My gf has a shity Probe. For the past 6 months its always had this noise which sounds just like bad wheel bearings. Im familar with the noise since the a wheel bearing went on mY GSR awhile go. But mine got real bad real fast, and over 300 miles it was critical. The probe hasnt really gotten any worse until now. Now its been getting slightly louder with more miles.

The noise sounds like wheel bearings as its a metalic noise. Its speed dependant not rpm dependant so it not engine related. It loudest at 55mph and quites down if your moving faster or slower than that. The noise is also present if the car is rolling in neutral at 55 too so its not likely to be drivetrain related. Its deff coming from the front wheels, not sure on which side. If you turn the wheel from side to side it sounds louder from the driver side wheel (suggests bad wheel bearing).

Her dad took the car to his shop. They said it wasnt wheel bearings but the axle needed to be replaced? They replaced that and the noise is still present. ha. I jacked the car up to inspect the wheels. Nothing obvious like signs of tire wear on the suspension or body, no uneven tread wear, lots of tread left, no signs of lost wheel weights. I even pulled on the wheel at 3 and 9 and then 12 and 6.. It didnt wobble so that rules out the knuckle and anything suspension related?

I dont know wtf else it could be but wheel bearings? Any ideas?

 

Sounds like you are convinced it's a wheel bearing.

So am I.

 

Any other possibilities I can entertain?

 

When you jerk the steeringwheel left to right while driving, does the noise go away?

 

I don't know jack about the Ford Probe (nor do I really want to ) but the diagnosis for a wheel bearing is really easy. Lift up the front and if you can rock the wheel back and forth vertically (grab the top and bottom of the wheel) the bearing is bad. There shouldn't be any play at all in that axis.

P.S. don't try to rock the wheel sid to side, that checks for play in the steering rack.

Mike

 

I replaced wheel bearings on a friend's Escort once and the bearing was not loose. The problem was that the seal had gone bad and allowed water to get into the bearing. This caused rust on the bearing surface and made it pockmarked. The "howl" was from the rollers running on this potholed formerly hardened surface. I suspect they use a hard chrome versus a hardened steel. The chrome can fail in chuncks like I saw.

I'd change both bearings just in case. Have you tried rotating the tires just in case? Try running the car in gear with one front tire in the air at a time and see if you hear it then. BTW, I've never heard a "bearing"type noise from an axle, clunks, rattles, shaking yes, but never a bearing howl.

 

Yes, being loose isn't the only way for a bearing to fail. Corrosion & a very tight bearing got me, too. It sounded just like a big knobby mud tire.

 

Definately wheel bearing. My dx did the same deal, got real loud around 50-60 and got quiter after you passed that. After taking out the whole hub(rear) it looked terrible, corrosion all on the inside which couldnt be seen until I took it off.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 1bad-eg &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">When you jerk the steeringwheel left to right while driving, does the noise go away?</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yes it the noise increases when I turn right and goes away slightly when i turn left, meaning is the driver side front wheel.

Its getting worse too!

 

<u>Update</u>
The car was taken back to the same mechanic. Had the ****** replace the wheel bearings, against his recommendation. Fixed the problem, no more noise.

"Ha Ha I was right"