erikm Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 Started getting odd noise in the rear passenger tire area of a 2000 Forrester about two weeks ago. I am a newer owner and dont fully understand all the mechanics under there. The noise sounds like a loud off road tire noise coming from a normal street tire that made no noise before. Not sure it is coming from the tire as it doesnt start until 50 mph and I cant get somebody to stand next to it and listen at that speed. The sound changes to higher pitched at higher speeds but always sounds like a knobby tire. I have taken the car to a tire shop and they said the tires were really out of balance and fixed that, but the noise did not go away. They did not warn me of any other visible dangers while inspecting the tires. I have heard the bearings fry on my camper trailer when I did the job poorly and this is not that noise, but I dont know what the Subaru bearing death noise sounds like. Any Starters? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lothar34 Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 What model year is it? I'm not sure what bad bearings sound like, but I know there was a problem with the bearings in the early Foresters and a lot of people replaced them with bearings from the same model year Legacy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strakes Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 Once a tire has been driven a while out of balance (maybe because you lost a tire balancing weight some time ago) your tire is probably worn unevenly and out of round (no longer perfectly round). An unevenly worn tire can cause a lot of road noise. Did the tire shop say anything about your tires being out of round? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
outback_97 Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 If it's from a tire the sound should relocate when you move the wheels around, so maybe try rotating them. I did this when I had a noise from my front end and it didn't seem to make any difference. My front wheel bearings were going out, and it did sound a lot like a knobby off road or snow tire. Mine was most noticeable from 25-50 mph though, and would change in volume depending on which way I was turning. Above 50 mph wind noise started to over ride the bearing noise I think. Drive through some s-curves, on and off ramps, or any area where you can reproduce the sound consistently and note if it's louder when curving right or left, or is it the same either way? Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subie Gal Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 yeah what you're describing sounds like a bad wheel bearing but this is difficult to diagnose via the interent Jamie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commuter Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 Obviously, check the tire first. One set of tires I had were cupped on the shoulders towards the end of their life. They made quite a bit of road noise. I've had 2 rear wheel bearings go on my 97 OB. The sound is just as you describe, gradually getting worse. In both cases, I detected it via the sound long before the dealer could find any "play" in the bearing. Be prepared for a half shaft replacement. Both times, the seal had failed, letting water into the bearing, gradually ruining it. But, the shaft also pitted in the seal area, hence it needed replacement as well. Commuter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lesbaru Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 My bearings went on my Legacy, and it sounded like you describe. Like a knobby tire. Be careful that whoever replaces them (if they do) knows how to finesse Subi bearings. I got into trouble with a doofus who used the wrong tools and destroyed my hub. Yay.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erikm Posted January 14, 2005 Author Share Posted January 14, 2005 Thanks for all the help on this. I was forced by work to make a long drive today before addressing this. Yes I know, but without money there are no repairs. Anyway, about half way there the noise stopped sounding like knobbies and now sounds like a hollow kind of sound. My next steps are: 1. Rotate tires If noise moves 2. Buy tires If noise stays (unlikely with new development above) 2. Rip wheels apart. I have also noticed that this car is very sensative to road conditions and passes them to the driver noticibly through noise and feel. Is this normal for a 2001 Forrester? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookie Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 My other car is a BMW M series convertible that is much louder so the Forester sounds quiet. It really does sound to me like you have the famous Forester wimpy wheel bearing blues. Good luck and get it fixed soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erikm Posted April 10, 2005 Author Share Posted April 10, 2005 Update on the tire noise: Stopped into two tire stores, both who checked the tires and said they were fine. This weekend I had the first nice weather, and so I changed my rear brakes. The instructions here rocked, thank you very much. It went exactly as specified. The rotors looked all rusty which was very surprising to me, especially for the face where the pad is supposed to rub. Also the pads had to be hammered out of the guide clips, which was also surprising. Here are the changes in the scenario after doing the brakes, there are about four different noises I am hearing from the passenger rear tire. Oh, and I verified that the back plate is not rubbing on the rotor, because if I had to identify the sound, that is what I would think it sounded like. I also backed off the parking brake to make sure it is not rubbing. 1: Metal scraping noise, very low pitch and fairly low volume, noticable when rolling backward down the driveway, or at the very end of a stop for a stop sign, or immediately after take off, when going very slow. I am willing to chalk this up to the brake pads rubbing on the rotor, maybe? 2: Metal scraping/grinding noise, when making right hand turns at lower speed, like turning a corner in a residential area when there is not a stop sign. Only right hand turns, not left hand, so only when the "bad tire" is on the short side of the turn. Only makes noise for 2 seconds at the apex of the turn. I hear the the knuckle has a thumping sound when it goes bad, this is definitely a grind. 3: Metallic sounding noise on the highway. Just barely audible over #4 so it may be road noise, but beacuse of #4 I am unable to be sure. 4: Hollow road tire noise which is excessively loud from the passenger rear tire, varies with speed and starts to be audible at about 30 mph. I would say that it sounds like a high speed fan, but it also has some hollow ring like it is echoing in the tire. This is the noise that I think people are telling me is the bearing? I will say for sure that this "road noise" is not repeated in the other three tires. My next steps are to swap tires to see if the noise moves with the tire and then pull the bearing as the next step. On the bearing, if I pull it, the local parts store has a machine shop and will do the actual bearing swap for $25 in labor, plus about $75 in parts. I have to pull the whole knuckle from the tire assembly, according to the shop. They said to remove the axle nut, and then disconnect the other equipment attached to the back plate and that whole section is what they need. Is this worth the effort? Will I need a spring compressor to do this? Am I better off paying the $400 in the shop? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pinister Posted April 13, 2005 Share Posted April 13, 2005 are you sure that your back (trunk) door is closed down to the end??? don't laugh. i used to have (in my 1999 forester) a terrible noise coming from behind, sounded like bad tires, and it took time until i found out that the back door's lock didn't do it's job, and there was a narrow gap left between the door and the body... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erikm Posted April 13, 2005 Author Share Posted April 13, 2005 What you say has some validity, in that I have to be careful how I close the hatch because it will trip the open door indicator if I do not use enough force. The part that has me believing this is not true is the noise seems to be coming through the back seat and wheel well, not echoing throughout the whole backend. Thanks for the reply. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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