Possible slipped tire belt? Need help!

Joined
Oct 13, 2021
Messages
4
Do I have a slipped belt inside of one of my front tires?

Car: 2011 Infiniti G37S sedan with 225/50/18 front and 245/45/18 rear, 97K miles on car.

Problem: About two weeks ago the car started making excessive noise in the front. Sounds like a wheel bearing or tire noise. The noise has gotten worse over the last two weeks or so. The noise I can hear comes on at around 15-20 mph. After that road noise drowns it out. I also get steering wheel vibration at around 65-80 mph. After about 85-95 mph the vibration goes away. The strange thing is after about 10 miles of driving the vibration goes away at any speed. In those 10 miles, sometimes it feels like the front wheels are "bouncing" at highway speed. It's like a rhythmic cyclic bouncing sensation.

What I've done so far: The car has brand new front hubs and bearings (both sides), brand new rotors and pads all around. Discount tire did a Road-Force balance and wheel matched the tires to the rims. I've had the front tires balance 3 times and the problem persists. Discount tire says that they are balanced. They did not notify me of any bulges or irregularities in the tires.

Thoughts: The only thing I can think of is that one or both of the front tires has a slipped belt. The tires have about 38K miles on them. They are rated for 80k. The tires are General Altimax RT43. This car drives absolutely great otherwise and is dead reliable. Just want to fix this annoying problem. I don't mind spending money to get new front tires, but if it something else I am open to suggestions.

Thank you!

Car in question:

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Try rotating the tires to see if that helps or moves the problem. Just curious any chance you have a bad shock?

Just my $0.02
Since this car is the Sport model with standard staggered fitment (225F & 245R), I can't rotate front to back. I also don't know which side on the front the vibration and noise is coming from. I feel like it's the drivers side, but not 100%. I think the tires are non-directional so I could swap the fronts (left to right), but I don't think that would help to solve the mystery.

I'm honestly not sure if it is a bad shock. No suspension noises or handling issues. The car rides great. :confused:
 
Welcome to BITOG 🥳

What kind of hubs and bearings did you use? :unsure:

If you flip the tires, see if the noise goes from one side to the other
Thanks for the welcome!

I used Timken from Rockauto. The hubs/bearings are one piece for the G37S.

Do you mean flip the tire on each rim or just move the front wheels from left to right?

I looked it up and the General Altimax RT43 are not directional, so I guess I can do this.
 
Thanks for the welcome!

I used Timken from Rockauto. The hubs/bearings are one piece for the G37S.

Do you mean flip the tire on each rim or just move the front wheels from left to right?

I looked it up and the General Altimax RT43 are not directional, so I guess I can do this.

Just move the front wheels from left to right.
 
I had two Kumho's on my 300ZX where they became "out of round" due to separation. Gave me the same symptoms as you're experiencing. Put the car on a jack and rotate the wheels by hand and see if you notice any "out of roundness" as your tires rotate. If you have separation it'll be very obvious.
 
First, there are no such things a "Slipped Belts". There are "separated belts" and sometimes those are incorrectly called "slipped".
So rub a GLOVED hand over the tread circumference. The glove is to protect your hand from possible wires sticking out.

You are looking for a bulge. If you find one, drive SLOWLY to the tire shop and replace that tire.

But since the problem goes away, I'm voting for flat spotting where a tire takes a set after sitting in one spot and gradually the flat spot works its way out (due to heat). Try using more inflation pressure (say +5 psi) and see if that changes things. If it does, then it is likely a flat spotting phenomenon.
 
Thanks for the advice so far. I will try inflation pressure first, then move around wheels and then check the hub.
 
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