Noisy car as I drive down the road.

[Jim916]

I have a 96 Grand Prix that is starting to get noisier as I drive it. It gets worse as I go faster. It is almost like a constant humming noise and it is gradually getting louder. I have to turn the radio up to drown out the noise.

I noticed this weekend as I took a sweeping left hand curve at 55 miles an hour that the noise almost went away until I was going straight again. But on a sweeping right hand curve the noise stayed the same.

What could this be? A bad tire? A bad bearing?

[Macgyver55]

Wheel bearing! The hardest part for you will be determining which one it is. Can you tell from the sound as to front or rear, or side to side?

[PerchPounder]

I just had the say problem with my 00 silverado. Sounds like a wheel bearing to me.

[Hafnutz]

Sounds like wheel bearing to me too but..It could also be a brake pad wear indicator. If the noise goes away when you apply the brakes it could be a wear indicator. Usually they make more a squeeking type noise when driving.

[Jeremy airjer W]

I'll third the wheel bearing. Typically if you turn to the left and it goes away than its the left front. If it gets louder its the right front. Typically they start making noise around 30 mph. I like to describe it as a muffled vacuum cleaner sound?

[deadeye]

+3 Wheel bearing. Its not too hard to fix. To tell which one is bad, jack up the car and spin the tire. You should be able to hear it grinding. If not you can also try rocking the wheel top to bottom and if it moves even the slightest then the bearing is shot. (you should have a dial indicator to check for sure but the redneck way works most of the time ).

The wear indicator on the brake should be more of a sqeal than a grind, but it is worth checking the pads if your going to jack the car up. Also, if the indicator is hitting the rotor, it should stop when you hit the brakes.

[Jim916]

Thanks for the info. I know it is not the wear indicator, so it must be a bearing. It seems to be the right rear, but it is hard to tell.

It will be added to the list of things to do to the car. It runs goods, but little things are starting to wear out.

If I use a dial indicator, where would i want to check it? I have a magnetic base and indicator so would I attached it to the car and indicate the wheel?

[Ralph Wiggum]

Wheel bearing!!! Sounds exactly like when my wife's went out.

[Jeremy airjer W]

Occasionally they are sloppy and don't make any noise. Sometimes they are sloppy and make noise. Sometimes they make noise and are tight. If you jack up the wheel, grab it at the 6 and 12 o'clock positions and push pull you will feel the slop if it is there. Otherwise put the car in neutral and spin the wheel by hand and feel the coil spring. The one that vibrates the most is the side with the bad bearing.

[hondarider550]

Jacking up the car and spinning each wheel along with applying rocking side to side pressure to see if the wheel is somewhat loose on the axle is the best way you can check for something like this. Definitly sounds like a wheel bearing to me...