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Thu 11 Dec, 2008 06:48 pm
The next person who smiles and tells me there is nothing wrong with my car is going to get all the Dr Phil pent up energy I can muster.
I have taken the car to Pepboys. They have the cheapest diagnostic price that I could find...
He said nothing was wrong.
I asked him to take a test drive.
He says the car just sounds 'old'
Old? what kind of answer is THAT please?
It sounds like a blender in your neighbors apartment but not quite so high pitched.
It is a constant wwwhhhhrrrrrrrrrr. Car vibrates ..
It is effected by speed, seeming to dissipate at about 60-65mph.
If I turn left it is SUPER loud. If I turn right.. it gets quieter.
Gas mileage per tank is now about 390-410... off by about 20 miles but no real biggie there.
Does not idle differently..
Does feel as though it skates across the road sometimes.. as if it does not have much traction.
My car has two brand new tires and two older tires. They do need to be rotated, but the tread on the older tires is not low enough to effect traction.
I have not hit anything major .... but my car WAS hit quite a while ago. Though the noise I remember , was happening then too.. just not as noisy.
This noise has been there for miles. Everyone says nothing is wrong. The noise is getting worse and no one is listening to me.
Since the car passed a diagnostic, could it be something in the wheels? suspension? Brakes?
Brakes are due in about 5,000 miles.
If it means anything.. it is a 03 corolla. 99,100 some odd miles.
Oh.. and I bought this car brand new so no, there are no possible issues that I may not know about.
The only major issue it is had was that the clutch needed to be replaced at 78,000 miles.
though a spark plug did die on me around 20,000 miles..
but nothing other then that.
@shewolfnm,
sounds like a front wheel bearing assembly to me, but I'm 500 miles away, and don't work for pep boys...
e-me...
@Rockhead,
covered by power train warranty? Man.. I am about 800 miles away from the end of that warranty..
Maybe a belt has slipped in a tire. That can give some awesome symptoms, and they'll never catch it on a diagnostic. If you can get two wheels off the ground at once, spin them by hand. If that's the problem, you won't need a magnifying glass to see it.
I had similar action with a lost sway bar bushing, but only on turns.
In other words, we're not thinking engine and drive train. If you were in town, I could recommend a top of the line front end and suspension shop, with matching prices. Since you're not, I'll only mention that I've had bad luck with national franchises, especially those involving mufflers. If warranty covers any part of it, you've got a better warranty than I do.
Is it constant when you're moving? Any volume or pitch changes when accelerating or decelerating?
Rocks diags sound sound to me, but I've got two left torque wrenches.
@roger,
Let me add that you should really check tire pressure before proceeding to spend money.
yes the sound is constant.
yes it gets louder and stronger at higher speeds with the only give in noise is when I turn.
vibration the same. higher as the car is faster, lower as the car is slower.. but that too is constant.
@roger,
this noise has survived 4 new tires , an alignment and balancing.
Tire pressure checks out. Thanks to my surprise flat in houston, I now carry a pressure gauge with me and check often.
@shewolfnm,
Dang shame about that. It's so nice when there's a cheap and easy solution.
@roger,
It would be NICE if it were just an unbalanced tire..
but this noise has been there at LEAST 20,000 miles.
@shewolfnm,
$49 per side, plus some labor at a reputable service joint.
(one shot local parts joint on line, ain't swearin by it)
Normal maintenance, no warranty.
no need for a second diagnostics? I mean.. those machines wont find this kind of issue anyway correct? ( I question if I even GOT a diagnostic done at pepboys)
@Rockhead,
considering the fact that the guy was overly 'flirty' and ' cut the cost' of the diagnostic.. ppbbthh.. ahh.
Anyway.
they were 48.00 an hour . Most others I could find easily were 68+
get what you pay for
Pep Boys don't have mechanics, they have boneheads. Spend the $$ to have a real mechanic look at & fix it. Could be the bearing assembly...
How is it still under powertrain warranty, did you buy an extended warranty that's still good? Toyota sure the hell doesn't have a 100k powertrain warranty.
I'm with Rockhead... Toyota + whirrrr = usually front bearings.
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