Caliber Road noise

My daughter just bought a 2007 SE with 42,000 miles on it. The car looks and runs perfect. The used car dealer mentioned to her and my Dad that the Caliber was known for having excessive road noise. Anyway, she loved it and bought it. This past weekend I went to visit her and rode in the Caliber. MAN, it has serious road noise that sounds like worn out wheel bearings. The car literally roars as it picks up speed (beginnning at about 30 MPH). The noise changes dramatically with the road pavement surface changes so I believe some of it is associated with the tires.

Is this typical of the Caliber or could we have additional problems brewing?

the one i rented had no road noise. so i would look towards a wheel bearing.

There is a lot of road noise, but it shouldn't sound like a wheel bearing problem... I think most of the noise comes from the tires. On a rough road it is hard to even have a conversation with your passengers, but it is not that bad on smooth blacktop. If the sounds dosen't drastically reduce when driving on new blacktop versus a crummy road, you may want to get it checked out.

My biggest issue is road noise and I believe it to be the tires. The Dunlop SP50's that are on it are a hard compound tire. You didn't mention if it still has the OE tires or not, so I am assuming that it does.

OKAY !

I too have the Caliber and from the very moment my friend told me that there was a lot of "road noise" , of course it never left my ears from that point on...

We put a new set of tires on it and POOF ! No more road noise!. BUT the next set of tires we put on ( we drive a hell of a lot ) we did in fact notice the road noise had not gone away at all leaving me driving down the freeway swerving to hear the changes in the front end sound! THis is most definately something that will require a rack and work! DO NOT IGNORE THE SOUND COMMING FROM THE CAR'S FRONT END !!! I'll post the outcome when I fix it.

OKAY !!! THe car is fixed and it was the front drivers side bearing... Of course I replaced them both but the main noise is from the bearing. We paid 53.00 for the bearing from Napa and had our local neoghbor press it ona nd install them BOTH for $90.00. It took him around 3 hours and it went off without a hitch!

SO BE AWARE OF FRONT WHEEL BEARINGS CALIBER OWNERS !!!

OKAY !

I too have the Caliber and from the very moment my friend told me that there was a lot of "road noise" , of course it never left my ears from that point on...

We put a new set of tires on it and POOF ! No more road noise!. BUT the next set of tires we put on ( we drive a hell of a lot ) we did in fact notice the road noise had not gone away at all leaving me driving down the freeway swerving to hear the changes in the front end sound! THis is most definately something that will require a rack and work! DO NOT IGNORE THE SOUND COMMING FROM THE CAR'S FRONT END !!! I'll post the outcome when I fix it.

OKAY !!! THe car is fixed and it was the front drivers side bearing... Of course I replaced them both but the main noise is from the bearing. We paid 53.00 for the bearing from Napa and had our local neoghbor press it ona nd install them BOTH for $90.00. It took him around 3 hours and it went off without a hitch!

SO BE AWARE OF FRONT WHEEL BEARINGS CALIBER OWNERS !!! BUY NEW BEARINGS !!!

if it's not tire noise i would change bearings but still think it tire noies.

We also had to replace the tires as well if they are the ORIGINAL tires they are the "dunlop" and they are NOISEY! They will be the first noise you have when you buy the car new then the bearings... You can expect the brake rotors to warp too... We've got 120,000 miles on our 2007 Caliber and are getting around 32-34 MPG on the Highway @ 65MPH. If you have any other questions I'll be glad to help you . Also they sell a VERY good "knock off" version of the Service Manual on eBay for $10.00 (the real thing would cost $65.00) BUY THIS CD !!! Well worth it !

We also have a 2007 Dodge Caliber with the Dunlop SP50 tires. I have always wondered if there was a problem with the front end because of the road noise. It is my wife's car and when she takes it to the dealer they say nothing is wrong with it. I noticed that the back tires are cupping / feathering quite significantly. I find it odd that the rear tires would do this with proper inflation and alignment. This seems to be a consistent problem with the Calibers and the Dunlop SP50 tires. One person even mentioned having to replace the front end bearings... sounds like a recall to me.

Questions for those that have replaced the tires on the Caliber and had reduced road noise -

What brand (and size) tires did you buy?

Did the road noise "stay gone" or did it return with tire wear?

My daughters Caliber is about to need new shoes.

Thanks

I have Dodge Caliber with 37000 miles and also experiencing road noise. It started gradually, but now it's really annoying. I hesitate to go to a dealer, worrying about big repair bill. My friend noticed the tires which are Dunlop SP 50 are directional. (there's an arrow on tire showing direction) The passenger's side was ok but driver's side tires are facing wrong direction. It seems like someone on Dodge assembly line grabbed and installed tthe wrong set of tires. I wonder if this is something that should be fixed free of charge, it is obviously manufacturer's fault

The Dealer should remount the tires to the proper direction to limit their liability in case of tire failure or a wreck which could be blamed on the improper tire direction. All they need to do is to dismount the tire and flip it over on the rim.

FYI - My dodughter recently replaced her worn tires and the road noise virtually went away. I don't know what brand she got, but I bet she got them at WalMart.