Must Watch Before Spending Money On a New Wheel Bearing
In this video I will show you how to check to make sure it is not your tire making a humming or howling sound instead of a suspected bad wheel bearing. This sound even to a lot of mechanic is a dead give away that your wheel bearing is bad however there is a way a tire can fail and make the same noise and if you aren't aware of this, you are going to spend money and time fixing your bearing instead of your tire. I am also going to show a step by step procedure and some tricks on how you properly diagnose a bad wheel bearing.
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Disclaimer:
Due to factors beyond the control of Ratchets and Wrenches, it cannot guarantee against unauthorized modifications of this information, or improper use of this information. Ratchets and Wrenches assumes no liability for any property or personal damage that may arise from doing a repair on your vehicle after watching any of my repair video's. Due to factors beyond the control of Ratchets and Wrenches, no information contained in this video shall create any express or implied warranty or guarantee of any particular result. Again Any injury, damage or loss that may result from improper use of tools, equipment, or the information contained in this video is the sole responsibility of the user and not Ratchets and Wrenches.
This man has integrity! He's an extremely smart, talented, and very honest mechanic. Love your videos and I wish you and your family the best of the best! I'm a huge fan!
All the thumbs down are from slimy mechanics who don’t like when honest mechanics expose them.
@@76kamikazi agreed
100% agree with you....
Are you him? Lol
@@elonmusk9666 haha no my good sir I'm not.
Chingon! I've made the mistake of replacing parts that didn't fix my problem haha. A smart man with integrity is hard to find. Gracias for your videos.
Hey no cursing.
@@Twobarpsi 😂😂
@@ChavezDIY 😃
Rotating tires can also help determine whether it's a tire noise or bearing. If the noise moves after rotating the tires, it's a good indicator of tire noise.
Hands down, you have the best car repair/info/diagnosis videos on KZhead.
Glad to see your back and making more videos. Have been watching you since I was 18 which was about 6 years ago. Thanks to your videos i learned how to work on cars and now do all repairs myself. All thanks to you keep up the great informative videos!
When no test is perfect, you get multiple pathways to diagnosis. Even professionals sometimes have trouble making the correct diagnosis.
Do the cheap one first.
@spelunkerd. great advice, as always from you.
Awesome video as usual! Thanks for keeping it simple enough while still SHOWING the details. You're one of my favorite automotive channels because of this.
Glad I ran into your video before taking my car to the mechanic. Found a massive crack/split on the inside of both front tires by doing the inspection you showed. Probably saved myself $300-400 and a whole day of my car at the mechanic. Thanks a bunch for making this video!
This guy knows what he is talking about. Noises can be difficult to deal with. Thanks for your tips.
gr8 video, sweet I saw it a couple months ago. around 2 years my wife drove her car with a flat and stuff the tyre up. I replaced with a second hand tyre. well it had wheel bearing noise, which got worst a few months ago. paid $150 for a new bearing hub online, I jacked the car up to find a thick bolt in the tyre with the head wear off. (the increase in noise for last month) So I went and replace the back tyres as the other was near the end of it life too. Drive home and no noise. now I struck with a new bearing.
One thing you didn't mention that I will mention now is also to do with the tires and not the bearing. Some tires have a tread and compound that will make for a lot of "road noise". I have all seasons and I get typical noise from driving because of the tread pattern. When I switch to my winter tires, the noise is much more pronounced. Big time. The sound goes away when I switch back to my all seasons. My winter tires are brand new and they are in immaculate condition, by the way. So are my bearings. So in some cases, the type of tire you have can lead to a humming/howling sound similar to what people would mistake as a bearing issue. Up here in Canada, the noise gets even more pronounced the colder it gets as the rubber stiffens. So it may not always be a bad bearing or even a bad tire - it may also be just the type of tire and the weather as well. Something to be cognizant of. :)
Great video keep making them I just like to add that I have seen a lot of rear tires go bad as set due to bad shocks in the back. they usually get bubles on the inside part of the tire,it is also called having chopped tires and they feel bumpy when you run your hands through them just like how he explained on the video. Best thing to do is to replace the shocks wich are causing the tires to chop on the inside get new tires and a alignment at the end.
I had this issue with Michelin tires 5 year old with less than 20k on them. Apparently not driving and leaving the car sitting generated this issue. Who knew tires that were not worn out could make such loud humming noise. So after spending $900 for 4 new tires the sounds has gone away and the car is a pleasure to drive again. Thanks for confirming I am not the only one with this issue
You saved my aaasss! I was shopping for new wheel hubs and looking for the procedure when your video popped up. Found that the inner liner had been bowed out due to a previous accident. It's on the right side and I only heard the noise turning left, classic wheel bearing, but the mind explosion you gave me solved the problem and a bunch of time and money. I appreciate the video!
I've watched many of your videos , i gotta say i just appreciate how detailed you are , you don't cut to the chase ,your honest on knowledge as a mechanic , you are what a mechanic should be and you really, help many people like myself ,to save money on these DIY jobs and get it done Right . I Thank you from the bottom of my heart and i totally Appreciate all you help. God Bless you and yours Always ..I Sincerely mean that !
You always have great video's. I don't watch you enough! Thank you. You are a great teacher and obviously a skilled mechanic and troubleshooter.
It's good to see a video again. I always learn something when I stop by.
Worth mentioning, especially if you live in an area prone to many or deep potholes in roads, check to make sure your brake backing plate(if any) are not damaged. I thought for a while I had a bad wheel bearing because I was hearing noise, turned out to be the backing plate was bent inward and rubbing on the rotor causing the noise, just bent back with pliers and was fine. Hope it helps
Thank you for posting this! I'm been wondering my bearings are going out, now I know how to check them.
Good show. Loving the background, it's like you're in the garden of Eden working on cars.
Great tip on the checking for a bad wheel bearing by feeling the vibration on a coil spring!
Every time I watch when your videos of your straight to the point no BSalways feel like I learned something from you and ty very much
Relaxed guy, no music, good talker, good craftsman, like watching your tube ;)
🤨
Hey! He's back. Looking forward to all the future videos. One of my favourite mechanics on KZhead.
I'm glad your channel is doing good bro! Props for the quality content Joe Mantegna!
I have never heard of checking for vibration by touching the spring and spinning the tire, great video!!
Thank you. You did exactly what you said you would do. Just one quibble. Please elaborate on what you felt and found with the bad tire.
Also, before thinking about replacing the bearing, there usually an option to buy a bearing and hub together for $50 more but much much easier DIY friendly install.
Toyota wanted 305 for the hub assembly
I’ve been subscribed for 2 years about and I thought you just stopped making videos. KZhead needs to fix their issues
Great overall explanation. I have a slight movement at 3 and 9 o'clock but not 6 and 12. I originally thought it was the wheel bearing. Now i know to check the tie rods. Thanks! I just assumed it was the bearing since i have 228k miles on my 2010 Rav4. I'll turn the wheel and hold the spring to see if i get any vibration.
Warning! Just be careful running your hand along the tire with a buldge, sometimes the tire has exposed steel belt.
Good call. Nitrile gloves are so useful. Much better to tear a glove than your skin. I always wear gloves when I can, and not because I'm afraid of getting dirty. I still get dirty, but it let's me keep my tools cleaner and has saved my skin many times.
@@TheConstantComet Plus the wife or GF will appreciate not having greasy hands and finger nails touching her .
@@johnlopez3001 that's sweet :)
😟 why did you remind me.........
@@johnlopez3001 yes!! My gosh I have worked on so many cars and lost of from working without gloves...
I just had a issue like this. My friend and I where trying to figure out if it was a bearing or bad tires. In the end it was bearings. We never took the bearing issue for granted.
Glad to see you back!
Thank you, nice to see you! I've had fuzion touring tires, they're junk
This was very helpful info. Your channel has taught me a lot.
This is hilarious you made this video. I had 3 alignments done on my car. The car STILL PULLED. The shop swapped the front tires left to right, and the pull changed sides. Brand new BF Goodrich tires. Manufacturing defect made the tire conical. Causing a pull because of a misaligned belt. You couldn't see the defect because it's internal. Talk about MADDENING!
David Hammett - Infuriating is right!! I was in the automotive/truck industry for 37 years, specializing in front end and suspensions. I found defective tires causing handling, vibration and noise issues SO often! Tires are a bad place to save money, and have recommended Michelin and Toyo tires for years. Even these can see an occasional failure, but they’re ROUND and easily balanced from day one.
Bf Goodrich sucks on 195-65-15 size that go out of round after a while.And start making noise.
Hopefully i can get a reply...i have this issue with my car pulling to the right. First thought is was the tires ( recently had bought new ones) and removed them, inspected them, and they looked perfect! But still a pull to the right with a wobble. Got an alignment, rotated the tires, and re-balanced. Now there is no wobble but still a pull to the right! I drive a 2004 acura tl. Someone plz help.
@@juliovasquez8718 try swapping your front tires left to right, if the pull changed sides, one of those is bad. In my case I think more than 1 of my tires is bad. I also have an 07 Acura TL. It's been aligned 3 times, and they said it's my tires. They have 11k miles on them. Apparently it's very common for manufacturers to sell "conical" tires. And if there is a large difference between sides, it causes the pull. Apparently Acura TL is super sensitive to this pull. It's dangerous, Because I constantly have to keep pressure on the wheel, to avoid other traffic. But this is the U.S. government regulations working. Psh.
@@ua7pyro591 thanks will do! Yeh my tires only have 9k on them if that..and yes very dangerous im constantly doing the same holding it alittle to the left and as soon as i let go hard right! Nothing more perfect than finding this video and comment section today! Thanks @DavidHammett
Changed wheel bearing and it turned out it was the damn tire all along.
Same thing happened to me. Didn't find out until I got a blowout on the highway.
The other way around,Changed all four tires but it was the ball bearings.
This happened to my Father with his car. He replaced the entire rear axle assembly, with one from a salvage yard. One of the drive axles was bent on the salvage yard one. Turns out that the noise was caused by a tire. He could have re-installed the original axle, but he would have had to pay extra for the labor.
@@kmath50 so, he's driving with a bent axle...not making sense.
@@ernieestrada5774 Once he found out that the drive axle was bent, he had it replaced. It was cheaper to do that, than to swap the axle assembly.
Nice! Well done. I have an all wheel drive highlander. If the tires start getting a little old that thing gets a ton of road noise. New tires installed and quiet as can be. I think I would say in my experience that an all wheel drive is even noisier when the tires start getting bad.
Bro your video is simple and to the point..Gladly subscribed..keep up the hard work.
What a great, detailed, professional video. Very helpful. Thanks!
Unlike some other bad mouthing Toyota fanboys on their channels this mechanic is spot on and he knows his stuff. Thumbs up!!
Excellent video my friend. I watched a different video you did a long time ago. Right on point! Thank you!
Thanks for the great info . Learning everyday . It’s wonderful .
Like your videos and just want to share my experience with wheel bearings. I had the noise and was quite sure it was the bearing. Did all the stuff you show several time, while driving a few thousand kms in the car. I was never capable of confirm the fault by jacking up the car and doing what you do. Didn’t do the hand on spring thing though. Finally drove it to the mechanic and fixed it with a new bearing. Point - it’s not as easy to diagnose as I thought.
Another great video. Well explained and good camera and audio! Thanks again sir!
Wow, this was really helpful. This guy knows his stuff.
Greetings from Costa Rica! Learning a lot from you. Thanks for the videos.
Hi just thought booth rear bearings were gone on a used car we just purchased. Saw your video and to my astonishment I tried the feeling the surface of booth rear tires, that looked good.....booth were bad ,you saved me $300. I was just going to order them online......Thank you
Well Earned LIKE, Best explained and smartest way of approaching this issue ive seen yet!
Thank you for this video. I have sent it to my mechanic, I just pray he comprehends all you said here.
Yeah that true it happened to my car , when I changed the tire no noise and it drives very smooth.
Most definitely subscribed. I'm having this issue just replaced the front tires , have two old back tires I think that's it . But I'm going to follow your steps and find out. Just got two new front tires and all new brakes .
Your videos are awesome. Many thanks from your viewers here in the U.K.
Im watching this while im having the same problem and was planning to do my bearings. Thanks man.
Thank you mate! You're a really good teacher. I have an idea that will definitely work and it includes promoting your videos too ;)
Of course, a bad tire can also seem like an alignment or balance problem. I haven't tried it, but bet that you might be able to detect a significant difference in hub temps. on the same axle with a laser thermometer after driving the car, like checking for a dragging caliper.
I once bought a set of wheels with some cheap brand tires on it (Sunny). They sounded exactly like worn bearings. Had them replaced by Michelin and the sound went away. Also found out that XL rated (dual radial) tires make more sounds like that then regular radial tires.
Thank you for this video :D im trying to understand my car better and this video has been one of the most interesting one with easy to understand information
Thank you for this info!! I plan to put this knowledge to use soon and test my bearings :)
Excellent; you covered it all.
Great video! Gotta try this out tomorrow, and determine the problem.
Great video mate, I'm handy on the tools but my diagnosing skills are lacking. This will help me out a lot good job👍
great video...I would add be very careful running your hands around the tires because sometimes metal or other sharp objects can be stuck in it and can cut you...also if the tire is really bad the steel belts can also stick out and cut or stab you....even with gloves on.
Exactly what I was looking for. Thanks for the video.
Excellent video! Very good tips on how to diagnose the problems. Thumbs up!!
Thanks for all your helpful tips. They have been very educational and have helped save me $$$ .
That’s what mine is doing and just checked and it’s the tires. Now I am watching this videos 😁
Good tip about the vibration.
I had what I thought were bad bearings on a first generation Scion xB. I bought a pair of new bearings and spend an entire day replacing them myself. It didn't fix the sound at all. But while I had the tires off I noticed that their tread was really cupped. So I bought a new set of tires and that completely solve the problem. Meanwhile the rear bearings did actually go out on my Scion FR-S. The sound is completely different. When you got bad tires, it's a kind of growling warbling weird sound. But when it's bad bearings it's a hum. A nice solid steady hum. What's kind of funny is we were standing next to a lady's car one day and as she and my wife talked I looked at her back tires, and you could see that her tires were cupped. I told her that it would make her car sound like the rear bearings were bad. Her response was, so that's what that sound is! I think the problem is with front-wheel drive cars the rear wheels eventually get cups because they last so long and aren't used to drive the car or anything. I think a simple solution would be to rotate your tires a little more regularly than I do.
Excellent tips!
Very informative - love this channel! Thanks so much.
Thank you! My Audi started making a loud humming noise. I’ll try doing this first.
Great useful info as usual. Thank you R&W!!
Bought an audio listening device on Amazon... Clipped a microphone to each wheel and plugged the cables into the listening unit... Put on the headphones... Drove down the road... Moved the listening switch from wheel #1 to #2 to #3 to #4... There was a lot of noise coming from the left front wheel... It was making noise as soon as the vehicle started moving... The other wheels were quiet and smooth... There are two new Michelin tires on the front so it wasn't a bad tire...
Excellent!!. Many, many thanks!!.
You did a great job in your explanation! Great Job!
Thought is was my wheel bearing going bad because of the growling noise, but after watching this and checking my tire, it was the tire going bad. Thanks
Very informative, direct the point. Thank you!
Oh wow this is eye opening , ive had noise thay i assumed was wheel bearing but now i have a glimmer of hope that maybe its a tire lol ive def hit some significant curbs and have a nail in the back one ... im guessing a tireshop tomorrow can put my car up in the air and figure out one way pr the other :)
Another way to test for noisy tires is to drive it on the road, if it makes noise then find a large flat area with grass drive it on the grass at the same speed usually around 20 miles an hour if the noise is gone then it's the tires, a friends jeep compass had this issue and that is how i diagnosed it
Never heard of the spring trick before...gotta keep that in mind! I'm sure that there must be SOME tires made in China that aren't total junk but a few years back I bought a set of snow tires for my car (major name brand) and when they were delivered I saw they were made in China. Was tempted to send them back but didn't. Worst snow tires I ever owned...hard as a rock and lousy winter traction. Ended up finally replacing them with another brand (made in the US) and winter driving is much improved.
Liked the very detailed information. Great job !
R&W is cool as hell i love this channel 😋👌🏼
So informative ones again thanks for the great tips
yes thats right once saved myself a lot of money when a main dealer diagnosed a bad wheel bearing. i went to another dealer and it turned out to be caused by a tyre not being round
great tip the holding the spring... Thank you
Here's a tip! If you think it's a bad tire switch it out with the spare or rotate them to see if the sound changes location. This is a free test to save everyone money! Just dont ride on the spare long term.
Omg i love this guy's videos! Just discovered them!
Love this guy and his videos !
This video and last one about headlights right on time, just what I'm going to be looking at this weekend. You mind reading, lol. Thank you.
Thanks Man for this Video. I have my Tesla Model Y Car ran into a Pothole my tire got flat, got a new tire and rebalanced, starting to Hear the whining noise specially when accelerating, tire and rims are good! Checked the Upper arm etc. looking good. so I guess its the wheel bearing for sure this time. But problem is nowhere to buy spare parts for tesla. Even Tesla is back order
Informative and Just what I was looking for. Thanks
Thanks for making this video ! It was a great help :)
Off topic, just did this. this pasted weekend. Before changing your battery or alternator. For dimming head lights while braking or just seeing your domes lights flickering.Press on the serpentine belt by the tensioner if your tensioner moves, Replace it.
Awesome video. We have a noise that is similar to rubbing a wet finger around the rim of a glass bowl. The brake shoes will wear more on one edge as if they are crooked. Two shops worked on the brakes and could not fix it. After first shop, the disk was actually only being used for half its width because the other half was rusting. After all that we did it ourselves, replacing disks and shoes with top quality parts, still doing it. Will have to run the checks you describe here.
Well done! Thank you!
He should also suggest that a bearing and tire noise sound a lot different. A choppy tire will have an inconsistant thump thump thump thump sound every time it hits the high/low spot that increases the faster you drive. A bad wheel bearing will have a very consistant hum that gets louder the faster you drive. Also can put the car on jackstands and spin each wheel can usually hear a bad bearing when you spin the wheel by hand, or feel it feeding back through the coil spring on the strut .
Thank you! Very helpful video
Good tip, thank you Ratchets. 👍
Daniel Fernandez his last name is and wrenches lol
Thanks for the great content - new sub! Please do a video on the top 5 minivans and another one on the top 5 cargo Van's. Appreciate it!