99 Intrepid front end noise

My '99 Intrepid seems to have excessive front end noise. Not a clunking
sound but rather a low growl that resembles the sound of the tires when
on a rough pavement surface. It's more than just the noise of the the
tires on the pavement. I hear it especially at slow speeds where the
wind has no effect. I thought it may be wheel bearings but I blocked
the front end of the car up and everything seems to be tight in regards
to front wheel bearings. I put the tranny in Drive and brought the
wheels up to about 100 km/hr and there is a noticable low growl coming
from somewhere in the drive train. If I have the wheels going at 100
km/hr, put it in Neutral and quickly jump out of the car to see if I
can distinguish where the noise is coming from, the wheel stops turning
before I can get to it!! This seems like an excessive amount of rolling
resistance????? This leads me to believe that somewhere there is a
bearing that isn't in good shape. Does anyone have any ideas or
suggestions?

 

Sounds like a brake pad is dragging. That sound could go away at
higher speed and be most noticable at low speed (like going down your
driveway)
At high speed it could cause a bit a of pull to that side or a pulsing
sound when the brakes are applied lightly.

Easy to check, and fix.

 

I haven't yet checked to see if a dragging brake is the problem, but
how would I fix it if that is the case?

 

Does the noise when driving sound sort of like crickets chirping in the
night? Do you hear it mainly from around 10 mph to maybe 25-30 mph when
road/air noise drowns it out?

 

No, it actually sounds like the noise created when driving on a
"pebble" pavement surface. The sound is present from as soon as the car
starts rolling until the wind noise drowns it out.

 

Pull the wheel where the noise is most noticeable.
Rotate the wheel while its up in the air and you should be able to
tell immediately if the brakes are making the noise.Look at the brake
rotor and pads to see if the wear looks clean and smooth or if there
are nasty gouges and uneven wear.
I had a pebble from my driveway get lodged in the brake pad/rotor area
once and wow what a noise that made!
If the brake pad/rotor seems bad, remember to replace both the wheels
(left and right) when you do them. and get the rotor cut - its worth
it to do the job right.

 

I know you said you checked wheel bearings with the wheels off the
ground. *BUT* it might surprise you to know that *very* often a bad
bearing will not have any play whatsoever and will exhibit obvious
symptoms (i.e., make noise detectable by the un-aided ear) *only* when
loaded.

What you describe certainly sounds like a bad wheel bearing. I would
especially say that if, when you weave the car back and forth on the
road at speed when it makes the noise, the noise turns off or gets
quieter (or louder) when turning one direction and not the other. Other
people here will recommend using a mechanic's stethoscope to listen to
the spinning wheel with the car jacked up (you would hear it with that
but not without it) - either method should prove or disprove a bearing
problem with good certainty.

Bill Putney
(To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my
address with the letter 'x')

 

When I had the wheels off the ground, I actually compressed the brake
cylinder to make sure the brakes weren't dragging. Still had the noise,
though it wasn't as noticable with the weight off the wheels.
Bill, I tried your suggestion of seeing if the noise gets worse or goes
away on corners, etc. There is no difference. It seems that I may as
well go and start ripping the hubs apart and look into it to see if the
bearings have just lost there surfaces. What do you think? I see that
the axle nut has to be replaced if it is removed. Is this necessary?

 

Hi Randy...

The wheels won't stop turning before you get there if it's
one of your friends stepping on the gas for you

Take care.

Ken

 

Hmmm - you might try the stethoscope test - may still be bearings since
the noise was still there but less with the weight off. You realize
that to disassemble the hubs to look at the beraing surfaces, you will
need new hub/bearing assemblies (you might be able to buy the bearing
and pres it in, but not worht the trouble). I think if I were you I
would go ahead and replace whichever hub/bearing assembly appears to be
making the noise at this point.

Replacing the axle nut is just a liability lawyer's boilerplate in the
manuals. However, I had one that wouldn't stay tightened after I had
had the axle out, so I keep new stub nuts on my shelf to use on mine.
They are interference nuts, and obviously one that's been on and off a
couple of times isn't going to stay tight like a new one.

Bill Putney
(To reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my
address with the letter 'x')