# Small Vibration At Highway Speeds But Tires In Balance **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Tags:** vibration\ **Created:** [September 9, 2008, 11:49pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/small-vibration-at-highway-speeds-but-tires-in-balance/19366 "2008-09-09T23:49:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![pxwfile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/aca169/32.png) [@pxwfile](https://community.cartalk.com/u/pxwfile)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 11:49pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/small-vibration-at-highway-speeds-but-tires-in-balance/19366/1 "2008-09-09T23:49:44Z")
My car is a 2003 Chevy Malibu with 65,000 miles on it. A month ago, on the highway at 65 mph, I hit a rock or vehicle part. It was about the size of a softball, and it caused a 3-inch gash in my right rear tire, and a big dent in the center of the rim, gouging the metal. I replaced the tire and rim (used), but still had a minor vibration. After a new set of tires, good balancing (I’ve had some bad ones), alignment, and a brand new rim, there is still a small vibration at highway speeds over 60 mph. That’s when I notice it, anyway. The shops I’ve been to say that everything on the car is fine, it’s aligned, the tires are balanced, and nothing is damaged. But I know how smoothly it rode before, so I know something is amiss. My guess is the wheel bearings, but they can’t easily be taken out like in the old days. Any other ideas? ---
**Author:** ![pxwfile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/aca169/32.png) [@pxwfile](https://community.cartalk.com/u/pxwfile)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 11:53pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/small-vibration-at-highway-speeds-but-tires-in-balance/19366/2 "2008-09-09T23:53:51Z")
P.S. The best word to describe the vibration is a “flutter”. It’s not very obvious, but I feel it in the gas pedal and seat. ---
**Author:** ![mcparadise](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/mcparadise/32/32_2.png) [@mcparadise](https://community.cartalk.com/u/mcparadise)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2008, 12:57am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/small-vibration-at-highway-speeds-but-tires-in-balance/19366/3 "2008-09-10T00:57:25Z")
How did this impact manage to miss the right front wheel/tire? ---
**Author:** ![pxwfile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/aca169/32.png) [@pxwfile](https://community.cartalk.com/u/pxwfile)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2008, 11:51pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/small-vibration-at-highway-speeds-but-tires-in-balance/19366/4 "2008-09-11T23:51:36Z")
I was able to shift over when I saw it, but it was too close. Since my car is not very nimble, I did not want to make any sharp turns. The road may also have had a slight curve/rise to it, which is why I didn’t see it soon enough. ---
**Author:** ![ScoGold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@ScoGold](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ScoGold)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2009, 6:27pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/small-vibration-at-highway-speeds-but-tires-in-balance/19366/5 "2009-02-07T18:27:33Z")
I have a 2003 Malibu too, but since I’ve had the car I have noticed a vibration in the steering wheel occasionally when I reached speeds that were over 75 mph. I just assumed that this was because the car never was meant to go this fast. I have had my wheels re-aligned, balanced, two sets of tires put on and nothing has really solved the issue. I’m not a car person, but I wanted to let you know that you’re not the only one having problems like this with your Malibu. Do you also notice a slight creaking noise when you make turns, especially when the car is cold?