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I’m suspicious that my 2008 Saturn Vue has a bad rear wheel bearing. I took a short video of the sound. The sound definitely varies with speed. Let me know what you think.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9Haxw9dRCw
Thanks,
Greg
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have you checked your tires? they could be cupped i had this same problem with my mazda and i though it sounded like a wheel bearing but my rear tires were cupped. what your will be looking for is high and low spots in your tire tread, if you cant get a good visual you should be able to run your hand over the tire and feel the high and low spots of the treads. if that is the case you need new tires and i would do a 4 wheel alignment as well
Try rotating the tires to see if the noise moves.
http://www.ericthecarguy.com/faq/determining-the-causes-of-vehicle-vibrations
I’m fairly certain that the tires are ok. I just had the right rear off the other day and the tread seemed to be fine. I will check the left rear this weekend. The sound is definitely coming from the rear…and seems to be loudest on the passenger side. More to come….
Based on the idea of cupped tires – I went out and ran my hands over the rear tires. It seems my hand would catch a little bit on the tread going “outside in” across the tread, but not going “inside out”.
I’m now thinking that this could in fact be a tire issue.
The tires are relatively new…I think they were put on the car when my fiance bought the car 2yrs ago. The tires are crap in my opinion…Kelly tires….and have a strange tread pattern to begin with.
If this is the case…why would the rear’s have this problem and not the front? All 4 tires are the same.
Thanks.
Maybe worn shocks/struts, other worn parts or the rear alignment is outta spec. Especially rear toe.
[quote=”wysetech” post=70510]Maybe worn shocks/struts, other worn parts or the rear alignment is outta spec. Especially rear toe.[/quote]
Def check all that stuff, pretty easy to check worn or shit shocks/struts, good call! And def sounds like cupped tires let us know what comes about!
To check a for a bad wheel bearing or suspension parts jack up the vehicle and place a jack stand securely underneath the vehicle. Grab the tire with both hands and shack it back and forth and up and down. If you get any movement out of it there’s something worn out. If you have somebody to help you with this process it makes it a lot easier. One person can wiggle the tire side to side and up and down while the other person is underneath the car looking for any movement in the steering components.
sounds like a wheel bearing because as you accelerated the noise got faster. do what collegeman said and rotate the tires. the noise should fallow. if it does not, then i vote bad bearing
I’m with the group, check the tires first. Rotate them front to back. Doesn’t matter if they’re new they can still make noise. Some brands are worse at this than others. If you rotate the tires and the noise moves with it, you know it’s the tires. If that’s the case when the time comes to replace them be sure to get an alignment with the new tires to ensure they last a long time and don’t suffer the same wear issue. I will also add that some tires are just not right for your vehicle no matter what the guy behind the counter says. I recommend checking the reviews of the tires you’re considering on TireRack.com to see if they’re compatible with your vehicle to avoid future issues. Don’t be afraid to spend money on tires, it will be the best money you ever spend.
BTW if you rotate the tires and the noise stays in the same location replace the suspected wheel bearing and check again for the noise.
My car sounds exactly the same. Just pinging in so I can keep track of the results!
I took mine to firestone after tirelessly trying to wiggle wheels, pulling everything apart, etc. They told me all my tires are cupped and recommended an alignment and my rear toe was out of spec ABOUT -.25% and -.18% for both rear tires (I can not find my firestone sheet at the moment for exact). Fronts were perfect. These tires are 1.5 years old and are pretty nice Continental DWS tires. I can feel the tread slightly when coasting my hand. The noise seems the same to me, I just hear one side mainly right behind me. The tires were rotated and the noise still is behind me and maybe about the same volume. The rear left tread “felt” pretty bad after rotation. I moved the rear right to the rear left side and still just as loud. The wheel bearing doesn’t make any noise when spinning manually.
First off if the tires were quiet when new and unfortunately… no rotation was done and no alignment for 1.5 years. Could this be likely?
my two cents, if you jack up your car and just turn the wheels, a bearing that is defective can be heard. In my case, I’m as deaf as a doornail, I feel the coil springs from the suspension. If you feel vibration when turning the wheel while the others don’t vibrate ( or lot less ) that will be the wheel with the worn bearing. Good luck with your search.
[quote=”college man” post=70971]Put your spare on and see if the noise changes.[/quote]
I just did this and the noise is still there and just as bad! So is this the defiant answer that I do have a bad wheel bearing? I’m kind of excited to finally narrow it down. Yes I did spin the wheel and was holding the spring and felt nothing. This noise is so annoying that it must be the beginning.
Now if i’ve only changed brake pads and transmission fluid, should changing a bearing be too hard? It seems easier on a Honda from what I’ve seen. I’m going to take on the task I’ll just read up on tools i’ll need. I have a breaker bar but it’s too big to take off the caliper holdings. Thanks!
BTW here’s a video of it
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKHt9-mC3xg[/video]
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