H3T Passenger front Mystery wheel Noise. Please help!!!

[mavrikjc]

OMG. This NOISE is KILLING me!!!!

Upgraded to Duratrac 315/75R/16 a week ago on my 2009 H3T Alpha with Tbar crank. Had alignment done.

A week later, i'm hearing a faint metal on metal scraping/rubbing on passenger front tire that's only at very low speed and it is intermittent but happens at least once per wheel turn (though sometimes several times per turn).

It sounds kinda like a loose bolt with a washer vibrating or a small piece of wire dragging against the wheel or rotor or maybe brake shield barely contacting rotor. It can't be something contacting though because it's not happening the entire time the wheel turns - only during specific parts of the wheels rotation.

Now it gets weird. Even when barely moving it makes this sound (but not when stopped) even when the tire is barely rotating. Way worse in forward than reverse but present in both ( though barely there in reverse).

I jacked the wheel up tonight and free turned it - no noise.

Pulled wheel off, hand turned the rotor, no noise.

Rolled tire/wheel around driveway (while off) to make sure tire shop didn't leave a nut/small tool/weight inside tire - nothing.

Put everything back together - f'ing exact same sound!!!!

Any ideas? CV boot has no cracks and all bolts and everything in my wheel well seems intact. Any all suggestions appreciated!

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[Ron46]

I have the same exact noise on my truck coming from the front right passenger side. I pulled the tire off and checked my brakes and my brakes were good, nothing was scraping. I still cant figure out what it is.

 

[4speedfunk]

Check the backing plate. A very common issue is that small rocks get trapped between the rotor and the backing plate. It could've been bumped and bent closer to the rotor by the mechanic. Its very flemsy and you can easily stick a screwdriver between it and the rotor and gently pry the sheet metal plate away from the rotor. You should have a 1/2" gap all the way around.

As a side note...if you every change-out your hubs, you'll probably destroy these backing plates. They tend to fuse themselves to the knuckles and hubs. Probably wouldn't hurt to just leave them off during re-assembly.

 

[ProjektH3]

I had the same issue, but on driver side. Ended up being wheel bearing/ hub assembly. If it is the case for you check out Rock Auto. I called all the local parts stores and dealer. The stealer of course was way overpriced. Local parts stores had junk and I got MOOG from Rock Auto for under $200 with overnight shipping.

After instal like 4speedfunk said I do have an annoying noise which sounds like the shield piece rubbing as the wheels rotate.

 

[HummerRoller]

Grab a jack and and jack up on the control arm carfully, and move the tire in and out from top and bottom. That will check your wheel bearing and ball joints.

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[SuperBuickGuy]

Don't leave the dust shield off unless you like replacing rotors and the inability to stop when it gets wet (not to mention that if you douse a hot rotor, it will crack). I leave the dust shield off on my C3 Corvette, without worry because it rarely sees rain. On a 4x4, you need those shields. I mistakenly left them off when I did a disk conversion on the rear of my truck (83 chev).... now I have all sorts of grooves in the rotors from where rocks got behind the pad and wore grooves.

To your problem at hand... check your bearings using the 12/6 and 9/3 method. As you put more stress on the system with the larger tires, it's possible that your rotor is contacting the backing plate. That contact would be coming from loose bearings. How does the truck handle overall? does it wander a lot down the road? if you go over bumps at speed, does the steering get sketchy/vague? again, if so, look at the bearings - that said, unless they're growling, they don't have to be replaced today but you have time to wait for RockAuto.

 

[Best4x4]

On the dust shields being on/off it's really up to you. The rotor gets wet in rain regardless if the shield is installed or not (rotors are always rusty except for the braking surface). Some vehicles from the factory DO NOT have dust shields. For example an 04 Grand Cherokee 4x4 4.7L V8 does not have them right off the showroom floor, and I drove that thing thru everything and it always stopped on a dime and I never had warped or damaged brakes.

On our H3's I think it's smarter to leave them on in the case you have a CV Shaft Boot blow out, because nothing would be there to stop it from totally covering your rotor, and ruining your pads. On both my 05 Wranglers I would go off-road and on the way home I'd have a caliper lock up causing me to be stuck on the side of the road. It was caused from mud/rocks being stuck behind the hub and packed into the caliper which I didn't get out from just the usual wash down before hitting the road. After noticing my 04 Grand Cherokee didn't have them I removed them on both my 05 Wrangler's and I never had to replace a damaged caliper again.

If it was a rock between the rotor and dust plate you'd have heard it if you spun the tire. Sounds more like a destroyed swaybar link (when they crack and the grease leaks out you'll get a lovely metallic snap/pop noise. Or it could be the hub, but jacking it up and seeing if you have any in/out play will tell ya that.

 

[MaxPF]

Others have said it already: check the hubs. Unit bearings can make all sorts of strange noises when they start to die.