Diagnosing noise - wheel bearing?

[guitarfish]

The front of my '08 Prix is making a noise, most noticable when turning the wheel to the right at moderate speeds. I drive 100 miles on the highway every day, and I don't notice it on the highway. I've had wheel bearings go south before. where I hear them all the time, and worse the faster I go. This isn't like that, not yet anyway.

It seems to be on the front right. Waw waw waw kind of sound. I jacked up the wheel, there's no play in the bearing, and when I turn the wheel by hand, I don't hear anything unusual, with the wheel straight, and turned.

My question is, what other things could it be besides a wheel bearing? I'm confident it's not the tire, as I've swapped them around, no change. It's also not loose lug nuts.

I've heard bad CV joints before, they're usually click-click, but it's not like that.

Just looking for ideas, if this sounds like a wheel bearing.

Thanks!

[BNaylor]

Does the sound change based on speed. A bad wheel bearing normally changes pitch in sound as speed increases. At what speed does the noise start?

[guitarfish]

Originally Posted by BNaylor

Does the sound change based on speed. A bad wheel bearing normally changes pitch in sound as speed increases. At what speed does the noise start?

The problem is I only hear it when turning, and I can't go very fast or far turning. When I pull into a local store there's a long tight curve and I hear it real well at 15mph. I hear it at 40-50 mph on turns. It's not a high pitch or whine, more of a low grind noise. Not noticably different based on speed.

[rkvons]

Check the inside surface of your rotors. If your caliper pins were not greased properly in the past, you will get excessive force on your inside disk pad/rotor surface and it will really messed it up. Going fast, this surface rubs slightly on your pads and will sing, especially while turning. I am currently dealing with the same issue. I just learned that there is a special grease for the caliper pins. If I depress the brake pedal ever-so-lightly, as I approach a stop, I can hear the irregularities of the rotor surface rubbing on the disk brakes. In a couple of weeks, I plan on redoing my front brakes to see if the noise goes away. I just did my right front hub assembly and was shocked when I saw the inside surface of my brake rotor.

[JonJon68]

I just bought some Permatex Ultra Disc Brake Caliper Lube. It's a synthetic grease/lubricant especially for caliper pins, slides, bushings, pistons and rubber sleeves and seals. I don't think using just any grease will hold up under the high heat and pressure.

[guitarfish]

I installed new (resurfaced) rotors and new premium ceramic pads about 2 weeks ago. I cleaned & greased the pins with a red Valvoline grease which says it's for GM Ford Chrysler, extreme high heat, for brakes, bearings, etc. I've used it for several years on my cars without problems.

In any event, the noise I'm hear preceeded the brake job. I guess I'll pull the wheel and take another look on the weekend. It may end up that it has to get worse before I figure it out. Perplexing.

[jvandermolen]

I have very similar issues with my 2004 Grand Prix. I've taken apart both front wheels and can't find any free play in the bearings. My brakes are fairly new so I know it isn't that. Plus the noise doesn't change when I apply my brakes. I can only hear it at low speeds, turning left, turning right, and sometimes even going straight. My right half shaft was just replaced due to a cracked boot - I'm wondering if they screwed something up in the process.

I've done a lot of research on this and bought a Haynes manual. At this point I'm going to hammer down and drive it and let the issue progress to a point that I can diagnose!

If you find anything please let me know.

Funny side story - I brought it in to a local shop against my will and they said that the sound was coming from the tire bead rubbing on the rim...don't think so.

[guitarfish]

I started this thread 6 months ago, and I'm still driving the same noisy car. I'll be pulling the wheels and switching over to my winter tires soon, it'll be interesting if there's any change. Cars...

[3100]

don't check the front right, check the front left, because you say it makes noise when turning right, so imagine what happens to you when you turn fast right? your body goes to the left, now the weight of the vehicle shifts also left so there is no pressure on front right wheel only on the front left. So check front left bearing, front left tire, front left fender inside plastic for signs of tire scraping.

[BNaylor]

guitarfish,

What is your current mileage? Hopefully not above 100K miles. Obviously not 5 years since you have a '08 base model. FYI - Your GM 5 yr/100k mile powertrain warranty covers front and rear hubs/bearings and axle shaft/cv joints. Also, I verified through a local Pontiac dealer service department it would be covered.