Okay so i've read up for the past 25-30 mins on road noise and vibration but most people have theirs when they are at 60mph and on.

Mine however is a bit weirder...idk maybe someone can help.
first off i'm riding on oem 19's with Nankang NS-II 24/40/19 rear 225/40/19 front and about 8/32 remaining (75%) *just checked yesterday at the shop (tread wear 200 on them btw) + Tein basics + circuit sport strut + stillen sways. so i like my ride stiff.. but this has never been a problem until this morning!!!!

Okay i read the tires were a bit louder (71% vs 69%) than the oem ones but not by much. the car starts out fine but once it gets past 15mph u can start noticing some noise but i thought that was normal once u get past 30 or so the noise increase faintly and stays constant till 60 or so then past 60 it kinda dims down but still audible ever so slightly in the back (im guessing regular road noise) however when i hit the brakes at 60+ i feel a vibration in the pedal and under the steering wheel where the plastic vibrates i think so i know that's not normal. when i hit the brakes at 25 mph to a full stop the road noise becomes LOUD! almost like the tires are bald *on my 18's it did that cuz they had no rubber left*. I checked the wheels they are on tighly nothing loose, lugs are solid (titek). I was on 20's 3 days ago and i took those off and currently ride on my set of 19's. could that be the problem? the car drove just fine 3 days ago with the 20's and i took them off and have not driven my car till this morning when i put in the 19's. so i doubt it's a bearing or something. What could it be? could it be balancing? or alignment? but i just had my car aligned when i had my 20's... or could that have throw it off?

any ideas just throw it in the hat!


thanks in advance.

 

It seems like you've identified basically all the possible problems. Just get it checked out now. GL

 

so balancing or alignment?

 

The vibration sounds like your alignment. i had the same problem on my Lincoln. Once you hit a certain speed to wheel would shake and the brakes would feel shaky as well when you used them. Just go to another shop and have it realigned. If that doesn't help then try putting your stock wheels back on and see if you have the same problems.

 

If the steering wheel shakes when you brake at high speeds that may be due to uneven/warped rotors; they might need resurfacing or you might need to replace them altogether.

 

i just got r1 rotors and brake pads like 10 k miles ago. i was told i still have 60% 1k mile ago. i doubt it's pads cuz my 20's were on 3 days ago then i put the car on 18's *DID NOT DRIVE IT* then put em on my set of 19's and drove them this morning! so it couldn't have been my pads or my bearings etc etc because it was driving just fine 3 days ago with the 20's.

 

Have the wheels and tires balanced?

 

I don't think it's the alignment. That's just me but I've never experienced alignment problems like that.

 

i second that.

It sounds like it could be a wheel bearing. Judging by the fact that the noise gets really loud when you apply the brakes i would say a front wheel bearing since they would be taking the load of the car when you are on the brakes.

I would have a shop check those out just in case. The added weight of the 20's could have caused some wear on the bearings. I think i've seen other members post on here having wheel bearings go out in their cars well below 100k miles on them.

 

well i thought they were but i'll just have to recheck, anyway to check the bearing without having to dismantle the rotors etc etc etc.

 

When I had bearing problems the car exhibited a lot of suspension noises...like squeaks. This was in an STi but bearings are bearings. However these noises wouldn't be coming at 60mph...at least not when I had this problem. It would be when I would go over speed bumps and going very slow, like 5-10mph. GL

 

no noises and click.. so i don't know.. at least i didn't hear any. When i got the shop what do i tell em? or just tell em check it out? then again shops around here just half a$s jobs.

 

You should be able to take the wheel off and brake caliper and pull the hub back and forth (more like an in and out) and it shouldn't move. If you have play then the bearing is going bad. Also with the caliper off and pull the disk off spin the hub. It should be smooth with almost no noise. If it's making noise then it's obviously having a friction problem and worn out.

Any bearings i've had wear out start allowing the car to vibrate more when accelerating or decel and when you're on the brakes they make a lot of noise.

 

Vibrations are caused by out of balance issues, or out of round tires and has nothing to do with alignment. Road noise, I just solved this problem a few months ago myself. Prior to having my suspension corrected with upper a-arms the inside of my cheap azz Bridgestones were very worn. Any speed below 35 MPH sounded like I was driving a 4X4 with 40" mudders...I couldn't turn up the radio loud enough. With the need for new rubber I went with the complete suspension upgrade and then alignment prior to buying a new set of Michelin Sport PS2. Problem solved, quality tires and alignment back to OEM specs.... No tire roar....gotta love it!
Gary

 

so it's between checking wheel bearing or balancing tires?

would alignnment get thrown off if u go from 20's to 19's? also the car pulls just fine and it pulls strait it's just not SUPER loud, it's loudest from 25mph- full stop. sounds like a damn helicopter WHOO WHOO WHOO WHoooo WHooooo Whooooooo. lol as far as the ns-II i've driven in more than 1 car with them and althought they are not TOP OF THE LINE tires they were significantly better than my continental sports 2 and on par with the bridgestones roe05 (i think thats the model, the oem 19's rubber). Any way i can find out if it's unbalanced myself?