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Tribeca Chassis Vibration

2006 Tribeca with a chassis vibration! Can Anyone Help?
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Probably a bad strut or a broken/damaged spring.
At one point Subaru had a recall for the Outback for springs that could rust under certain conditions, but your Tribeca is new so that's doubtful.
You can only notice it on smooth roads, so it's not a major vibration, but it IS noticeable. It seems to shudder at the same speed, regardless of gear or RPM, and even while coasting.
My service adviser (as is typical) is clueless. Any suggestions on what I should tell him to tell the mechanic to look for?
-mike
My current status: Dealer tried balancing tires: No effect.
Dealer tried rotating tires: no effect.
Service adviser doesn't know what a road force balance machine is. doesn't understand resonance frequencies, doesn't know if the mechanic has a map of the frequencies and their likely causes, doesn't know if they have an accelerometer setup to measure the frequency.
But... he's friendly.
It appears as if I'll be living with this for the next 8 years.
-mike
Frankly- all the roads around the dealer that we test drove it on were just bumpy enough to make it difficult to really discern the (admittedly) slight vibration. My service adviser took out another new Tribeca for a ride and claimed that it felt the same as mine.
I guess this is why the Lexus RX costs $10K more. Not that it doesn't vibrate- but I'll bet they take a calibrated accelerometer for a ride and collect actual vibration magnitude and frequency data.
Subaru Australia suggested removing the roof racks. I did and the vibration disappeared. At that speed & the wind blowing in a certain direction made the bars resonant & caused a vibration to appear
Putting the racks back on this weekend to see what happens
Any thought? I go back to the dealer on Thursday. Do other 2007 owners have a smooth quite ride? Am I being to critical of the ride? I'm about to give up on this vehicle :lemon: . Maybe I'll ask to drive an 2008 to compare the ride when I'm at the dealer...
Needless to say I am at 9600 miles and still have the problem. Went to new dealer for service and they told the tires were out of balance and re-balanced them. Still having the same problem though. No one seems to be able to fix it even agree that it is a problem.
Are you still having the issue?
If they were flat-spotted driving on them more doesn't fix that. I think you need new tires.
Flat Spotted= brakes were locked up and/or car slid sideways flattening out the tread in a particular part of the tire. Very rare on street cars, somewhat common on non-abs race/track cars. Usually this happens when you lockem up and spin or lock em up under hard braking going into a turn on the track.
Out of Round= tires sat for a long time under-inflated and therefore are now oblong shaped. This can also be a result of broken or hyperextended cables in the tires.
-mike
It's not really a 'flat spot' but that's the easiest way to describe it. Tires are not completely uniform, and often they have a part of the sidewall or tread that is thicker or firmer than the other parts. Even if the tire is balanced, the firmer spot is felt when driving.
Increasing tire pressure does sometimes helps, as it essentially makes the whole tire firmer, and masks the problem. Of course, it will detract slightly from handling and ride quality.
Many dealers will have a Hunter road force balance machine to check this aspect of tire irregularity.
"> I have had my 08 Subaru Tribeca for about four(4) months and I am very
> disappointed in the way it runs and equally disappointed in the response
> that I have gotten from Kerven and the District Fixed Operations Manager
> (Jim Hoffman). The vehicle hesitates, "surges" and overall does not run
> well during highway driving. From a stop it will sometimes hesitate and
> other times "surge" forward when the accelerator is depressed and this is
> a safety issue especially in a parking lot or other tight driving
> situations. When driving on the highway (60-70mph) the vehicle "shudders"
> and hesitates/surges when trying to accelerate or maintain speed on an
> incline. This is very noticeable and happens every time I drive it. This
> is not how a new vehicle is supposed to operate. The first time I had it
> to Kerven they told me the tires were out of balance. The second time
> they said they recreated the problem but there was nothing they could do
> about it and I was referred to Mr. Hoffman. He took
> the vehicle for a test drive and said that it is an engineering problem
> and that there is nothing he can do. Not only is this NOT how a new
> vehicle should run, there is also a safety issue involved here. If the
> vehicle cannot be fixed then I would like to return it for a refund. I am
> even willing to pay a fair and reasonable amount for the miles I have put
> on this vehicle. Please let me know how you plan to fix this problem.
> Thank you."
I still do not have any resolution but I did manage to get an extended warranty and a 45,000 mile maintenance agreement.
I am not mechanically inclinded, so bear with me. It looks like they replaced the torque converter, the turbine speed sensor &/or o-ring. He also mentioned that he "re-flashed" it. I think he means a software update. These repairs were just performed yesterday, so only time will tell if it is the correct fix. If you require more specifics, our mechanic's name is Tim and he works for Schumacher Subaru in West Palm Beach, FL.
I hope this helps!
Do you know if there is a TSB out on this problem?
My vibration is still there, and it is subtle. So, it's not too bothersome, but I do notice it from time to time.
I've also noticed that when the vehicle is cold (not real cold, but within a few minutes of starting in the morning 30-60 degreesF), I get hesitations. No check engine light though.
I have had three torque converters, numerous other parts and software upgrades.
Also more recently "anti-knock sensors". The dealer phoned me that the car is still doing the same thing. Subaru Canada seems to be grasping at straws and based on the entries in this forum, I would have to think that they are about to have a major request for recall of this vehicle.
I am going to ask them to take it back.......This is now 30,000km and over 1 1/2 years of this CONSTANT problem. Enough is enough!
I just feel badly for the service people, who have tried everything and have been as helpful as they can.
Good luck to you all! :mad: :lemon: