Faulty wheel bearing or tyre noise?

G

Goner

Guest
The last few weeks i have been getting ridiculous droaning noise from the rear, it's not a rumbling noise it's a constant droan, my GF sat in the back yesterday whilst travelling down the M606 and she said she couldn't tell which side it was coming from. It starts around 40mph and gets progressively louder the faster i go. It's loudest at 60mph, i have had four new tyres put on 5000 miles ago, they are louder than my previous set of tyres but they were never as loud as this.

My question is, does this sound like a wheel bearing or faulty tyres, tyres are mid range budget from Kwikfit, Arrowspeed which i believe are made by Goodyear.

The noise is ONLY coming from the rear and ALL four tyres are the matching so this its what's making me think it could be a wheel bearing as it's not coming from all areas of the car.

Any ideas an how much a wheel bearing actually is? Just had a quick look on Eurocarparts and it's coming up around £100 is this correct, seems expensive?

Thanks
 
I had a similar noise some months ago and a dealer's technician came out with me and also put the cat on a ramp in the workshop and checked the bearings but his opinion the problem was with the rear tyres and the way they had worn.

I replaced the two rear tyres and all the noise went away.
 
Aiden, suggest you swap the front tyres for the rear. That will quickly eliminate one of the two main possibilities (Tyres-v-Bearing).
Cheers.
 
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h5djr said:
I had a similar noise some months ago and a dealer's technician came out with me and also put the cat on a ramp in the workshop and checked the bearings but his opinion the problem was with the rear tyres and the way they had worn.

I replaced the two rear tyres and all the noise went away.
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So lets say if it is the tyres on the rear, is it something to do with the car as to why they are wearing away abnormal? The previous tyres didn't do this so it's possible it may just be down to the make of tyres not being well suited to my car. My car hasn't been whacked of bashed of curbs or anything etc so this make won't be going back onto it if it does turn out to be the tyres.

:salute:
 
Regarding the tyres, if it is the tyres they are getting replaced as the noise is properly loud.

I have used Falkens 912 before and find them to be pretty decent.

1) Falken 912 - £67 each
2) Falken 452 - £75 each
3) Vredestein Ultrax Sessanta - £99 each
4) Uniroyal Rainsport 2 - £91 each

Out of those four which are the quietest and but offer good grip, they will be going on the rear and then the same will be off on the fronts come early next year when the front are shot.
 
Wheel bearings might drone in straight line but the real givaway will be on corners where, if its them, they will get much much worse.
 
paddy said:
Wheel bearings might drone in straight line but the real givaway will be on corners where, if its them, they will get much much worse.
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Hi Paddy if they're on the rear won't they droan all the time as the rear wheels only spin, they don't turn?
 
The noise doesn't get any worse going around bends, it's just a constant noise and the smoother the surface the louder it is.
 
Mine makes a bit of a drone and like a noticeable (only if the radio is off) wump, wump, wump type noise that is definitely rotational as it speeds and slows with the car. Had the car serviced recently and asked them to check the wheel bearings were ok. Apparently they are so I figure it must be my tyres which if I'm honest really do need replacing on the rear.
 
1inchpunch said:
Mine makes a bit of a drone and like a noticeable (only if the radio is off) wump, wump, wump type noise that is definitely rotational as it speeds and slows with the car. Had the car serviced recently and asked them to check the wheel bearings were ok. Apparently they are so I figure it must be my tyres which if I'm honest really do need replacing on the rear.
Click to expand...

This speeds up and slows with the car also, as i say below 40mph it's not noticeable, get to 60mph it's very noticeable, 80mph again it's still there but it's not as loud.
 
Aiden
The load sideways is still relevant on the back as the front on a corner. The same forces that make things slide across the parcel shelf on a fast corner are acting on the wheel bearings.
Personalyl this sounds like tyres to me, does it change if you drop the presure to 20 psi or up it to 40 psi...that might give you a pointer
 
paddy said:
Aiden
The load sideways is still relevant on the back as the front on a corner. The same forces that make things slide across the parcel shelf on a fast corner are acting on the wheel bearings.
Personalyl this sounds like tyres to me, does it change if you drop the presure to 20 psi or up it to 40 psi...that might give you a pointer
Click to expand...

Never thought about it that way, thanks for that mate!

I shall try the tyre pressure trick and see how i go, would you say, releasing pressure or adding more would be have an affect? These tyres were louder when compared to my old set but they seem to have got louder on the rear the more they've been used which is why i was thinking it may be a wheel bearing problem. The front is no where near as loud even though they are the same tyres.

Thanks for your help Paddy.
 
Tyres usually get louder as the pressure drops. I am guessing you have 18s on a S-line so try 36-38 psi and see what effect if any that has first. Only thing that bothers me is why they get louder on a smooth surface unless its just that you can hear it better. Is your can quattro, if not then jacking up the back and spinning the wheel will soon tell you if its a wheel bearing, you will hear it grumbling even at hand spinning speeds.
 
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Hello mate, I'm going to do the pressures trick as you suggested and go from there, when I said the noise gets louder on smoother surfaces I just meant that it's more noticeable as there is less cabin noise from the harsher road surface.
 
I've found that nice smooth roads make the noise more noticeable. It's not that it's louder than normal, it's just that other, more normal road noise is less so. The trouble with noises like this is that once you notice it you become obsessed with it. I've pointed the noise out to my wife and she claims she can't hear it at all. Noisy tyres have always been a pet hate of mine.
 
I had this with my rear tyres,my tyre fitter mate said that tyres have gone out of shape and he sees this all the time with modern
cars which run aggressive camber.
He was right, when I checked they had worn like the edge of a 50P piece (exaggerated).
A new set of Goodyear F1 assy 2, and the noise dissappeared.
 
I'd put money on a wheel bearing. had same problem this time last year.
 
Right well it turns our the rear tyres are faulty and are out of shape due to "castling". The tread pattern seems to wearing uneven on the tyre on the rears, it's not wearing un even on the inside or the outside but in the centre of the tyre. Either way they're are getting replaced Saturday morning and the faulty ones are being returned for a full refund. I'm getting uniroyal rainsport 2 on the rear for 100 quid each fitted, is this a good deal do we think?
 
Well rear tyres replaced on Sunday and guess what... Yes you've guessed it the noise is still there! I can't decide if it's still coming from the rear or not, the rear tyres are Rainsport 2s and the fronts are the Arrowspeeds, the fronts do look like they are out of shape but not as much as the replaced rears, the question i need to ask myself now is do i replace the fronts (another £200) and hope it solves it or start changing wheel bearings.. Either way i've blasted £200 and the noise is still there, seems quieter but again i don't know if that's wishful thinking because i've spent £200!
 
have you checked each wheel for wheel bearings? (hold each wheel at 12 and 6 and rock inwards and outwards) excess play will indicate bearings need replacing
 
I've not personally but my mate at Kwikfit has done, i watched him do it, he also spun each wheel to listen closely for any bearing noise..

Is it obvious if a bearing is nackered or not? I assume they will be pretty expensive, if it is a faulty bearing i'll replace them in pairs so it's going to be expensive.

I don't know which to do first the front tyres or the bearings?
 
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The thing which confuses me though is that the constant droaning noise doesn't get any louder or quieter when turning, i've been told it would do?
 
when I've had bearings go they just got louder the faster I went, cant say I noticed them louder going round corners however I wasn't paying attention to this factor

If the noise is from the rear and the tyres have been changed then bearings looks like its the issue

Quickly jack up each corner and check for play would be my first port of call
 
I did have a wheel bearing noise in my mk5 golf

Turned out to be uneven tread block wear on Bridgestone potenzas, very annoying considering they were expensive tyres
 
When you say tread block wear what do you mean?

This noise does get louder the faster i go thought, 30mph you can't hear it, 40mph it's there, 50mph it's at it's loudest.
 
basically one tread block would wear faster than another so in the end it would resemble a cobbled street so one block was higher than another which made a drone type noise
 
cloughy said:
basically one tread block would wear faster than another so in the end it would resemble a cobbled street so one block was higher than another which made a drone type noise
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EXACTLY what happened to the rear tyres (my mate called it Castleing) and what the fronts are like now, again this is why i don't know which way to go, bite the bullet and wax £200 on front Rainsports or replace wheel bearings?
 
Had the same problem with my wifes 8P whilst still under warranty. Took it to stealers and they said it was the tyres not the bearings. Offered to fit 2 new tyres at outragious price so I declined. Said I did not believe them and if after replacing tyres myself the noise had gone I would apologise to them for throwing my dolls out the pram. Guess what? I apologised to them. Noise disappeared as soon as new Avon ZZ3's were fitted. Have never had problem since.
 
Castleing- now I have something to call it! tricky one, if you did have to get new rubber I would put the uniroyals on the front and get some Falken ZE912 for the rear (had 4 on my BMW and were very good) this would save a bit of cash as they are sixty odd quid off the net

If I had uneven tread wear I would be changing the tyres anyway for safety reasons
 
RallyX said:
Had the same problem with my wifes 8P whilst still under warranty. Took it to stealers and they said it was the tyres not the bearings. Offered to fit 2 new tyres at outragious price so I declined. Said I did not believe them and if after replacing tyres myself the noise had gone I would apologise to them for throwing my dolls out the pram. Guess what? I apologised to them. Noise disappeared as soon as new Avon ZZ3's were fitted. Have never had problem since.
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How loud was the noise? The noise i am getting still sounds like it's coming from the rear but then from time to time sounds like it's coming from the front, the noise gets louder the faster i go, doesn't get louder or quieter when going around a bend but does get quieter when i brake or slow down but taking my feet off the pedals.

The next £200 has got a 50 - 50 chance of curing this, but which shall i do, rear wheel bearings or the two FRONT tyres!?
 
cloughy said:
Castleing- now I have something to call it! tricky one, if you did have to get new rubber I would put the uniroyals on the front and get some Falken ZE912 for the rear (had 4 on my BMW and were very good) this would save a bit of cash as they are sixty odd quid off the net

If I had uneven tread wear I would be changing the tyres anyway for safety reasons
Click to expand...

That's what he called it mate.

If i get some more tyres i'll get Uniroyals on the front to match the back, i'm not fussed about the extra few quid saved although i have used the 912s and they're good, i just don't know which way to go next, sometimes it sounds like bad tyre noise and then others sounds like wheel bearings, it's actually driving me mental.
 
I can see how it would mate, I'm always listening out for squeak's and rattle's...it's a curse!

good luck getting it sorted, my money is on the tyres if the fronts are worn the same, I put my potenzas on the front and the noise was worse
 
Although the front tyres are out of shape why would the noise sound like it's still coming from the rear though mate?

Am i missing something here?
 
TBH the noise from the potenzas on my golf was so bad you wouldn't tell where it came from (only for me I knew that the tyres were bad)

have you tested the rear wheels for excess play?
 
Did you say you were sending the old tyres back for a refund? Can you not replace the fronts and do the same so at least you are not out of pocket?
 
Just had a result, my rear tyres were sent off this Monday gone, my mate from Kwikfit has just phoned me now to say he's going to issue me a full refund for all four tyres, the rears have already been sent away and the new Uniroyal Rainsport 2s which are going on the front have been ordered.

This now means that i won't be waiting 6+ weeks for a refund from the manufacturer who make the Arrowspeed tyres and if the noise is still there i will deffo know it's the wheel bearings.

The arrowspeeds have cost me £312 for four and the Uniroyals have cost me £400 for four so an extra £88 has been spent but i have much better tyres and can eliminate them from the problem without being too costly.
 
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cloughy said:
TBH the noise from the potenzas on my golf was so bad you wouldn't tell where it came from (only for me I knew that the tyres were bad)

have you tested the rear wheels for excess play?
Click to expand...

The rear wheels have been tested for play yes mate.

Was told they were fine, i've not done it myself as i don't have a jack which is good enough to jack the car up and for me to swing on the wheels with it pulling the car of the jack!
 
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