I can't figure out this outside noise

[steveeyes]

Hopefully someone can take an educated guess of what the following ma
indicate

While driving the car, I hear an outside humming noise. If I turn th
steering wheel to the right (not a complete turn but a curve in th
road that goes right), no noise. I only hear it when driving straigh
or if the road curves to the left

I don’t hear the noise when the car is at a stand still and I’m racin
the engine. I only hear it when the car is moving.

Why it doesn't make the noise when there is a slight turn to the righ
is hopefully a clue. I can be driving on a straight road and all
have to do is turn the steering wheel slightly to the right and th
noise is gone. Yet if I go straight or curve to the left, there is
loud outside humming noise. It sounds as if it is coming from th
front

Any clues what may be causing this noise would be appreciated

Thank
Stev

 

[hyundaitech]

I'd suspect a worn right front hub bearing. When you turn right, it
removes load from the right front wheel, causing the noise to stop.

 

[Paul]

Steve:

Look at the thread I stated on 3/3 with the subject "Noisy Tires". At
least that's what I thought the problem was. Hyundaitech also recommended
that it might be a bearing and he was right.
If your car has less than 100K on it, it's covered under the Powertrain
warrantee.

Good luck.

 

[hyundaitech]

The 10 year/100,000 mile powertrain warranty only applies to the original
owner of 1999 and newer model year Hyundais, and while it would cover the
front hub bearing, it won't cover the rear.

Any of the hub bearings are covered by the 5 year/60,000 mile warranty
regardless of ownership.

 

[steveeyes]

Thanks guys for your replies. I do have another question......

About 3 months ago I had the front drive axles changed. Is the hu
bearing part of the drive axles

Thank

 

[Rev. Tom Wenndt]

In the "smart person's world" (whatever that is), the hub bearings probably
should be changed with a new axle, since they have to come off to replace
the axles.

But they are not "actually" a part of the axle. But it seems, sure as
shootin', if you don't change them at that time, they will go bad, and often
shortly thereafter.

 

[Brian Nystrom]

Thanks guys for your replies. I do have another question.......

About 3 months ago I had the front drive axles changed. Is the hub
bearing part of the drive axles?

No. The axles pass through the hubs, but the bearings don't contact them
directly. The axles are generally very easy to replace, so it's unlikely
that replacing them would damage the bearings. However, it IS pretty
easy to mistake a bad bearing for a bad CV joint and vice-versa. If
that's the reason they axles were replaced, they could have "fixed the
wrong problem". It's also possible for noise from one to mask noise from
the other, so I wouldn't jump to the conclusion that they screwed up
unless the car sounded the same before and after the repair. It's
possible that both were bad.

 

[Mike Marlow]

No. The axles pass through the hubs, but the bearings don't contact them
directly. The axles are generally very easy to replace, so it's unlikely
that replacing them would damage the bearings. However, it IS pretty
easy to mistake a bad bearing for a bad CV joint and vice-versa. If
that's the reason they axles were replaced, they could have "fixed the
wrong problem". It's also possible for noise from one to mask noise from
the other, so I wouldn't jump to the conclusion that they screwed up
unless the car sounded the same before and after the repair. It's
possible that both were bad.

Bad CV joints typically make a clicking sound whereas bad hubs typically
make either a grinding sound or a moan. Both are distinctly different from
each other. Not many mechanics would mistakenly diagnose one or the other
of these and replace the wrong part.

I'm curious why the front axles were changed. It would be quite uncommon to
have to replace both. Was this accident related?

 

[Brian Nystrom]

In the "smart person's world" (whatever that is), the hub bearings probably
should be changed with a new axle, since they have to come off to replace
the axles.

The bearings aren't even touched during an axle replacement. The
bearings are between the hub and the steering knuckle and the
hub/knuckle/bearing assembly is not disassembled during an axle
replacement. The axle passes through the hub and is secured with a nut
on the outside.

But they are not "actually" a part of the axle. But it seems, sure as
shootin', if you don't change them at that time, they will go bad, and often
shortly thereafter.

I've had to replace axles on cars due to worn/damaged CV joints (it's
easier to replace the entire axle than to screw around with a joint).
This commonly happens due to torn CV joint boots. The bearings were fine
and never needed replacement.

While the two items can be related, they aren't necessarily so.

 

[Brian Nystrom]

Bad CV joints typically make a clicking sound whereas bad hubs typically
make either a grinding sound or a moan. Both are distinctly different from
each other.

That depends on the nature of the CV joint failure. I've had them growl
just like a worn bearing. Typically, the noise stops when you turn the
steering wheel off center, but that can be true of a bad bearing, too.
The difference is that the noise from a bearing will typically decrease
when you turn in one direction, but not in the other (it may even get
louder). CV joint noise typically decreases regardless of the direction
you turn the wheel. CV joint noise will often stop when the car is
coasting, but even that's not a given.

Not many mechanics would mistakenly diagnose one or the other
of these and replace the wrong part.

Again, that depends on the nature of the failure. When bearings get bad
enough, there will be discernible play in them that makes the diagnosis
easy.

I'm curious why the front axles were changed. It would be quite uncommon to
have to replace both. Was this accident related?

I wondered the same thing.