adamgh81 Posted April 28, 2012 Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 My wife's 03 Trailblazer, 4x4 I6 with 133k, has started to make a noise that starts at about 25-30 mph and gets louder with speed. I don't think it's engine related as I can put it in neutral, coast and hear the same sound. My question is how do I know for sure it's a wheel bearing and how do I know which side? I can't tell which side the noise is coming from when driving. It doesn't make a noise at slow speeds or while turning... Any advice is welcome. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wnaplay1647545503 Posted April 28, 2012 Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 Can you put it in the air and spin each side listening/feeling for something wrong? I may have a used wheel bearing that came off my 02 bravada. I believe it was good when I replaced both fronts due to one being bad. If it fits and I can find it you can use it to test with. May not be worth hassle but let me know and I will look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crossle Posted April 28, 2012 Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 Couple ways. 1 way is to reach the speed that you can hear the noise and in a "safe" environment. Sway the car left and right. Turning left loads the right side, turning right loads the left side. You are looking for the noise to get louder one direction or the other. Say you pitch the car left and it gets louder, you have isolated the problem to the right side. NOW - I have had vehicles get noisy 1 way, but turn out to have a bad bearing on the unloaded side. With that being said the BEST way to verify is to put it in the air with all 4 wheels up. Put the thing in drive. turn the traction control off and have someone accelerate to about 25-35 mph. Take a screwdriver or stethoscope and place it on the back side of the hub and listen. One side should be quiet and smooth, the other will be noisy/grumbly/pulsating noise. That's your bad bearing. Fronts are the most common on those, they are not hard to change. Wheel off, Caliper bracket/caliper/rotor off, axle nut off, 3 bolts on the back holding the bearing/hub assy. , disconnect abs wire, hit with hammer a couple times if your lucky it will just pop right out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wnaplay1647545503 Posted April 28, 2012 Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 From experience be gentle with the dust shields. Getting one even slightly bend will cause grinding that will drive you up a wall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rocky31186 Posted April 28, 2012 Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 Couple ways. 1 way is to reach the speed that you can hear the noise and in a "safe" environment. Sway the car left and right. Turning left loads the right side, turning right loads the left side. You are looking for the noise to get louder one direction or the other. Say you pitch the car left and it gets louder, you have isolated the problem to the right side. NOW - I have had vehicles get noisy 1 way, but turn out to have a bad bearing on the unloaded side. With that being said the BEST way to verify is to put it in the air with all 4 wheels up. Put the thing in drive. turn the traction control off and have someone accelerate to about 25-35 mph. Take a screwdriver or stethoscope and place it on the back side of the hub and listen. One side should be quiet and smooth, the other will be noisy/grumbly/pulsating noise. That's your bad bearing. Fronts are the most common on those, they are not hard to change. Wheel off, Caliper bracket/caliper/rotor off, axle nut off, 3 bolts on the back holding the bearing/hub assy. , disconnect abs wire, hit with hammer a couple times if your lucky it will just pop right out. Took the words out of my mouth.. :thumbup: Pm sent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cordell Posted April 28, 2012 Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 Couple ways. 1 way is to reach the speed that you can hear the noise and in a "safe" environment. Sway the car left and right. Turning left loads the right side, turning right loads the left side. You are looking for the noise to get louder one direction or the other. Say you pitch the car left and it gets louder, you have isolated the problem to the right side. NOW - I have had vehicles get noisy 1 way, but turn out to have a bad bearing on the unloaded side. With that being said the BEST way to verify is to put it in the air with all 4 wheels up. Put the thing in drive. turn the traction control off and have someone accelerate to about 25-35 mph. Take a screwdriver or stethoscope and place it on the back side of the hub and listen. One side should be quiet and smooth, the other will be noisy/grumbly/pulsating noise. That's your bad bearing. Fronts are the most common on those, they are not hard to change. Wheel off, Caliper bracket/caliper/rotor off, axle nut off, 3 bolts on the back holding the bearing/hub assy. , disconnect abs wire, hit with hammer a couple times if your lucky it will just pop right out. This sums it up. Pretty common issue, I do a lot of them. Do yourself a favor and buy a good bearing, NAPA or Timkin, not an Autozone special. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamgh81 Posted April 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 Thanks for the advice! I'll jack it up tomorrow and spin the wheels. I don't have the balls to put it in gear up to 25 mph on jack stands in my garage, so I'll stick to your first method. This sums it up. Pretty common issue, I do a lot of them. Do yourself a favor and buy a good bearing, NAPA or Timkin, not an Autozone special. Good to know, NAPA is next door to cheapzone. I think I've been to NAPA more often lately due to the quality factor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rocky31186 Posted April 28, 2012 Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 I would never run a car in drive on jack stands.. He is talking about on a lift in a shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rocky31186 Posted April 28, 2012 Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 This sums it up. Pretty common issue, I do a lot of them. Do yourself a favor and buy a good bearing, NAPA or Timkin, not an Autozone special. I did a side job wheel bearing on a avalanche once. He bought a cheapo Autozone bearing. I put it all back together and test drove it. At 45 MPH it came apart.. Wheel took off across the street, almost took out a new BMW. Caliper, rotor, etc all connected to the wheel.. As I went sliding down the street and made it to the side of the road. I will never use duraCrap again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamgh81 Posted April 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 I would never run a car in drive on jack stands.. He is talking about on a lift in a shop. Ah, I didn't think about half of you guys work with or have access to lifts. :megusta: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SHIEF Posted April 28, 2012 Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 I did a side job wheel bearing on a avalanche once. He bought a cheapo Autozone bearing. I put it all back together and test drove it. At 45 MPH it came apart.. Wheel took off across the street, almost took out a new BMW. Caliper, rotor, etc all connected to the wheel.. As I went sliding down the street and made it to the side of the road. I will never use duraCrap again. Autozone sells Timkin bearings.....sounds like the value bearing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wnaplay1647545503 Posted April 28, 2012 Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 I replaced both mine with the cheapest I could find on ebay(pm auto parts I believe) and never had an issue. I knew I was risking it but its been 40k miles and no problems yet. I have since ordered other parts from them with no issues. You are taking a chance when you order from a place like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crossle Posted April 29, 2012 Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 Thanks for the advice! I'll jack it up tomorrow and spin the wheels. I don't have the balls to put it in gear up to 25 mph on jack stands in my garage, so I'll stick to your first method. Good to know, NAPA is next door to cheapzone. I think I've been to NAPA more often lately due to the quality factor. Put it up on jack stands and turn the wheels by hand while listening. It may not have any play either, just noisy. Just depends on how bad it really is. As far as Napa bearings go, stick with the BRG bearings. The part number will start with BRG, those are their good bearings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave1647545494 Posted April 29, 2012 Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 you shouldn't run a car on a lift or on stands..... jack the front up and turn the wheel by hand with your other hand on the coil spring if the bearing is wasted you can feel it in the spring.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rocky31186 Posted April 29, 2012 Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 you shouldn't run a car on a lift or on stands........ :dumb: I guess I've been doing it wrong for years.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamgh81 Posted April 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 Ok, drove her again and then jacked her up...I think I was wrong about a bad wheel bearing because I don't hear shit when turning and driving or when its in the air spinning the wheel by hand...I didn't notice any play in the wheel either. So I popped the hood and noticed the clutch fan was a little loose...could it be that making this noise? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red92Notch Posted April 29, 2012 Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 I wouldn't put my head near a spinning wheel especially with the screwdriver. All you have to do is lift the wheels and spin them by had one at a time (put in neutral first to make them easier to turn) while holding onto the coil spring and if its bad, you'll usually feel vibration through the spring and/or control arm/chassis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crossle Posted April 29, 2012 Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 Will it make the noise with the car running in the driveway revving the motor up and down? Or does the car have to be traveling at speed? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueshadow2 Posted April 29, 2012 Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 could be a cv shaft Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamgh81 Posted April 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 Will it make the noise with the car running in the driveway revving the motor up and down? Or does the car have to be traveling at speed? No, engine speed and RPM's makes no difference in the noise. Car must be in motion above 25-30 mph, and gets louder with speed. Kind of like a humming noise...my wife just turns the radio up louder :no: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crossle Posted April 29, 2012 Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 Scott will have better input on other common issues with trailblazer's. I think it could still be a wheel bearing, but just not bad enough yet to detect via the methods you have available to you to diagnose it. What manufacturer tires do you have on the truck and what sort of tread is left? It is totally possible that you could be experiencing tire noise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamgh81 Posted April 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 Tires are Yokohama Geolandar H/T-S with even tread left, 7/32 to 8/32" on both fronts. I haven't rotated them this year yet, so maybe that would help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crossle Posted April 29, 2012 Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 Thats an easy free thing to eliminate, but that info doesn't convince me that it could be the problem. Thats a good tire. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave1647545494 Posted April 29, 2012 Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 :dumb: I guess I've been doing it wrong for years.. yep no cure for retard sorry dude Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cordell Posted April 30, 2012 Report Share Posted April 30, 2012 Well from what you described it really sounds like a wheel bearing, they are super common. I don't understand all the hostility towards driving a vehicle in the air, I wouldn't be comfortable driving it on jackstands but most techs including me drive cars on lifts all the time as its the easiest way to diagnos issues like this. Honestly I don't see the feeling your coil spring while rotating the tire working very well unless the wheel bearing is really bad. Now that being said, they are bad about fan clutches going bad but that noise is pretty easy to figure out. The front diffs are pretty bad too, and since they barely hold a quart of fluid they are not very tolerable of leaking, that could be mistaken for a wheel bearing, but again I check stuff like that by driving them in the air. I think a u-joint would have to be really bad and you should check those for movement also. If you are around the east side I could take a ride in it and point you in the right direction if you want, just shoot me a PM if you want to go that route. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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