MDW25gt Posted June 9, 2007 Share Posted June 9, 2007 I am having trouble determining what is causing a noise in the front of my car. What type of symptoms have people had when there is a bad front axle? Thanks in advance, Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porcupine73 Posted June 10, 2007 Share Posted June 10, 2007 Front axle: first clicking in sharp turns. Then clicking in slight turns. Then clicking all the time. Are you sure you don't have the usual heat shield rattle? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDW25gt Posted June 10, 2007 Author Share Posted June 10, 2007 Front axle: first clicking in sharp turns. Then clicking in slight turns. Then clicking all the time. Are you sure you don't have the usual heat shield rattle? The noise is not clicking. It is a roar above 40mph and only when when turning the wheel to the right. As soon as the wheel is straightened the noise goes away. Turning to the left there is no noise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manarius Posted June 10, 2007 Share Posted June 10, 2007 The noise is not clicking. It is a roar above 40mph and only when when turning the wheel to the right. As soon as the wheel is straightened the noise goes away. Turning to the left there is no noise.I wonder if it's a wheel bearing that is roaring under load? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted June 10, 2007 Share Posted June 10, 2007 mike, it will most likely be a wheel bearing or ball joint. if it tends to happen at a particular angle...say at 1/3 of a wheel turn on certain ramps, etc...i'd expect a ball joint. a wheel bearing is more likely. a little more descriptive of the sound? you say "roar"...that's a very common term used by someone who is experiencing a failing wheel bearing. i think i saw that you already replaced your trans right? was there any sign of this before the trans swap? make sure that axle nut is properly tigthened. it may have backed off until the divot or pin...i think yours has the divot style, catches it. so it would appear tight, but have backed off some. or it's not tigth enough, but they have it pinned properly. though they didn't remove the nut for the trans swap unless something strange happened. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDW25gt Posted June 10, 2007 Author Share Posted June 10, 2007 mike, it will most likely be a wheel bearing or ball joint. if it tends to happen at a particular angle...say at 1/3 of a wheel turn on certain ramps, etc...i'd expect a ball joint. a wheel bearing is more likely. a little more descriptive of the sound? you say "roar"...that's a very common term used by someone who is experiencing a failing wheel bearing. i think i saw that you already replaced your trans right? was there any sign of this before the trans swap? make sure that axle nut is properly tigthened. it may have backed off until the divot or pin...i think yours has the divot style, catches it. so it would appear tight, but have backed off some. or it's not tigth enough, but they have it pinned properly. though they didn't remove the nut for the trans swap unless something strange happened. Thanks Gary, I have not replaced the tranny. They did replace the center diff. This is not a problem now. They also replaced the right side wheel bearing, and the noise is still there. After this, I drove the car with listening sensors at the left tie rod, bearing hub, and strut tower. (The sensors allow you to listen while driving, to the noise output at each location.) I never hear from the head phones the level of noise I would expect from the bearing. This is why I am thinking axles? But I guess it could still be the left bearings. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted June 10, 2007 Share Posted June 10, 2007 CV joints/axles can make noises but anything other than clicking or basic CV noises isn't very common. but....how long did you drive with binding issues? that puts additional load on the axle joints and could contribute in some way. two important questions: is the noise centrally located or can you tell it's towards one side? did it do this at all before the trans work? seems like if it's the left bearing you would hear it on that side? make sure the axle nut doesn't look like it backed off on the side they replaced the wheel bearing. if they replaced the wheel bearings, the axle had to come out. the nut could just be loose, might be hard to tell by looking. i would check this first since they worked on it. after that i'd check the ball joint boot, that only takes a minute and no tools, then jack the wheel up and see if there's any play in the hub, grab it and try to shake the wheel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDW25gt Posted June 10, 2007 Author Share Posted June 10, 2007 CV joints/axles can make noises but anything other than clicking or basic CV noises isn't very common. but....how long did you drive with binding issues? that puts additional load on the axle joints and could contribute in some way. two important questions: is the noise centrally located or can you tell it's towards one side? did it do this at all before the trans work? seems like if it's the left bearing you would hear it on that side? make sure the axle nut doesn't look like it backed off on the side they replaced the wheel bearing. if they replaced the wheel bearings, the axle had to come out. the nut could just be loose, might be hard to tell by looking. i would check this first since they worked on it. after that i'd check the ball joint boot, that only takes a minute and no tools, then jack the wheel up and see if there's any play in the hub, grab it and try to shake the wheel. This noise was there before the diff work. I thought it was to the right side at first, but after replacing the right bearings we check both sides and nothing from the right, then loaded the left side with the sensors. I could hear the noise from the left bearing hub, strut tower and tie rod sensors, but not at the level I would expect. The car is still in the shop. Monday morning I will go back and have them check the nut on the right side. We did have one sensor on the left ball joint and did not hear anything signficant. Guess I could check the right. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted June 10, 2007 Share Posted June 10, 2007 while your center diff was binding you should have pulled the front two axles and driven it in rear wheel drive. just a joke, mostly.. i'd want to double check that axle nut on the left side (side that the wheel bearing wasn't replaced on), that might be an overlooked item. after that it's straight forward and a shop should be able to find it...wheel bearing, ball joint, axle.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDW25gt Posted June 10, 2007 Author Share Posted June 10, 2007 while your center diff was binding you should have pulled the front two axles and driven it in rear wheel drive. just a joke, mostly.. i'd want to double check that axle nut on the left side (side that the wheel bearing wasn't replaced on), that might be an overlooked item. after that it's straight forward and a shop should be able to find it...wheel bearing, ball joint, axle.... It would provide valuable info if I had pulled the axles. Like ruling out the axles as a cause of the noise. the old 20:20 hind sight. Can the bearing be examined with out replacement? In other words, pull, clean, inspect relube and re assemble? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted June 10, 2007 Share Posted June 10, 2007 uhhh...you'd probably just replace the bearing while it's apart. given that they aren't that expensive, the labor will be the high cost and you'll have to buy new seals anyway. while it's apart and paying the labor, i'd just install new bearings. but technically...they probably could regrease and reseal the old bearings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hohieu Posted June 10, 2007 Share Posted June 10, 2007 [quote name=MDW25gt Can the bearing be examined with out replacement? In other words, pull, clean, inspect relube and re assemble?[/quote] All four wheels need to be off the ground: As you rotate the wheel with one hand, you can feel vibration on the coil spring with the other if the bearing is bad. As a reference, you can check to see how the other wheels feel. I just replaced my rear wheel bearing after over 40K miles of the roar. There was never any play in the wheel even when I replaced it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDW25gt Posted June 18, 2007 Author Share Posted June 18, 2007 I am having trouble determining what is causing a noise in the front of my car. What type of symptoms have people had when there is a bad front axle? Thanks in advance, Mike OK, here is what I needed. Center diff replaced, both front wheel bearings This took care of all of the symptoms I was having. Binding in turns, (center diff) roar when turning to the right on the highway above 40 mph. This also cured the whining I was getting in the tranny. I believe that the center diff was putting everything into a bind. i.e. causing the whine I was getting while rolling. Hats of to the great service I received from the service manager at Beechmont Subaru in Cincinnati. Scott Snyder and his technician took good care of me. I put 1700 miles on the car last week with no problems! Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.