My car has recently started to make a "howling" noise which starts off at about 25/30mph.I have checked all the usuals like clutch in,gearbox in neutral,brakes on/off with no discernible difference.My own suspicion is that the n/s front wheel bearing is on the way out as there seems to be a slight reduction in noise on roudabouts (turning right effectively).
Is there a foolproof way of isolating the culprit wheel? I have already tried rocking the wheels from side to side but they all feel ok. Thanks for any advice.
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make of car would help....assuming its front wheel drive??? jack front up put on stands on get someone to drive it with handbrake on of course untill noise appears you could do with a mechanics stethascope noise travells thru it you can compare both sides but dont put it on a moving part e.g driveshaft,cv joint please these checks should only really be carried out by EXPERIENCED mechanics ..........................
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i hate having to diagnose front bearings and quite often still get it wrong.
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\"a little man in a big world/\"
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make of car would help....
A forum search revealed it's Fiat Coupe (W reg)
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?m=410740...e
Anyway, I've added it to the subject header. I'm sure piggy will be back and correct me if I'm wrong. DD.
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if you can feel any lift on the wheel holding top and bottom and are capable of changing wheel bearings yourself I would suggest you consider buying bearings from a company like bearing services and changing the bearings anyway as it would be cheaper than paying for diagnosis,if you cant do the job yourself do not try and tell the garage what is wrong tell them the symptoms and let them diagnose the fault as it can be very expensive diagnosing for a garage if you are wrong
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Try travelling in the front and rear to see if you can isolate the noise to one end of the car. Usually bearings go quiet when unloaded (ie on the inside of the corner). However, I had one go on my Xantia, and that was the other way - it went quiet under load! If you jack up and rotate the wheel you may feel the roughness, or try listening to the hub using a long screwdriver touching the hub, with your ear on the end of the handle whilst the wheel is rotated - this should help to pin down the noisy side. You've got a 50/50 chance anyway!
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RichardW
Is it illogical? It must be Citroen....
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bearings are real pain to find which one, but i drive down a hill put the gears into neutrel and you should hear the rumbleing allways best to get a second pair of ears!! in the back or front.
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Thanks to everyone for their help.Yes,it is a Fiat Coupe. Sorry,I should have included that.
I think it best to leave it to get a bit worse and then take it to local garage.All serious probs.like driveshafts etc.have been eliminated,so must be bearing.Funny thing is though,car has just passed it`s mot.
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>>Funny thing is though,car has just passed it`s mot.
MOTs don't really test for noisy bearings - they only check for play, or slack in the bearing.
If you think it's a front bearing, ask your local garage to diagnose it by jacking the front up, and listening to the spinning wheels (driven by the engine) with a stethoscope.
Short of using Aprilia's high-tech temperature measurement technique, I have found the stethoscope method quite reliable in detecting the duff bearing.
Although I have never replaced one on a modern Fiat, I would expect that fitting a new front bearing would be a job for a garage anyway.
Number_Cruncher
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You might want to try asking on the Fiat Coupé forum if your garage is unsuccessful in locating the problem:
snipurl.com/p6s3
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Some of you might remember that I had a query on this forum several weeks ago regarding a whining wheel bearing.Took it to my local indy who could not pin point the faulty axle.Decided to leave it to "mature".Well it`s matured.I was able to find the right one by simply feeling the heat variation from the hubs. Changed back o/s rear (an easy diy on Fiat Coupe).Sweet as a nut
{Moved to original posting as related - DD}
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Good to hear.
Thanks for posting the outcome.
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i suppose bearing in mind the noise factor you couldnt bearing it any longer well done
i hate having to "guess" which bearing might be noisy empty my wallet and then find im wrong.
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