hey,

i have a weird noise, wondering if any of you have experienced this.

I have a 04 max and when i'm cruising only at 60km/h or more and i am off the gas pedal...I hear tire noises.

it's a humming noise from the front...I had the front struts replaced a couple months ago (warrantied)...does anyone know what it is coming from?..could it be a tire balancing issue?

Tires are stock Goodyear RSA's and still have decent tread on them.

Any input would be appreciated, thanks.

 

Don't know that the RSA's are what's causing it, but ditch those bad boys quick! They are dangerous. Check the tire thread regarding those, Ritz, was the author!

 

You know, I think I am experiencing the same humming noise but I am lowered on with KYB shocks/struts. I also changed the tires recently so its not the RSAs.

Is the humming sound uneven?

 

Do you have custom grille? If you do thats where the humming is coming from.

 

My friend posted this thread for me..

I do not have a custom grille. Everything stock.

Yes, the humming noise is uneven. I went to the dealer, and they said there are no problems. But I'm gonna go again and accompany them for the test drive.

I'm pretty certain the noise is coming from the tires, there are no noticeable vibrations which lead me to believe that tire balancing is not the issue.

 

I am really interested as to what it is. I rebalanced my tires as well and that didn't fix the problem. It's funny that you think you're hearing things untill a group of people on the forum experience the same problem. Please update after your visit to the dealer.

 

For those of us in the US who don't think in terms of Km/hr, your 60 Km/hr = 37 mph.

You were not real clear in your original post about when you hear this noise. You imply that it only appears when you let off of the gas and are coasting. If you don't hear the noise when you are driving (on the gas), then it most likely is not being caused by the tires. If it were, you would hear the noise all of the time. Do you hear this noise at higher speeds? At lower speeds? Only around this speed?

Suggestion for checking. If you only hear this sound when coasting, then try putting your trannie in neutral to see if the sound is still there. If you have an auto trannie, you should not do this for very long (a few minutes at most).

My RSAs developed cups in the tread (due to poor rear end allignment from the factory). I did not discover this problem befor all 4 tires had the cups. The noise these cups made when driving was a rumble that got louder the faster you drove. I replaced the RSAs at about 30 K miles due to the noise.

 

I'll say your tires are either cupped or feathered.

Check this link for details... http://www.geraldstires.com/Services/TIRES/Tire.htm

I have the same problem. The front end makes a "wa-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa" on certain road surfaces.

I'm going in for an alignment ASAP, but I think the tires are already shot. I may go as far as having the tires flipped on the rims when I do my next tire rotation.

 

the humming noise occurs on or off the gas and in neutral...its just that when i'm off the gas its more noticeable because the car is more quiet.

I have 44000 km on the RSA stock tires.

Going to dealer next monday.

 

10 to 1 it's the alignment.

 

You have just over 27 K miles on your tires.

Sounds like you have cups in your tread. Run your hand over the face of the tire tread. If you have anything more than the start of cupping, you will be able to feel places on the face where the tread goes in from the rest of the tread.

Even if you correct the allignment problem that causes cupping, the cups will still be there and humming (I had rumbling) as you drive. You can get much better tires, but it hurts to get rid of tires before they are closer to the wear bars. I replaced my RSAs at 30 K miles and probably had another 10 K miles left on them, othewise.

 

I have a similar sound too... which I thought was just bent rims (which aren't really THAT bent, but they're noticeable) ... but I do have the RSA's still, so maybe that's the big problem... I'll find out soon when I get new tires...

 

Hada .. i think u nailed it (with the sound desc..... have had the same sound but could not describe it.. ... had a maxima friend who told me my front tires were "toed out". did a rotation and still heard the sound (little less tho).

My sound started at around 60K (KM - approx 38K Miles). from what I was told on this site... an allignment as soon as the tires are changed is needed.

 

Yeah. I really hope flipping the tires on the rims helps the snatchuation. I can see the feathering on thre inside edge of the tires, the outside edge is ok.

Hell, it might make it worse. Almost time for snows anyway...

 

yea...that "wa-wa-wa-wa" sound is exactly what it sounds like...so I guess the only way to fix this problem would be to get new tires...crap.

 

Sounds like there are a number of Max owners on this thread who did not get their wheels alligned. I now (after my earlier problems) get an allignment at least once a year. It is a lot cheaper than buying new tires much earlier than expected because a bad allignment wore them out early.

And never buy new tires without getting an allignment ASAP after the new tires are mounted.

 

I have brand new tires and get the same sound. I will try to rebalance/realign to see whats up. Actually I already had them rebalanced about 2 weeks ago and that didn't change anything so realigning would be next on the list.

I 've seen people mention that they pay for something like lifetime membership for alignment and they go as often as they're pleased. Anyone knows a place in Brooklyn, NY where that would be possible?

 

I just had 4 new tires installed last week but didn't get them aligned or something. But I didnt have problems with my OEM tires though (had them changed at 51K miles...). Do you suggest I get them aligned anyhow?

Thanks!

 

With tires, by the time you know you have problems it is very often too late to correct them. I recommend an allignment after you buy new tires (you paid hundreds of dollars for the tires and will pay about $70 for the allignment).

I also get my tires alligned once a year to be certain that the pot-holes in the roads have not knocked them out of allignment.

 

I too experience humming noise sometimes. I'm pretty sure its the tires. it sounds like i'm riding on a balloon, its like "voooooooooom". I really hate my RSA's, but dont want to replace them before they actually wear down since tires for our cars can be pretty pricey.

 

this happened with a new set of F1 GSD3's that I put on my wife's '04 SE. I did not have the alignment checked because it ran straight. Stupid me, I've destroyed $1000 in tires. They have dis/remounted them on the other side but the sound is still there, not as bad, but still there.

Dean

 

yeah i'm one of them.

can I ask.... what is the normal KM/miles for the original tires? mine still have tread in them (72K - KM approx 45 K miles)
I was hoping for the winter to pass and get new tires, but hte sound is driving me crazy.. so might do it now.

 

[QUOTE=HADA 11] I can see the feathering on thre inside edge of the tires, the outside edge is ok.

QUOTE]

same here .....

so whats with this car that it does this??(seeing that others have the same issue) Too much weight on the front?? torque? or just bad OEM tires?

 

It's not a design problem per se. The wider the tires are the greater the negative effect an out of spec alignment will have on them.

Weight and HP doesn't help but it's not the cause either.

 

for you guys thinking of replacing your tires... if you have 18" Goodyear Eagle RS-A's, look carefully for cracks in the sidewalls... if you have some (see my thread, Pics of my RSA's) then Goodyear will replace them at a pro-rated price.. it sucks, but it's better than buying all new tires..

 

I got 30 K miles out of mine, but they still had some good tread on them when I switched. I would expect that without allignment problems, you should get between 40 K and 50 K miles from these tires -- provided you don't burn out at stoplights or on curves. (for Canada that would be 64 K to 80 K Kms).

Tube, you want good tread on your tires to handle the snows of winter. You should buy new tires now before the peak of winter driving.

 

Has anyone replaced the wheel bearings? I was thinking if the bearing could be the source of the noise...

 

Don't do it. The issue is with the tires. I threw out the RSA and the Avontech (worse) because of that. Maybe my ears are picky. I was unhappy with the level of tires noises. One time I got into an Impala and that thing hum whenever I accelerated and slowed down. The noise level was so bad , it made the noise in my Max so pale in comparision. The Impala even got small donuts as tires.

 

ONCE AGAIN I WILL REPEAT. I just put on brand new tires and have the same problem. I will have the car re-aligned either tomorrow or next weekend. I had COSTCO rebalance them all and that didn't help.

Bearings??? Hope not!!!

 

I doubt if Costco has the high-priced Hunter wheel balancing system you should be using on the Max wheels. Check the stickies for the system that is needed.

 

Same crossed my mind.

I will go to a shop I've always trusted but the are a bit pricey $80 to rebalance all 4. Then $79.00 for realign. Well, I'll spend the $160 next weekend and it better fix this freaken' problem. If not, at least I'll be sure it aint balancing or alignment. Will update you guys.

 

If you have continental tires, I'll tell you exactly what that noise is. The tires do not fit the Max rims very well. I went to the dealership 3 times with this issue. The third time a mechanic knew exactly what the problem was. We drove it really slow along side a wall so you could really hear it. He broke down the 2 front tires and remounted them. Noise has been gone now for a month.

 

Had the alignment done today.

FL was toed out, FR was toed in.
RL was toed in, RR was toed in.
Castor and Camber were OK.

It looked like this on the print-out;

\\
/\

Initially the car sounds better now with less tire noise, but I'll have to get it out for a good run on the highway tomorrow to be sure. One thing I did notice is the car turns in much better now

 

Just hope that you have not damaged your tires from driving with poor allignment. Relative to the cost of 4 replacement tires (particularly for a SE), an allignment is cheap.

 

The tires are damaged, no doubt about it.

I'll deal with it though, I drive 60,000km/year (40,000 Miles?) so the tires would be toast before long anyway. The rest of the tires life just won't be a quiet/smooth as usual.

 

keep us posted...

 

The conversion I use for Km to miles is 62 miles = 100 Km. On that basis, 60 K Km = 37.2 K miles.

I drove on my RSAs for almost 20 K miles (32 K km) before I popped for new shoes. Around town I could stand the slight rumble that the cups in the tread produced when rolling. But above about 50 MPH (80 Km/Hr), the rumble was just too much. I bought new Michelins just before going on my usual summer road trips. Much better tire and the noise was gone.

 

Post alignment report...

I noticed the car tracks straight, but the steering wheel is off about 5 deg to the left. I went back in to the shop this morning to have it corrected and after a 1 hour wait they told me I was good to go. I got in the car drove off and noticed the only thing that had changed were my Navi settings

The steerng wheel was still about 5 deg off. It sure seems like the "mechanic" just sat in my car and played with the Navi. I'm not sure he even looked at the alignment. I'll waste some more time on Monday taking the owner of the shop for a drive to show him the problem.

I'm really too busy to deal with this incompetence. Pain in the ****

 

Anyhow...

I found a minute to go to the tire place that I trust and what do you know....COSTCO did a pretty sheety job balancing the tires. They rebalanced all of them using Hunter GPS9700 and they are perfect.

About the noise, its still there with one exception. It moved to the rear of the vehicle along with my bent rim. I am pretty sure balancing was part of the problem but untill I change the bent rim I wouldn't know the problem if it is the true problem behind the noise.

BTW I didn't do the alignment because the car was aligned awhile back when I had my car lowered and it tracks straight and everything. The steering wheel shake was eliminated with balancing done today.

I have another rim in stock in the basement so I guess next weekend I'll take another stab at it. If after swapping the rims the noise is still there then I will still do re-alignment regarless of the fact that it was recently done. For now I am pretty sure its the rim because the noise has kind of moved from comming from the front to comming from somewhere in the middle/rear section of the car. Well, thats it for tonight folks, hope your rims don't look as bad as one of mine does