Tire Vibration Issues on new Navigators

[NavigatorPro]

Hello everyone! I have read several posts on tire vibration issues when the vehicle is new. 22+ inch tires are very difficult to balance and the factory is simply not equipped to perform a perfect balance. What you need to balance those tires to perfection is a RoadForce Elite balancing machine. Most Ford/Lincoln dealerships do have such a machine and you can find shops that have this Elite machine on the RoadForce website. Basically its tough to mass produce cars with big wheels/tires and get the perfect balance. It takes a specialized machine and an experienced mechanic at the machine to get it done to perfection. Only RoadForce makes such machines. I dont know of any other company that makes them.

Please understand this is NOT a Navigator problem, but a problem with all 22+ inch tires on all vehicles. When I had a Suburban with 18 inch tires I got them mounted and balanced at a shady 24 hour tire shop in NYC...no vibration issues. However, that cant be done with 22 inch tire/wheels and not even the factory can balance them to perfection. So lets say you get a Cadillac Escalade you will probably have the same vibration problem.

Ford took a big risk with 24 inch tires on the Navigator.

Honestly, right now I am in the process of converting my Navigator to 20 inch wheels tires. I will post photos and a summary of it when done. I am in the limousine/livery business and put over 70k miles on my vehicles each year. I have come to the conclusion that I can no longer deal with 22 inch tires/wheels. These 22s are not practical for the industry I am in.

 

[Lincoln777]

“All 22+ inch tires vibrate.” Not inevitably. With low RFV tires, straight wheels, and proper mounting, 22–24s can ride very well. They’re just less forgiving.