Road Noise.. Worn / Bad Wheel Bearing or Worn Tires?
 

First off let me just say my tires are actually worn and should be replaced soon so the noise I'm hearing could actually be just the worn tires.

A friend of mine who had the same tires was also experiencing a noise which he also thought was just the tires but after he got his car serviced, he found out he had a worn/bad wheel bearing which was actually causing the noise he was hearing. So that why I'm thinking maybe the noise I'm hearing is also a bad wheel bearing.

After thinking about it for awhile I figured that if the noise I was hearing was just worn tires that the sound would change as I drive over different surfaces (IE: Driving down a highway and crossing over from concrete to pavement) but the noise I'm hearing seems to stay the same which make me thing its the wheel bearing. Now I'm not tire or wheel bearing expert but this seems to be a logical conclusion.

I just picked up my car from Audi due to a failed water pump (thank you CPO warranty and I did get the timing belt service done while they were in there) and had asked them to check the wheel bearings. The techs report basically said it was just the worn tires. Now I don't know what the tech actually did to test this . As far as I know he might have just did a low speed drive around the parking lot and since the tires are actually worn, pointed the finger at the most likely suspect without even doing further testing.

What do you guys think? Does my logic hold up related to the noise not changing when changing driving surfaces or do I just need to buy new tires and worry about something else?

Thanks for any input.

-Gary

Since you need new tires anyway, replace them. Then if the noise is still there, it is somethingelse

Failing wheel bearings make a low rumble or growl, the pitch of which is speed dependant and...
 

is aggravated by turning forces on the outside bearing. Failure is a slow process and the noise will drive you out of the car long before catastrophic failure. Live with it for awhile.

True, but I've also had tires that gave the exact same symptoms.
 

A growl at low speeds, much worse on sharp turns, and loudest on left turns. Was my Dunlop SP5000 A/S tires. Boy they were bad. No Dunlops ever again for me.

If your tires are worn anyway, it's a bit of a no brainer to get them replaced. Recommend some good ones too.

As you don't actually describe the noise,
 

or when and at what speeds you hear it, it's very difficult to say.

Re: Since you need new tires anyway, replace them. Then if the noise is still there, it is something
 

This is true, I just thought it was weird that the sound did not change when the road surface changed since I would assume the noise worn tires make are caused but the rubbing of the tire on the road.

Re: As you don't actually describe the noise,
 

Sorry about that. I'm not sure how to really describe it. Its more noticeable at 45-65 MPH. It's not a constant sound, it has an oscillation to it. It's not really a low rumble or grinding sound. It seems to get quitter with an upward bounce over a bump. It does not seem to change when taking a turn.

I'm not sure if this helps.

-Gary

Thats true, maybe its both. But that is what I would do next.

Don't buy Bridgestone Pole Positions if you care about noice!

Please say more.
 

I'm about to buy RE960PPs, and the Tire Rack survey has them as "superior" for noise.

Why do you say dont buy them?

Grant