Out of Round Tyres ? - Turbo
I have a 1996 Passat estate.Recently i have heard whilst driving at low speed a sound similar to a worn wheel bearing from the rear.At motorway speed the sound can not be heard but there is a vibration through the floor pan,steering wheel and pedals.
After half an hour on the motorway the vibration makes my foot numb!.
I changed the rear wheel bearings and had the tyre\'s balanced and the alignment re-done.This made no difference to the noise or vibration.
My local VW garage have suggested that the rear tyre\'s are \"out of round\".I have never heard of this and £110 for two new tyres is not what i want for christmas.
Has any body heard of this before?
Out of Round Tyres ? - Malcolm_L
Been a couple of threads on this subject, so yes it can happen.

Jack each side up and rotate the wheels with a fixed indicator
to measure the gap as the wheel rotates (DIY dial Gauge).

This should show if any tyre is distorted.

Does the problem feel worse through the brake pedal, especially when braking?
Out of Round Tyres ? - Turbo
The brakes have never been great(like trying to stop the QE2).but at low speed,when braking the sound does lessen slightly
Out of Round Tyres ? - John S
Certainly sounds as though it could be the problem. It\'s by no means uncommon. Try swapping each tyre for the spare to identify the rogue tyre.

Regards

John S
Out of Round Tyres ? - AlanGowdy
I think I may have contributed to previous threads on this topic. Tyres do go out of round and cause a noise like a worn wheel bearing or a pattering sound or a combination of both.
It has happened twice to me - on both occasions the tyres were Continentals. Coincidence perhaps?
Out of Round Tyres ? - Civic8
That could mean a couple of problems with the tyre/tyre`s.It could be the tread is out of line with the sidewall.or the tread and sidewall is out of line with the rest of tyre.By only a small amount with the rest of tyre.If that has confused to put it simply it should have shown up on balancing.You should be able to check the amount of weight`s put on one side.If one side doe`s have a serious amount more balancing weight`s on than the other that side could be the problem.Assuming the wheels are in good condition?
Out of Round Tyres ? - Ivor E Tower
And how old are the tyres? They can go out of balance when they age - I had this on my old Honda Civic with Good-Year tyres. Still had plenty of tread left (3mm) but were about 6 years old. I got vibration like the wheels and/or driveshafts were out-of-balance, and over a wide range of speeds. Everything else checked out OK, wheels re-balanced (but no alterations needed to balance weights) so I changed the tyres and the problem went away!
Out of Round Tyres ? - Civic8
3mm is not a lot which could say the amount of tread you had before compensated for the imbalance and did not show up before.As you may have guessed there are many reasons for the same problem.
Out of Round Tyres ? - smokie
Can they be out of round from near-new? I noticed a wheel bearing type noise only since changing all four on my Omega. My mechanic sat in and had a listen and said it could be a tyre, but didn't suggest it mightn't be round!

Maybe if I can prove it is a tyre, I could get it replaced under warranty?
Out of Round Tyres ? - Civic8
Yes it could be.that won`t say it is.I think you mean`t out of round I don`t think it`s as not so commen as most think.how many million`s of tyres made.factory defect`s and all that.May be wrong?
Out of Round Tyres ? - wemyss
I had exactly the same vibration on the Vectra. Despite visually checking the tyres I had missed a flat spot on a rear tyre.
The garage diagnosed it as a drive shaft which must have gone out of balance and had seen it before.I took every wheel off and had a good visual examination and there it was. Replaced and it was fine.
The vibration was very bad with the interior mirror giving a blurred view.
Or as suggested replace every wheel in turn with the spare.
Out of Round Tyres ? - Wee Willie Winkie
Would out of round tyres affect fuel consumption? I still haven't got rid of the vibrations from my Pug, and have noticed worsening fuel economy.
Out of Round Tyres ? - smokie
My friendly mech says that he will swap the wheels on our Omegas for a day or two to prove/disprove.

Thanks for the advice
Out of Round Tyres ? - Civic8
It is not unknown.If the tyre`s are changed front to rear you will notice by steering wheel it will vibrate ie rock from side to side.You didn`t say where the noise is coming from wheel bearing`s are normally directional as in front n/s-o/s should be able to hear where from?
Out of Round Tyres ? - smokie
Everyone THINKS front o/s for me, but it's hard to tell