Chillihead Posted September 28, 2007 Report Share Posted September 28, 2007 Hi, I think I saw a post on this subject before, sorry, I couldn't find it............... When crossing the white lines on motorways at speeds above 60, I have noticed, what I can only describe as, a sliding sensation, brief and with no discernible danger. It is almost as though the car is losing traction/rolling on the tyre walls. I have been to a tyre fitter who has checked all side walls, balance and tracking. No faults found. He was at a loss. I have SP 9000's all round 235/45/17, all Z rated, all + 6mm. Car is quattro, with ESP and not really driven that hard, well not all the time . Anyone have an incling? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cosmicblue Posted September 29, 2007 Report Share Posted September 29, 2007 [ QUOTE ] Hi, I think I saw a post on this subject before, sorry, I couldn't find it............... When crossing the white lines on motorways at speeds above 60, I have noticed, what I can only describe as, a sliding sensation, brief and with no discernible danger. It is almost as though the car is losing traction/rolling on the tyre walls. I have been to a tyre fitter who has checked all side walls, balance and tracking. No faults found. He was at a loss. I have SP 9000's all round 235/45/17, all Z rated, all + 6mm. Car is quattro, with ESP and not really driven that hard, well not all the time . Anyone have an incling? [/ QUOTE ] I know that weird squirmy feeling too.....it is caused by the ruts in the road surface that the big trucks leave on some stretches of the motorway.....you can sometimes see the two pairs of twin ruts or channels, more often then not you can't. The sensation is that the rear of the car is going to do something very worrying - It reminds me of a rear wheel puncture on a motorcycle, it isn't a feeling you forget in a hurry.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soulboy Posted September 29, 2007 Report Share Posted September 29, 2007 Yep. I have just bought a B7 quattro and get that same 'sideways sliding' feeling when the car touches any white lines. I was wondering if it was the tyres? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MGquattro Posted September 29, 2007 Report Share Posted September 29, 2007 Get the wheel alignment checked out properly. On the Quattro all four wheels can be adjusted not just the front ones. Not a job for your local Kwik Fit. Did make a massive difference to the handling of my B6 avant. Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanG Posted October 1, 2007 Report Share Posted October 1, 2007 This, I believe is called 'tram lining' and is something to do with having all wheel drive. My Avant Quattro used to try to throw itself into the hedges on uneven country roads! Very frightening. I have discovered that it is really important to have equal tyre pressure all the way around, and currently run mine (18' S-Line wheels) pumped up to 35 psi. This has gone a long way to curing the problem, so probably worth a try before going for re alignment. That said, check your tyres for signs of uneven wear and switch fronts to the rear after about 9k miles to get the most life from them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chillihead Posted October 1, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 1, 2007 Hi, thanks for all the advice, I have found a couple of other posts, it seems that it is the tyre being Z rated. I am off to a proper alignment specialist. I will report back. http://theoildrop.server101.com/forums/showflat.php?Number=958141 http://forums.naim-audio.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/58019385/m/6782933017 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
techieboy Posted October 1, 2007 Report Share Posted October 1, 2007 It's nothing to do with them being Z rated. The speed rating of the tyre has nothing to do with it. If the tyres are tramlining (which it sounds like they are) it's because of how wide the tyres are and how stiff the sidewalls of the tyres are. Tramlining is a drawback of wide tyres. Changing the suspension geometry may help alleviate some of the problems but probably at the cost of increased wear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soulboy Posted October 2, 2007 Report Share Posted October 2, 2007 [ QUOTE ] This, I believe is called 'tram lining' and is something to do with having all wheel drive. My Avant Quattro used to try to throw itself into the hedges on uneven country roads! Very frightening. I have discovered that it is really important to have equal tyre pressure all the way around, and currently run mine (18' S-Line wheels) pumped up to 35 psi. This has gone a long way to curing the problem, so probably worth a try before going for re alignment. That said, check your tyres for signs of uneven wear and switch fronts to the rear after about 9k miles to get the most life from them. [/ QUOTE ] Cheers for that. I am going to check the pressures. As the dealers hadn't checked the oil (it was below min ) I very much doubt they will have checked the pressures. And what about tyres? I have got Continentals on at the moment - any recommendations with Quattro? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanG Posted October 2, 2007 Report Share Posted October 2, 2007 We have Continentals on the Avant from the factory, which due to heavy abuse and roundabouts etc needed to be replaced at 15k miles. They seem fairly grippy, however in the wet at 35psi you can get understeer quite easily. IIRC they were £140 each to replace from Kwik Fit inc fitting. Our other A4 has Michelin Pilot Sport on it from the factory, although we have not had this one very long and its still being run in. I guess its what they have to hand on the day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soulboy Posted January 26, 2008 Report Share Posted January 26, 2008 Just dragged this thread back up. The tramlining was getting worse and worse especially on uneven roads. As I have moved to the sticks, it was becoming a real problem on country roads. so I have replaced the fronts at 9k miles - with the same Continental Sport Contact(?) - which were down to the wear indicators I am pleased to say it has thankfully eliminated 90% of the problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now