How To Test For Wheel Bearing Noise

Рет қаралды 94,979

Күн бұрын

Wheel bearing hub assemblies can be tricky to diagnose accurately. These 3 easy tests can help to determine which bearing is the cause of the noise.
Step-by-step testing instructions
gotech.com/learn/how-to/diagn...
How-to replace - Ford F150
gotech.com/learn/how-to/repla...
0:00 Intro
0:26 Identify wheel bearing noise
1:06 Eliminate background noises
1:49 Common wheel bearing complaints
2:05 How to test drive
3:07 Test drive for noise
4:16 Checking bearing for play
5:49 Spinning bearing by hand
7:05 Summary

Пікірлер: 75

@theprayingman 2 ай бұрын

I'm a professional automotive technician and entrepreneur. Removing the brake caliber and pads can and then reinstalling the wheel helps to isolate just the wheel bearing for better accuracy for stationary testing

@kc360awareness Жыл бұрын

Had a hard to isolate bearing noise on a front wheel drive miniature-van once Found it helpful to loosen the axle nut a bit which changed the load on the bearing. A short test drive later and it was quite obvious that we had a bad bearing and exactly which one too! Thanks for posting solid no nonsense, well sort of this video had a little well timed nonsense. Thanks anyway.

@Troy_Built Жыл бұрын

I never thought of that. I'll have to give that a try. The one I have heard of he didn't mention was grabbing the coil spring to feel for vibration.

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Hey Kevin, interesting test! Thanks for sharing. Mike Becker, Senior Instructor

@erickc5185 Жыл бұрын

Thank you for the precise information!

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Woah, thank you so much Erick! Glad you found the vid useful! ~Mike

@sambitar8448 Жыл бұрын

Your logic like always impressive. Thank you.

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Thank you very much Sam! Mike Becker, Senior Instructor

@SmittySmithsonite Жыл бұрын

I've got burned by enough wheel bearing jobs that I just sell them in pairs now. A bad one on the left will mask a just failing one on the right. One time I had a Toyota Highlander with 200k on it, and all 4 were bad! Sounded like the driveline was ready to come right out of the thing - you couldn't hear yourself think while driving it! 😂 Great stuff as usual, Mike - I like that tip for Ford hubs, firing the engine up to release the hub.👍

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Hey Smitty, thanks for watching bud! Yeh, I can see that as a good practice if the customer can afford it. Sometimes not hearing myself think while driving would be a welcomed relief hahahaha! Mike Becker, Senior Instructor

@SmittySmithsonite Жыл бұрын

@@GoTechTraining 🤣 I “hear” ya!

@mick5740 Ай бұрын

Great video with important info !

@josephremache3721 Жыл бұрын

Love ur videos!

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Hey Joseph, thanks a ton for watchin'! Mike Becker, Senior Instructor

@777gearhead Жыл бұрын

Very informative

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Thanks bud! Mike Becker, Senior Instructor

@777gearhead Жыл бұрын

@GoTech sure thing, Mike. I always like the content you put out.

@alvinjimenez728 26 күн бұрын

I have a 2018 Ford Raptor that has a noise from the rear left that sounds like the pad is rubbing on the caliper, took the tire off and I have clearance. I also have noticed an increasingly side to side rocking and humming noise. I can see it real well with a water bottle in the cup holder. (Ford Dealership blamed tires but I replaced tires with new tires and a separate time blamed the front ball joints which check out as good).

@mattimel2184 2 ай бұрын

I had the play left to right but then my buddy noticed the steering wheel moving. After one of us held the wheel there was no play at all. Could that still be tie rod issues or did the steering just not lock? Maybe also to note just one tire was off the ground.

@tashalousdadful Жыл бұрын

Great video! I just had a mechanic replace a noisy rear wheel bearing in my Ford Focus. Is it unusual to still hear a slight howling noise right after it was installed? Do they sometimes need break in time? It sounds better but I'm still noticing some sound. Thanks for any info.

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Hey Robert, No, they do not need any break in time. The two things I would check is for unusual tire wear. Tires with uneven wear can mimic wheel bearing sounds. The other thing is, you may have another wheel bearing starting to fail. I hope this helps! ~Ryan

@jneubauer76 2 ай бұрын

So if the vibration/noise goes away steering left and comes back steering right is it the left side?

@ablackformula Жыл бұрын

You can also spin the wheel by hand and put your hand on the suspensions coil spring (if it has one) and you can feel some small vibrations on the wheel that's making noise. I've also taken the chassis ear system microphones, cut off the plugs and soldered on banana jacks. Put one microphone on each spindle/caliper bracket or wherever you can, and play with the scope! Now you have visual proof.

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Ahhhh yes, both great tests! The first requires a little bit of experienced feel. I have yet to play with vibration signals on the scope, but something I NEED to spend some time with. Thanks for watching! Mike Becker, Senior Instructor

@777gearhead Жыл бұрын

For the real hard to find bearin noises, a chassis ear is a life saver

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

For sure they can be! Mike Becker, Senior Instructor

@bluegizmo1983 Жыл бұрын

Usually a bad wheel bearing will also cause the wheel/rim on that corner of the vehicle to get hot to the touch, or at least noticeably warmer than the other wheels, so that's the fastest first test to perform after a long-ish drive.

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Hey Daniel, thanks for watching! The only time that i've ever noticed heat caused by a bad bearing was on one that was SOOO far gone. Otherwise more than likely the heat of the brakes will mask any minor discrepancies in the bearing temps. ~Mike

@haywardsautomotive6156 Жыл бұрын

Great video Mike and also outside wheel turns faster so if noise increases turning right it's usually left wheel bearing and vice versa turning left...NOTE I said usually 🤣😂🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣😄😄😄

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Hey Bob, thanks for watching! hahaha yeh, usually is the key word for sure! Mike Becker, Senior Instructor

@johnnyblue4799 Жыл бұрын

I changed the brakes on all four wheels on my wife's 2009 1.4 Ford Fusion. The rear brakes are drum brakes and the new drums came with new bearings pressed in. Torqued to spec one has no play at all, but the other one has a slight looseness to it. Can't re-torque it either, because the nut is not reusable. I'm really not happy with the quality of the parts these days.

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Hey Johnny, ugh that's no good! Those old things ran rear brakes forever, Escapes too. Doing the job again due to bad parts is the worst man! Mike Becker, Senior Instructor

@bryanb6150 Жыл бұрын

So i have a vibration in the cab at 70-80. f150 2009 4x4(I have then most vibration coming down from 80 to 70 @73mph). I also have a deep humming sound at these speeds. could this be the axel or wheel bearing?

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Hey Bryan, a lot of times when you have a vibration that can be driven though, gets worse, then at higher speed it gets better, it's usually tire/wheel balance. While it could be bearing issue, I suggest inspecting your tires as well. Mike Becker, Senior Instructor

@bryanb6150 Жыл бұрын

@@GoTechTraining Thank you, I found that the upper control arm ball joints are bad. no sound from suspension over bumps but will replace those.

@bryanb6150 Жыл бұрын

@@GoTechTraining you were right i had a bent rim causing that vibration

@allaboutgreens7164 Жыл бұрын

What if your draft shaft been taking off to all wheel drive and you have bearing replaced... my truck can't even hear my radio

@xerxes456 Жыл бұрын

I had an Opel Astra with no noise or play when the wheel of the ground and no play in the wheel, but when driving there was noise. The bearing feels smooth when disassembled from the car. The noise was from the wheel bearing changing it, and no sound was the first time for me I guess you needed the wight from the car to get the noise

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Hey U JOhan, thanks for watching! Interesting, so the weight of the vehicle loaded the bearing and made it make noise. It makes sense. Was it a really bad noise or maybe was the problem just starting? Mike Becker, Senior Instructor

@xerxes456 Жыл бұрын

@@GoTechTraining You could not miss the noise, but it was not like a growling noise but more like a brake noise; maybe I was not really sure it would fix the problem, but it did: When spinning the hub when it was of the car once I could feel like a scare in the bearing but could not recreate it. Thanks for your great videos through all the years helps a lot

@juergenscholl2843 Жыл бұрын

Thank you Michael. Here comes a really best ever tip: With the wheel in the air spin it over and put your hand onto the spring. You will sense ANY vibration caused by a faulty bearing. Easiest on coil springs but works on torsion bars as well. The spring just works as a big amplifier/antenna.

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Hey Juergen, thanks for watching! Mike Becker, Senior Instructor

@abbasniksadat1781 3 ай бұрын

@GoTechTraining I tried all three methods and can't pin point if it's really bad bearing although it sounds the left one. Shaking and spin test reveals nothing putting hands on coil spring, no vibration but the noise is there when driving at speeds higher than 25mph. With the truck on jack and wheels in the air the bearing doesn't make noise. I gave order two wheel bearings but don't want to replace if that is not the problem.

@FaithisKey792 Жыл бұрын

Bryan should not be playing those games under the vehicle, I’ve seen those jack stand fail in the past. I actually have 4 of those brand new, I also have2 blue ones rated at 6000 pounds. Much beefier than what you have in this video, be careful brother. Thank you for sharing. Have a blessed day.

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Hey Luis, we appreciate the concern! Thanks for watching! ~Mike

@frankmontez6853 Жыл бұрын

Is it usual to have to replace both sides at same time ?

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Hi Frank, Not super common for both bearings to fail at the same time. But I have seen it happen before. ~Ryan Wilsing

@peteisi113 10 ай бұрын

So what was the diagnosis?

@cliffordgaylor4752 5 ай бұрын

Thats ok for front wheel bearing but what about rear wheel bearings? All the videos seem to be about front wheel bearings which are easier to diagose as they are affected by steering changes.

@thagedorn 20 күн бұрын

add gear oil through the abs sensor hole if you want bearings to last. not grease, 140 gear oil.

@mikechiodetti4482 Жыл бұрын

I've seen the low speed ABS application with a light brake application. The bearing was REAL bad!

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Hey Mike, GM"s were the worst for this, right? For them the hub would rust and jack the sensor away from the tone ring. Mike Becker, Senior Instructor

@nickayivor8432 Жыл бұрын

👍👍 PRODIGY Go Tech Mike Becker and Ryan Wilsing Happy Wrenching Thank you👍👍 Take care and have a great day From Nick Ayivor from London England UK 🇬🇧

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Hey Nick, thanks man! Have a good one! Mike Becker, Senior Instructor

@terryharvey4811 Жыл бұрын

Steered left, noise got louder, both fronts had NO play, Kia FWD . LUCKY I RAISED IT RAN A.T. IN LOW , NOISE WAS ON LEFT, . Backward to the usual loaded side getting louder. Go figure ??? If Ryan needs a day off, I could fill in for him by laying under the car. I have experience from laying under that Kia.. Or does that over qualify me ???

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Hahaha Terry, thanks for watching! Mike Becker, Senior Instructor

@jeremyanthony9300 Жыл бұрын

Wow Mike. You're working outside? No shop or studio? Where are you doing that job?

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Hey Jeremy, it was a beautiful day outside and it was a good demonstration to show that just about anyone with a jack could do the job. Mike Becker, Senior Instructor

@islandtime1402 Жыл бұрын

Rather than starting the vehicle, why not just use a hand vacuum pimp on the IWE port on the hub? It's far quieter so you can hear the bearing and you don't have a risk of accidently running over your helper (Brian) if the vehicle is accidently knocked out of park.

@Boricua4life Жыл бұрын

Just replaced 4 tires, they were Good Year wrangler. Purchased 4 Dextero tires and nothing changed. I thought it was the tires but not I feel it’s the hub bearing

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Sorry to hear that! Hopefully the old Goodyears were worn out! ~Mike

@garygarafano8341 Жыл бұрын

Ryan needs more coffee! LOL

@GoTechTraining Жыл бұрын

Hey Gary, thanks for watching! Yeh he does. Although maybe he would have been fidgety under there with too much caffeine! Mike Becker, Senior Instructor