Squrilly rear end in rain - new tires, bad wheel bearing

[Benny986]

did you get the same size tire that you had before?

the sumis are not a great tire, but they are not horrific either, and you should be able to drive at least within your limits on them.

check pressures. if they are too high and to a lesser extent if they are too low. it will be a bit un-nerving.

and yes, they will take a little while to scrub in.

what kind of tires do you have up front? if you have a really grippy front tire, with these on the rear, that would exaggerate the issue.

FWIW, i recently put on new tires. the fronts got lots wider. and i didn't get my full set of spacers yet, so i was spaced way out up front, and not in the back, and my toe was still way off, in the rear. but the car drove just fine on my old tires so i didn't bother with the toe yet.

with the new tires. re01-r, which is a GREAT tire BTW. the back end was all kinds of unstable.

i put the full set of spacers on front and rear, and i changed the toe by 1/8 per side. its super stable now. before driving at 70+ was a little sketch and the back end felt like it was about to whip out at any time. i was at 1/16 out on each side, for a total of 1/8th out. which is A LOT! but i was playing with settings to get the back end to be able to come around for autox. I am now 1/8 total toe in.

follow the advice above, but just know that alignments make a big deal. and always try to have matched tires front and rear.

GL.
Benny

[renzop]

If the tires had less than 50 miles on them when you encountered the rain, then I vote for mold release.

Mold release is sprayed on tire treads at the factory. It is a slippery liquid that makes it easier to get the tire out of the mold. It is usually left on the tire and it is really only practical to get it off by putting some mileage on the tire. This is why you hear racers talking about "scrubbing in" race tires.

Mold release (or ArmorAll on the tread) will definitely effect the wet handling of the car. Also, had this been the first rain in your area in a while? If so then there might have been a healthy film of oil on the road as someone else suggested.

I say don't worry about this one incident. You did the right thing by slowing down until you felt safe.

But I do think you should have the wheel bearing looked at by someone knowledgeable (in general I am not impressed by tire shops). Try to find yourself a GOOD Porsche mechanic in the area. Contact your local PCA and ask around. A GOOD mechanic is worth far more than his hourly rate and a mediocre mechanic is worth far less no matter how little he charges. Also dealerships vary in the quality of their service departments. Ask local Porsche drivers which one is best.

Regards,
Alan

[jvmoney]

Not sure about your other issue, but I had a bad Rear Bearing on my 02 S and it got to the point that I could not go above 40 without hearing the loud rumble. I normally would have taken it to my porsche mechanic, but they were asking way too much. I ended up going to my local Firestone who does work on my pathfinder and walla, $300+ less and as good as new. This price also included the lifetime alignment...my regular porsche mechanic & dealer didnt even include that in their price estimate.

Just an option when you decide to get that work done.

[eVoMotion]

I just had my rear wheel bearing replaced at the dealer for $700. I will not do that again.

The dealer just told me that they have special tools that only they have to do the alignment as well...after they tried to sell me new Pilot Sports for $300 more than I see them locally.

I wonder what the dealer is good for if local shops can do better for less...

WOW!

[insite]

Originally Posted by eVoMotion

I just had my rear wheel bearing replaced at the dealer for $700. I will not do that again.

The dealer just told me that they have special tools that only they have to do the alignment as well...after they tried to sell me new Pilot Sports for $300 more than I see them locally.

I wonder what the dealer is good for if local shops can do better for less...

WOW!

$700!?!?!? including or excluding alignment? either way, you got hosed. with regard to the 'special tools' for the alignment: they're full of crap. an alignment on a boxster is pretty routine.

[Lil bastard]

Originally Posted by insite

$700!?!?!? including or excluding alignment? either way, you got hosed. with regard to the 'special tools' for the alignment: they're full of crap. an alignment on a boxster is pretty routine.

They're probably talking about the drifts and the press to swap the bearing. Same as the NAPA machine shops have. Agree in the Hose Job though.

[eVoMotion]

Alignment tools...after I told him no to the tires, he said that he HIGHLY recommended (that I spend some $$ at least) that I go with them and named the special tools they have to use. Madness.


And yes - ouch! On the $700...wheel bearing, no alignment. I was a dealer virgin...they taught me well.

Thanks to this forum...I have learned a great deal.

Originally Posted by Lil bastard

They're probably talking about the drifts and the press to swap the bearing. Same as the NAPA machine shops have. Agree in the Hose Job though.

[Lil bastard]

+2 (or is it 3) for scrubbing them in. "Be careful out there"