i have the stock rims and tires on my 01 cavy z24, i have a problem with the passenger front tire..about 75% of the tread wore off within a month, i brought it in and had new tires put on, and i also had them check the suspension and do an allignment. they found that i had a bad strut mount and replaced both of them. the struts and everything else checked out fine (they did strut compression tests and a bunch of other tests), but now im still feeling a little tire rubbing from that passenger front tire, any ideas on what could be causing this?

Is your car at stock ride height or is it lowered? Also do you feel the rubbing when you are turning the wheel while driving? If yes it could be the caliper sticking and not moving when the wheel turns on the sliders.???


Ryan1

This sounds like a tire alignment negitive camber issue. They probably did a "Toe And Go" on your car. Who did the alignment?





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Sears did everything on it, and yes it is stock ride height, everything is stock with the suspension and tires. i dont know how to explain this very well, but i can feel it even when im going straight down the road, but if i move my steering wheel the slightest bit to the right, it goes away, but when i let it go back to straight, i can feel it again.

do you hear any other noises apart from the rubbing? I assume you've looked at the tire and in behind the wheel at the rotors and such to check for any thing that looks like it's rubbing.

At what speed are you noticing the rubbing?

Have you tried to see if the car goes in a straight line driving down the road? If you let the steering wheel go does the car still go straight or does it pull to the right or left?

When braking does you car vibrate or shudder when you have your foot on the brakes?

Are you certain it's coming from the front and not the rear?

I still think it could be a stuck caliper in the front or possibly worn bearing, but with a bearing you'd hear a humming noise when driving and not a rubbing.

do you get any vibration in the steering when driving? maybe the tires weren't balanced properly causing you to feel a rubbing type sound?

Keep us updated


Ryan1

Yep, I have looked at it and dont see anything that it could be rubbing on, and it doesnt pull or vibrate at all while driving or braking, ive also only had the car for a few months, and the place i bought it from said they did a complete brake job on it, so it should have all new brakes, but i guess the caliper still could stick...and now that you mention it, it does sound more like a humming than a rubbing, and i hear it when im going down the road at higher speeds, like around 60 mph, but ill get the bearings checked out and see if thats what causing it. THANKS FOR THE HELP SO FAR!!

ya usually the bearing will hum the faster you drive, it's harder to hear then at lower speeds.

I would jack up the car with the wheel on and grab it at 12 and 6 and push and pull in and out and see if there is any movement. I would also do the same at 9 and 3 and repeat. If there is any movement it's possible you have a bearing that's gone. Compare it to the other side.

You can search in the maintenance forum for how others have checked for bearings and read the posts for advice. Just search it.




Ryan1

ok, this is starting to get really frustrating lol. i brought it to a mechanic and had him lift it up and check the bearings, he said they are both working like brand new. i asked him what it could possibly be rubbing on and he said that the strut could be worn out. but sears told me that my struts are still good yet. so idunno, could it be the strut? the only thing the tire seems that it could be rubbing on is the metal piece that holds the spring, being as that is the closest thing to the tire, could the strut make it sag to where it makes the tire rub on that piece?

it seems to be that the bearings are fine. If the tire was rubbing on the strut itself you would be able to see markings on the tire or the rim itself. If u are running stock every thing it's a very unlikely issue. Has anyone ever checked the axels? It could be while under load where the CV joint is worn? Usually that will give you a click click noise. But now that you say u turn the wheel a little and it goes away could be your issue.

Lets recap:

Mounts were replaced
bearing checked
tierods?
brakes not binding?
alignment done
new tires that were balanced

Anything else?

Has your mechanic actually driven it wtth you so he can hear the sound?



Ryan1

the tierods were checked at the same time as the alignment, as well the tires were balanced and everything.

i brought the car over to my uncle's body shop yesterday and had him drive it, i rode with, it didn't seem to make the sound at all while he drove it, he tested it at all speeds and on a few different roads, swerving back and forth on the road

all he said that it could be was the tires i bought make a lot of road noise and that that is probably the sound that i am hearing, but i think that its kind of odd that the sound only comes from the passenger side front tire.

i also asked him if it could be the bearing, the strut, brakes or anything like that, and he said that if it was the strut, you would be able to hear it when the car is sitting stationary and you turn the wheel back and forth. he said that if it was the bearing, it would make the sound i was describing..which was his first thought before he drove it, but when he drove it he said the bearings sounded fine to him.. so maybe it is just tire noise? i guess i could just drive it like it is and wait and see what happens

Thanks again for all the help!

Did you get a set of 4 tires installed or just 2? I was thinking maybe you should temporarily put a set of used tires on the front and drive around on them to see if you noise is still there? If it's gone then you know it's the new tires.


Ryan1

yeah, i thought of that also. when i get some time ill switch the back to the front, just in case it does end up causing extra tire wear, but as for right now..from everything i know about it now and from what my uncle and the other mechanics and you have told me, im pretty sure that its the bearing, maybe its just starting to wear out so its only making the noise part of the time and also the bearing isn't loose yet..which according to my uncle, it wont cause tire wear until it becomes loose, and it only makes the noise at 55 or higher, you cant hear it at all if you drive it at 50 or below. i drive about 70 miles round trip from work everyday and the tires have yet to show any wear and ive been extra careful with that also, i check and compare the tires everyday before and after i drive it. so i think im good for a while..until something happens like the tire wears out or it starts making the noise all the time and at lower speeds. THANKS FOR YOUR HELP!!!!!

when i bought mine it rubbed on the drivers side, and when i lowered it, it went away, bad alignment..

Car is fixed!!! i drove it about a week after my last post, and it started making the noise even worse. i brought it back over to my uncle on the 12th and had him tear it apart to find out what was wrong. The bearing was completely dried out and starting to rust, he replaced it with a brand new one and now the noise is gone and the car feels like it handles better.