Strange noise from my front left wheel (vid inside)

[ArmedEscort]

So here is what I know:

I don't think it has anything to do with air pushing against anything as the clicking slows with speed. At a walking speed it's still audible, so I've ruled that out. Whatever it is, it's been making the exact same sound for over 5k miles, which is weird as I thought it would eventually wear it self out, no dice. Here's the vid and I will be one happy driver when I find out what it is, because it is driving me crazy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJqgU_OLen4&feature=youtu.be

 

[jmathew34]

So here is what I know:

I don't think it has anything to do with air pushing against anything as the clicking slows with speed. At a walking speed it's still audible, so I've ruled that out. Whatever it is, it's been making the exact same sound for over 5k miles, which is weird as I thought it would eventually wear it self out, no dice. Here's the vid and I will be one happy driver when I find out what it is, because it is driving me crazy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJqgU_OLen4&feature=youtu.be

I've had that same noise from what I believe is my rear driver's side wheel recently. It's like a mix between a clicking sound and the squeal when it's time to change your brake pad.

At first I thought it was a brake pad or rotor issue and I've checked the pads/rotors etc but no luck...it seems to go away with increasing speeds but once the car slow's down the noise creeps back up...driving me nuts;

I have a oil service due with Ben@Daisy soon so gonna have him check it things out....

 

[EdinKali]

Do you have slotted rotors?

 

[pgilliam1]

So, if you lightly touch the brake pedal when you're hearing the noise, does it go away? If so, it may be your caliper piston is starting to seize and not retract, holding the pad to the rotor (miles and age of car would help). After you drive the car for several miles without braking (say on the highway), pull over and feel the calipers. If one is hotter than the others, concentrate on that one. It could also be a bearing???

 

[ArmedEscort]

Do you have slotted rotors?

Yes I do, but braking seems to have no effect. It does sound tinny, like a dust cover though. Hilltop auto in SF had no idea what it was, I am equally perplexed. Although, something to do with brakes seems the most plausible.

 

[EdinKali]

Yes I do, but braking seems to have no effect. It does sound tinny, like a dust cover though. Hilltop auto in SF had no idea what it was, I am equally perplexed. Although, something to do with brakes seems the most plausible.

If you have slotted rotors this may be normal. In some cars with slotted rotors you can get a slight noise of the pads going past the slots in the rotors. If they are full floating slotted rotors you can also get a rattling noise. If they are full floating, make sure you regularly check the area where the rotors attach to the hats as they can be prone to wear and I have seen a few failures where the rotor became detached from the hat.

Noise could also be a wheel bearing going bad. Hard to tell from the video.

 

[ArmedEscort]

If you have slotted rotors this may be normal. In some cars with slotted rotors you can get a slight noise of the pads going past the slots in the rotors. If they are full floating slotted rotors you can also get a rattling noise. If they are full floating, make sure you regularly check the area where the rotors attach to the hats as they can be prone to wear and I have seen a few failures where the rotor became detached from the hat.

Noise could also be a wheel bearing going bad. Hard to tell from the video.

I did brake tests on the way home to be sure about this: braking makes absolutely no difference. I rode the brake and stayed on power so that my speed wouldn't change on the noise was identical.

 

[ArmedEscort]

Just to update you guys, Will helped me diagnose the problem. It was the rear driver's side wheel bearing. He said he had never heard a bearing make that noise which is why it was so hard to find, we figured it out by putting it on the hoist and spinning the wheel, luckily it continued to click with no load on it. Bought an oem replacement and that god awful clicking noise if finally gone.

 

[MidnightSun]

Thanks for the update. Strange how it always seems to be coming from front wheel area but usually ended up being something in rear. I also had similar problem.