5 signs of bad wheel bearings
>> Tuesday, June 18, 2019
Wilbert
Tan
The bearings that rotate
your wheels allow for friction-free movement and rotation of the hub assembly.
As a result, your tire and wheels turn smoothly, without any noise and heat
generated. Each of your wheels has its own wheel bearing, and it’s possible for
just one of those to have an issue, while the rest remain in good operating
condition.
With that said, noise is
your most obvious sign of a bad wheel bearing, but other signs can be seen or felt.
If you experience one or a combination of the following problems, it’s probably
time to have your wheel bearings looked at.
Grinding noise when the
vehicle is in motion
A grinding noise
typically means mechanical damage. In connection to your wheel bearings, it can
mean there is no proper lubrication, or the rollers or lining section of the
bearing may have been damaged. In these cases, the bearings will build up a lot
of heat, so it’s imperative that you have this issue checked
immediately. The sound will be more amplified when shifting or turning.
Abnormal tire wear
Wheel bearings
experience different levels of wear, and so it’s very rare that all of them
wear evenly. As such, if one or both driver side tires show more wear than the
other side, this may indicate a problem in the left side wheel bearings. Of
course, uneven tire wear can be caused by a lot of other problems, such as
unbalanced tires, bad wheel alignment, and more.
And so you need to
observe other symptoms before you can conclude that your bearings have an
issue.
Steering wheel vibration
A vibrating steering
wheel can be caused by bad wheel bearings when the problem shows up at slower
speeds and worsens as the vehicle accelerates. If the shake occurs at high
speeds, that’s more likely a tire-balancing problem.
Loose steering wheel
As bearings begin to
wear down, they can become loose inside the wheel hub and spindle, and you will
feel this looseness with your steering wheel, which is more commonly
called ‘wheel play.’
Vehicle pulls to one side
While driving on a
straight stretch of road, do you observe the car going anywhere instead of
straight? When the wheel bearing accumulates too much dirt or
corrosion, the smooth exterior lining can disappear, leading to more
friction, and thus, the tires feel like pulling to one side or the other.
If you think you are
driving around with more or less broken wheel bearings, stop and take your
vehicle to your preferred service center. Despite how grave these issues may
seem, this is something that’s easily repairable, as long as you don’t delay
having the issue checked.
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