2003 L200 Tires & Road Noise

Seems like a lot of common problems with the Firestone tires (quick wear) on
Saturns over the last few years. I've only got 25,000 miles on mine and
alot of wear. More importantly, I've got more road noise that increases
with the car speed and what feels like a tire balance problem when you get
up to 70-75 miles per hour (vibrating steering wheel). I've rotated the
tires a couple of times, but no improvement. While the tires have alot of
wear, it's pretty even. I've never had a tire balance problem this early in
the cars life (low mileage). Have any other late model Saturn owners
experienced this noise and vibration issue? Any luck in getting any work of
this nature done under warranty.

 

Tread wear is only one factor in buying tires. You want a tire that handles
well and stops well and rides well and is quiet during its usable life. If
I get that from a tire and it lasts only 25k miles, that's ok with me. A
lot of those tires that last forever, suck the whole time.

 

This was a common issue on 2002 & earlier vehicles, but I thought it was
cleared up by 2003. You may want to investigate these TSB's:

02-T-06 JAN 02 Suspension - Upper Strut Spring Seat Alignment
Revision
00-T-72A JUL 02 Steering/Suspension - Alignment Spacer Update

--
Dana
Port Kent, NY

"We have enough coal to last for 250 years, yet coal also prevents an
environmental challenge." GW Bush - Washington, D.C., April 20, 2005