The wheel bearing noise you might be hearing in your car might be an indication of long term danger in your car and you need to start thinking of when to get it fixed. Not only is it an annoying diesel motor kind of sound whenever you drive your car fast enough or take sharp turns, it can break away any moment because there is no way to tell since when it has been damaged, and put your car in a lock.
In order to get rid of the noise, you will need to first diagnose which wheel the noise is coming from, and this article will identify the two best ways for you to identify that.
1. Jack Stand Diagnosis
Note: Make sure you have enough confidence and that you are swift in your movement during this diagnosis.
You can pull up your car in the air on a jack stand and get another person to raise the ignition, and push the wheel speed enough for the noise to be audible. Take a long screwdriver (roughly two feet) and place it on the lid of your wheel while the wheel is rotating, place your ear on top of the handle, and be sure not to press it hard otherwise the loss of balance can hurt you. Check for a stuck- up motor noise on either wheel. Wherever it is more prominent, you can conclude that the wheel bearing is damaged.
2. Swaying
This is diagnosis that you can do while you are driving the car, because the wheels need to be rotating for the noise to be heard. It basically involves you driving your car just fast enough and taking a turn to one side and try determining where the respective noise is coming from.
This can be quite inaccurate relative to using a jack stand because there are many other noises on the road, so the diagnosis can become difficult, but it is less costly as far as time is concerned.
3.Getting Rid of the Noise
Once you have diagnosed where the problem lies, you need to consult a mechanic because unless you yourself are one with all the tools needed, you cannot remove all the surfacing components securely enough, make necessary changes, and place them back again.
There are three basic ways to get rid of the noise:
– Replacing. This is the costly method, but it becomes necessary because the car cannot function without a perfectly well wheel bearing. Most of the cost you have to pay is labor cost, but you should be ready to incur this cost.
– Repairing. If your mechanic is able to conclude that a few repairs to the present bearing, such as repairing a few joints, can make it functional again, then you should go for it. However, this may not be as secure as replacing it entirely with a new one.
– Oiling and Polishing. Sometimes increased surface friction can lead to the bearing making noises, so you can use smoothing oils and polishes to make the bearing spin and turn perfectly.
