Tire Flatspot or Balance issue?

[toolatecrew]

My new to me 08 GTI had only 9000 km when I bought it. It sat in a garge A LOT before I bought it. WHen I test drove it it was obvious the sitting had flatspotted the tires. However it seemed to get better then more I drove it as the flatspots came out. I have put 1000 km on now and there is much less shake at speed but there is stilll a bot (mostly in the rear). Is it possible the tires are permantly mishaped and will never be smooth? Or can extended sitting and flatspot effect wheel balance and all I need is a rebalance?

[articsteve]

If the tires have never been off the rims it's very unlikely that it's a balancing issue with those low km.

It's possible that one of the rims is slightly bent from a concussion.  This is not always possible to observe by eye balling it.  One can see it on a balancer if you're there watching for it as you will see a wobble.

Try filling the tires with 50 psi and seeing if it's worse.  If it is then they are flat spotted.  However, in that case I would give it some time.

My money is on a slightly bent rim on the inside of one of the wheels due to a nasty pot hole.

[toolatecrew]

Thanks

Oh boy would I be ticked if one of those very expensive 18 inch rims were bent already. I don't even want to think about the cost of replacing one.

[quadzilla]

If the wheel is bent, check the VW forum as I've seen lots of 1 or 2 only for sale.

Question, does the flat spot go away after driving for a while, ie: when the tires get warm?  I've had a set of tires once that always felt like flat spots if left parked for two or more days. It would then take about 20km before they felt fully round again and the bump would go away.

[Squishy]

My winter tires on the Escape flatspot after sitting for a week.  Balancing issues disappear below 40-50 km/h unless they are really severe (undriveable at highway speeds).  Flatspotting or any other out-of-round condition can be felt as a very slight but rhythmic bump at slow speeds as well as high speeds.

[capriracer]

TooLate,

I'm voting for flatspots. 

If you haven't done so already, take your car on a minimum of a 30 minute drive at speeds above 70 mph.   Allow the tire to cool down by driving around at a much slower speed for another 30 minutes.  Then park it.

If that doesn't work, try letting 5 psi out of the rear tires and repeat the above procedure.

If that doesn't work, then the flat spots are probably permanent and the only solution is new tires.

If it does work, reinflate the tires and use a slightly higher than placard pressure to prevent a reoccurrance.

[tpl]

TooLate,

I'm voting for flatspots. 

If you haven't done so already, take your car on a minimum of a 30 minute drive at speeds above 70 mph.   Allow the tire to cool down by driving around at a much slower speed for another 30 minutes.  Then park it.

If that doesn't work, try letting 5 psi out of the rear tires and repeat the above procedure.

If that doesn't work, then the flat spots are probably permanent and the only solution is new tires.

If it does work, reinflate the tires and use a slightly higher than placard pressure to prevent a reoccurrance.

Does sitting by the side of the road getting a ticket count towards the heating or the cooling down?  or does it reset the 30 minutes so you have to start again?   

[toolatecrew]

Update

I discovered a sidewall bulge in the front tire. This is the likley culprit. Although I bout the car used things were fairly fortunate for me. The dealer the car was purchased from tacks an additional $25 onto PDI ( so origional owner paid it) for "road hazzard" on tires since there have been so many issues in the past getting tire companies to warranty OEM tires. Since the bulged tire still had more than 9 32 tread on it looks like the cost of the tire (over $200) will be covered!I need to pay for the balance but far better than it could have been.

The other front tire (also with only 10,000 km) had a puncture plugged on it at one time so I decided it would be best to replace the fronts as a pair and keep the other as a spare in case of future issues. yeah it still cost me some $  but I'm picky and saftey is #1.

I only hope that this was a fluke. If I were specing the car new I would have gone with the 17s. The 18s look nice. They fill the wheel wells. I'm sure it makes the handeling sharper but I'd be willing to give it up for less likleyhood of damage and maybe a bit of ride comfort reduced tire noise.