Tominator Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 OK, so the wife and I dodged a bullet on the Saturn, but in taking it down to the shop, we had to switch vehicles. She drove my truck to work, and I took my Buick (which my son normally drives) to school yesterday. I get a minute down the road and notice a sound that sounds like something is rubbing up against a front tire. Almost sounded like the exhaust developed a small hole, but when I dropped it into neutral at the stop sign and revved the engine, no sound. The "buzzing," for lack of a better term, increases with speed. It doesn't affect handling, engine performance or anything like that. Visual inspection of the front end seems to be normal. The only thing I saw when I jacked it up was that the front shroud under the bumper is pretty loose, due, I'm sure, to the fact that my son put the car into a snow bank about a month ago. Any ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redkneck Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 CV joint maybe? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhunt Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 Buzzing or clicking Chris? Usually cv joints make a sound many refer to as a "clicking" sound that increases with wheel speed and also more noticeable when the wheel is turned. CV joint maybe? Yep, my thoughts too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LETMGROW Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 (edited) Sounds like a bad front wheel bearing to me. CV joints don't generally make sounds unless the wheels are turned right or left. Then you usually hear a clicking or snapping sound. You might try running the car at 40 or so mph and shift into neutral and shut the motor off. If the noise doesn't go away you will be assured the problem isn't in the engine. Lynn Another thought comes to mind. You said your son hit a snowbank. There is a possibility you could have a brake shield rubbing on the brake rotor. These can be bent in a snowbank quite easily. Edited January 26, 2011 by LETMGROW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaun_300 Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 Sounds like a wheel bearing to me too, very common. In almost 6 years I think I've seen one CV joint fail. It made a clunk or clicking noise going around a corner at slow speeds. Another way to tell if it's a wheel bearing is driving say 40-50mph, or whenever you hear the noise and veer slightly left and right, if the pitch of the noise changes guaranteed it's a wheel bearing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tominator Posted January 27, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 It's not a clicking noise at all. Closest thing I can tell you is it sounds like a piece of plastic is rubbing on the tire itself. You don't hear it until the car gets up to about 15 mph, and progressively gets worse as the speed increases. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tominator Posted January 27, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Another thought comes to mind. You said your son hit a snowbank. There is a possibility you could have a brake shield rubbing on the brake rotor. These can be bent in a snowbank quite easily. Take the wheel off I'm guessing? And look for what? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaun_300 Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 If you jack the front end up in neutral and roll the tires by hand you may hear a scraping noise if a backing plate it touching a rotor. If you do take the tire off and there's plate behind the rotor, see if you can see where it's touching and gently pry back and turn the hub until you can't hear the noise anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tominator Posted January 27, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 If you jack the front end up in neutral and roll the tires by hand you may hear a scraping noise if a backing plate it touching a rotor. If you do take the tire off and there's plate behind the rotor, see if you can see where it's touching and gently pry back and turn the hub until you can't hear the noise anymore. Thanks Shaun, I'll try that tonight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhunt Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 No clicking, does not sound like a cv joint from your further explanation. Hope Shaun and Lynn are right on the brake shield, pretty easy fix if it is bent. Should be able to take the wheel off and see if it is rubbing and bend it back. While you got the wheel off if it is not rubbing take and spin the rotor and see if you can hear any grinding sound at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tominator Posted January 27, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Another way to tell if it's a wheel bearing is driving say 40-50mph, or whenever you hear the noise and veer slightly left and right, if the pitch of the noise changes guaranteed it's a wheel bearing. Bingo! Got it up to about 40 mph just now, veered, and the sound disappears when you veer to the right. Hope it won't be too expensive. Off to the gargae, and thanks for the help fellers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tominator Posted January 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Wheel hub assembly and it also needs a new tie rod. Seems my son's little foray into a snowbank wasn't as innocent as originally thought. $600 estimate. Dang, kids are expensive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhunt Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Wheel hub assembly and it also needs a new tie rod. Seems my son's little foray into a snowbank wasn't as innocent as originally thought. $600 estimate. Dang, kids are expensive. I am not a mechanic Chris, but think if the wheel bearings were bad it could have damaged the hub and your son's run in with the snow bank been totally coincedental. Was the tie rod bent or worn out? But, yeah kids are very expensive.:yes: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tominator Posted January 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 I am not a mechanic Chris, but think if the wheel bearings were bad it could have damaged the hub and your son's run in with the snow bank been totally coincedental. Was the tie rod bent or worn out? But, yeah kids are very expensive.:yes: Haven't talked to the mechanic in depth yet William, so I really don't know. Makes perfect sense to me though, car was running perfectly normal until the ditch incident. I'm just glad I had to use the car the other day to notice the sound. Lord knows my son never would have noticed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LETMGROW Posted January 29, 2011 Report Share Posted January 29, 2011 I'd say if the tie rod was bent it was a result of going off the road. If it is loose then it is probably just worn out. The wheel bearing is probably just plain worn out. This is common. Very seldom does a bearing get damaged going into a snowbank. Chances are your son is like any other kid and plays the radio at Mach 2 and couldn't hear the bad bearing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcot2773 Posted January 29, 2011 Report Share Posted January 29, 2011 The wheel hub assembly a lot of times will turn out cheaper than just the bearings. Yes bearings themselves are cheaper but then there is the labor time that will kill ya on that repair. I always would price both and see which one would come out cheaper for the customer. 9 out of 10 times the whole assembly was cheaper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LETMGROW Posted January 29, 2011 Report Share Posted January 29, 2011 This bearing is only available as a sealed hub assembly. Lynn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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