OK so my issue was that I was getting this grinding/growling road noise when going 40+ MPH. No shaking or anything but the noise was pretty loud. The noise is loud when going straight, tone changes a bit when curving left and disappears when curving right. I had one tire that wore down unevenly and caused the car to steer left or right in the front depending on what side it was on but I don't remember which side it was on.

I took my car in for an alignment after getting new tires and the mechanic told me he took the car for a spin to make sure everything was good and he heard a bearing noise. He told me he thinks its the front passenger bearing. Asked on Reddit r/cartalk and they agreed it was likely the front passenger.

Took my car to my dads friend and he said everything felt fine but definitely heard a bearing noise, just wasn't sure where it was coming from. Decided to let him do the Front passenger bearing with a new National bearing. Just picked up the car and the sound is still there. He said he wasn't sure but it could be a damaged hub. Said it looked fine but didn't notice any damage when working on it.

Not sure where to go from here

 

brake heat shield

 

If its not the heat shield touching the rotor then look at the other bearings. Is it possible the noise is coming from the RR? I would find a different shop. It is pretty easy to put a car in the air and listen to the bearings. Whoever you took it to is not someone I would want working on my car.

 

Acura wanted $150 to diagnose the problem and another shop wanted an hour of labor to look into it. Everything checked out with it being that bearing but I might just suck it up and let a professional diagnose it.

 

Go in a big open parking lot or open road and turn the wheel right and left, you gotta be going at least 40 id say. You can diagnose when you turn the wheel if the noise changes because one wheel is bearing more weight and that side will make noise. If it doesn't change I bet its in the rear.

 

The sound changes but the issue i'm having is that i'm not sure which side needs to be fixed because different people are telling me different things.

Most are saying that if I turn left and the noise changes then change the right side and others are saying to change on the same side the noise changes. I actually went to the shop that does my alignment and they told me it's on the opposite side that the noise fades which means noise changes turning left = change that side.

I had the passenger side done so i'll get the drivers side done sometime this weekend I guess

 

Man you're just throwing parts at the problem without doing anything true troubleshooting..

 

????

I've done everything suggested in this thread and the last outside of putting the car on a lift which was my intention when taking the car to the alignment shop. They remembered my car and when I was able to tell them what noises the car was making in certain situations they advised me on what the issue was. They could've taken my money for an hour of labor and told me the same thing so I don't see why I wouldn't trust it.

 

You checked both sides heat shields as well?

 

Yes this morning

 

Diagnosing these sounds can be difficult. Some engine bays bounce sound around in unexpected directions.

I had to diagnose something similar a few years ago on a gf's Subaru. What finally helped me was to use a pocket voice recorder with a long corded microphone. You secure the recorder somewhere in the engine bay. Then you move the mike around the engine bay and keep track of where and when (driver side vs passenger side, front of the bay vs back of the bay, high vs low) you placed the mike. Then you listen on your computer. Loudest sounds will indicate the trouble area (for example driver side, low, middle - i.e., near wheel).

Once you have the trouble area, you can repeat process in that area to find out exact part (brake shield vs wheel bearing).

This will take a while and you need to keep track of where each recording was made. Also make sure the recorder, mike, and cord are secure.

Or just take the car to a mechanic you trust.

 

OK you were right I should've looked deeper into it. Had a buddy ride with me today and after driving around and switching seats it definitely is coming from the rear passenger side. Jacked up the car and there's not a huge difference between the two when I spin the wheels but it definitely has a little something extra in there.

Ordered a Moog hub and should tackle the job this weekend. Thank god it's not another front bearing.

Anyone know what the torque spec is for the axle nut for the rear?

 

Wait... you have AWD/RWD TL?

Just kidding, here you go:

 

check the rear parking brake assembly. It's probably rattling against the rotor or has been applied and worn down.....

 

+1 for PB issue...

So what shredded the front tires?

 

Swapped it out this morning and it fixed the problem. Wouldn't have taken more than an hour if I didn't strip the rotor screws

 

Swapped what? The knuckle or PB? Glad you got it resolved

And again, what was causing your front tires to shred since we know it wasn't a bearing??

 

The rear hub. When I pulled the hub off the ball bearings were showing and the half of the enclosure was stuck on the spindle.

As for the front tire wearing uneven i'm not sure but hoping it was just because the toe was off and that the alignment fixed it.