For what it's worth, if you remember my thread about a howling noise coming from the front end; well, I replaced both front wheel bearings, upper and lower ball joints ( no relation to the howl, but seemed time to do this ), OTRE's and pass side ITRE ( was rusted solid to the outer ). Drained and re-filled front diff ( no metal particles at all ). Had an alignment this AM. Same noise as before. Mechanic who did the alignment said it almost has to be tire noise. Just put these on 3000 miles ago. Cooper ATP 265 75 16. No noise right after installation. Noise is still there when in 4wd. I just wonder if anyone else has used the ATP's and had a noise issue.
Update on front end howling noise...
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wc11
New member
I had my rear bearing done at the end of January.
I had complained over & over again about noise & vibration at speed for months but no one could identify it.
Finally, it got bad enough for all to hear and this is what it sounds like.
Everyone at the dealer was quite embarrassed because I got everyone, shop manager, 2 technicians and 2 service advisers to come listen.
At least I got a 15% discount on the service.
I recorded it just to bug them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qc3tnFbCK48
I had complained over & over again about noise & vibration at speed for months but no one could identify it.
Finally, it got bad enough for all to hear and this is what it sounds like.
Everyone at the dealer was quite embarrassed because I got everyone, shop manager, 2 technicians and 2 service advisers to come listen.
At least I got a 15% discount on the service.
I recorded it just to bug them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qc3tnFbCK48
LuckyRunnerLTD
New member
Funny I just came across this, I have a 99 limited an just installed 265/75/16 last friday. Today As i was driving home I noticed the same kinda sound you speak of. I thought it may be wind coming through the valley i was driving up.. Ill keep checkin back to see if you find anything out.
OU4x4
Member
i have the same tires and have the same issue
i had bridgestone revos and they were noisy
the coopers (upon install) were so quiet my wife even noticed.
but after a few thousand miles a whine showed up
i've had all 4 wheels off and i can't feel or hear any issues when spinning
the rotors by hand
i'm almost at 200k so it's time for some maintenance any way so i'm replacing the bearings this summer.
if that solves the problem i'll post it.
i had bridgestone revos and they were noisy
the coopers (upon install) were so quiet my wife even noticed.
but after a few thousand miles a whine showed up
i've had all 4 wheels off and i can't feel or hear any issues when spinning
the rotors by hand
i'm almost at 200k so it's time for some maintenance any way so i'm replacing the bearings this summer.
if that solves the problem i'll post it.
OK...Here ya'll go. I finally raised the truck up all 4 off the ground. No noise from the rear. In 4 wheel HI, I have found the noise. It must be a bearing or gears in the front diff. I guess I can rule out pinion bearing, pinion and ring gear since I have the same noise in 2wd. Do you think since the tire change ( different height ) could have caused more stress on the front diff to cause this? Also, can I change out the axle bearing ( if that's the problem ) without removing the whole diff?
Monkeybutt2000
New member
I have the exact same tires,and I have a "whine" or "howl" at 40-45mph. Those are the only speeds it appears at. Very strange.
This sounds like the problem I've been having since I bought my 4Runner. Noise is most noticeable above 40 mph and quiets down above 60 mph. Since I bought it, I have changed all diff, transfer case and transmission oils and replaced the rear wheel bearings. I tried to capture the noise on video: https://youtu.be/IRO15ghkP5A#t=0m33s Any ideas?
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You'd probably have better luck in the 5th gen section bud
I had a wheel bearing go out. Very bad with the vibrations and noise.
One thing I did to troubleshoot a bad wheel bearing is to step on the brakes. In my case my vibrations and noise went away with the brakes applied. Let go the brakes and noise and vibrations start up again. Changed out the bearing cured the vibrations and noise.
One thing I did to troubleshoot a bad wheel bearing is to step on the brakes. In my case my vibrations and noise went away with the brakes applied. Let go the brakes and noise and vibrations start up again. Changed out the bearing cured the vibrations and noise.
BoomerBob
New member
Had the same thing. A vibration and low howl between 65 and 75. Ended up being a U-Joint going bad. On my 2wd 01 it was a straight forward easy to pull driveshaft (just 4 bolts) and while both U-Joints felt worn; neither was real sloppy. One did have a slight bit of play in it. That was enough to make it howl. It doesn't take much for them to howl. Timmy also had some insight on the front CV needle bearing causing a noise like this. Everyone who suspected bearing noise was correct. Identifying which bearing can be the tricky part.
My local driveshaft guy with 40 years experience said I'd be better off getting a new driveshaft with U-Joints installed. Said there was a "bow" in the shaft of 40/1000ths off. I dunno; looking back I think I should have just changed the U-Joints but I took his advice and bought a new shaft from a place recommended here. Turns out they are a reseller/middleman who sells for a shop in Reno most places buy from. The place was the same as who my local driveshaft guy buys from and I got it $60 cheaper delivered right to my house. They came with quality Spicer U-Joints installed and ready to bolt right into my rig.
Also had a second vibration that ended up being a shit tire balancing job done by a local tire shop. Had a shake in the steering wheel so I thought my new rotors had warped but when I checked them with a Starrett dial indicator I had from machinist days; they were good. On a whim I rotated the wheels front to back and back to front on the same sides. Bingo; the steering wheel vibration was gone. I could still feel it in the back end but it was much less. The tech at the tire shop was either lazy or incompetent. Took it back and the owner re-balanced the two rear wheels that were on the front before. All good now.
My point is that many times it's more than one issue so keep an open mind on finding more than one thing going bad. Sometimes one bad part causes another to go bad. Leaving a bad U-Joint alone can eventually cause problems in the differential or transmission. Much bigger issues to deal with. Then sometimes, like in my case, they are two very separate issues altogether and not related.
Pardon the long post.
My local driveshaft guy with 40 years experience said I'd be better off getting a new driveshaft with U-Joints installed. Said there was a "bow" in the shaft of 40/1000ths off. I dunno; looking back I think I should have just changed the U-Joints but I took his advice and bought a new shaft from a place recommended here. Turns out they are a reseller/middleman who sells for a shop in Reno most places buy from. The place was the same as who my local driveshaft guy buys from and I got it $60 cheaper delivered right to my house. They came with quality Spicer U-Joints installed and ready to bolt right into my rig.
Also had a second vibration that ended up being a shit tire balancing job done by a local tire shop. Had a shake in the steering wheel so I thought my new rotors had warped but when I checked them with a Starrett dial indicator I had from machinist days; they were good. On a whim I rotated the wheels front to back and back to front on the same sides. Bingo; the steering wheel vibration was gone. I could still feel it in the back end but it was much less. The tech at the tire shop was either lazy or incompetent. Took it back and the owner re-balanced the two rear wheels that were on the front before. All good now.
My point is that many times it's more than one issue so keep an open mind on finding more than one thing going bad. Sometimes one bad part causes another to go bad. Leaving a bad U-Joint alone can eventually cause problems in the differential or transmission. Much bigger issues to deal with. Then sometimes, like in my case, they are two very separate issues altogether and not related.
Pardon the long post.
BoomerBob
New member
One would think any tire shop would keep a known good wheel/tire as their baseline check to make sure they're getting good readings. Test it daily or at least weekly to make sure their machine is still good.
It never occurred to me these tire balancing machines could go literally go out of balance. I figured once they were dialed in; that was it.
brillo_76
Elite Member
Not only can the tire balance machines be out. The techs dont know how to properly align vehicles too. Always goto the best alignment shop in your area. As you maybe just wasting your money if you dont. :[ I cant tell you how many times I have seen this at my buddy's mom and pal garage. People taken their vehicles to get aligned and none 0f the bolts were moved as they were marked beforehand and out of alignment. 
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