought I would cool down the alloy wheel with a light spray from my garden hose. The water sizzled everywhere, even at the outer edges of the alloy wheel by the rubber tire.
My point is that if the caliper drags for a while, the rim will GET THAT HOT, ripe for a tire blow-out.
W4MBG wrote: a TPMS with temperature sensing should pinpoint which one is getting hot.
True, very true. When I was making the 35 mile trip to Discount Tire I didn't notice anything wrong other than my gas gauge dropping. But coming home on the new tires all kinds of bad stuff happened. I did bring home the 6 year old Michelin LTX tires because the thread is like new but the other day I went to move one and the surface was like dull razor blades on end. I know it was a front tire because there is no sign of sidewall rubbing. I believe it was on the front right which had the frozen caliper. BTW, after removing the caliper only one end of the pad was wearing. One of the pistons was frozen shut.
If I had a TPMS would it have alerted me to just a rise in PSI and the rest I would have to assume or does it transmit temperature as well?
Then we have the problem of air leaks ala the valve extenders.
CamperKirk wrote: Well, I finally got my Bilstein shocks and Hellwig sways on and what a HUGE difference! The ride is soooo much better I cant beleive it. And, with that being done I was riding the turnpike at 65 mph with ease, comfort and confidence. Only thing it at 65 it had a strange vibration. Almost like you are riding the rumble strip, but not near that bad. It feels more like it coming through the steering wheel, but at the same time my wife feels it a little in the passenger seat. Now 64 and under it is super smooth. Tires are couple years new, wheel bearings have just been taken care of and front end is solid. It is a 1999 Ford E SuperDuty with the V10.
Thanks for any ideas.
Check your carrier bearing for the drive shaft. Also, inspect u-joints. Does the vibration subside when you release the accelerator and coast? Does it vibrate more or less under hard acceleration? If the vibration stays the same regaurdless then I would have to think that you have a tire balance issue. Our brand new E450 church bus has a vibration under load at higher speeds that, according to multiple dealerships, cannot be corrected. I guess this is what to expect when you drive a Ford product.
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But coming home on the new tires all kinds of bad stuff happened. I did bring home the 6 year old Michelin LTX tires because the thread is like new but the other day I went to move one and the surface was like dull razor blades on end. I know it was a front tire because there is no sign of sidewall rubbing. I believe it was on the front right which had the frozen caliper. BTW, after removing the caliper only one end of the pad was wearing. One of the pistons was frozen shut.
