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Wheel bearing or Caliper?

J

John M.

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Location
Dublin & London.
Car
6th Gen. 1.8iS
Hi, Guys.

Noticed a slight noise coming from the o/s rear, sounded like a wheel bearing on it's way out. Anyway, had the car in the tyre shop to get the front wheels balanced and noticed the o/s/r wheel was not as free to spin as the n/s. The tyre guy kindly pulled off the wheel and we checked the caliper, it doesn't seem to be sticking and the h/brake seemed to we operating o.k., the brake disc wasn't hot either. Fitted the wheel back on after about 15 mins and it was also most as free as the o/s. The question is, would a 15 min cooling period allow the wheel to free up if the wheel bearing is gone?

Cheers in advance.

J.
 
As Cliff said tbo
 
Cliffordski said:
What did the noise sound like, & did you try holding the wheel top & bottom and wobbling it?
Click to expand...

You see that's the reason I'm asking as it only sort of sounds like a wheel bearing and noise is only really noticeable at 45-50mph. Yes, did try holding the wheel looking for play but none found. Now, I've had wheel bearings go before but not on an Accord and usually you can tell straight off that it's a bearing but this time I'm not too sure, thus my original post. I'm wondering if it's a wheel bearing & have I just noticed it a very early stage? Odd. Suppose the best thing to do is to pull the caliper & disc off and then look for play.
 
Also John a slightly uneven tyre wear can sound like a wheel bearing.
 
You are dead right Brett but tyres are spot on. What's really bugging the hell out of me why was the wheel initially not as free as the other side but are 15 mins it freed up ?
 
Unless the caliper was sticking and when the wheel was taken off it freed up.
Keep an eye on it and if it happens again give the calipers a good clean and Lub for good measure
 
Thanks for your input guys. I'll post my finding in due course and if you don't hear from me you'll know I've lost a wheel and put the old bus into a hedge row on it's roof! :lol:
 
Noise from a wheel bearing comes and goes as you corner and causes the vehicle centre of gravity (and therefore wheel bearing loading) to shift about. This is almost always extremely pronounced and actually aids identification of which side the problem is. If the noise is constant then it is unlikely to be a bearing... More likely to be a dragging brake pad or a tyre characteristic.
 
There have been several cases of mysterious, unsure, possible bearing issues with the Accords. I believe they can be very sensitive to different tyre types and so on. I recently had some things put on the front, different to what I usually have. Very noticeable difference in road noise and some road surfaces do sound a little like wheel bearing problems. But it's always the same roads I get it, never any other time.

As the guys say, keep an eye on things and see how it goes.
 
John M. said:
Hi, Guys.

Noticed a slight noise coming from the o/s rear, sounded like a wheel bearing on it's way out. Anyway, had the car in the tyre shop to get the front wheels balanced and noticed the o/s/r wheel was not as free to spin as the n/s. The tyre guy kindly pulled off the wheel and we checked the caliper, it doesn't seem to be sticking and the h/brake seemed to we operating o.k., the brake disc wasn't hot either. Fitted the wheel back on after about 15 mins and it was also most as free as the o/s. The question is, would a 15 min cooling period allow the wheel to free up if the wheel bearing is gone?

Cheers in advance.

J.

I had the same problem, same wheel, some months ago, drove me mad. It was on a 100K miles 2.3L model and gradually got noisier with time. Checked all 4 wheels for play and noise when spun. Finally took the car into my local garage and the owner identified a worn wheel bearing. It's a fairly pricey fix as you need to replace the hub, I don't think bearings are available separately.
Click to expand...
 
John M. said:
Hi, Guys.

Noticed a slight noise coming from the o/s rear, sounded like a wheel bearing on it's way out. Anyway, had the car in the tyre shop to get the front wheels balanced and noticed the o/s/r wheel was not as free to spin as the n/s. The tyre guy kindly pulled off the wheel and we checked the caliper, it doesn't seem to be sticking and the h/brake seemed to we operating o.k., the brake disc wasn't hot either. Fitted the wheel back on after about 15 mins and it was also most as free as the o/s. The question is, would a 15 min cooling period allow the wheel to free up if the wheel bearing is gone?

Cheers in advance.

J.

I had the same problem, same wheel, some months ago, drove me mad. It was on a 100K miles 2.3L model and gradually got noisier with time. Checked all 4 wheels for play and noise when spun. Finally took the car into my local garage and the owner identified a worn wheel bearing. It's a fairly pricey fix as you need to replace the hub, I don't think bearings are available separately.

The noise was a humming/drumming sound that did change when cornering.

Rod
Click to expand...
 
Thanks Rod, mine's at similar mileage too. The only difference, the noise on my car doesn't change when loading up the wheel - actually wish it did, then problem solved. What I actually think is, the problem is twofold. One the bearing is just starting to go and two, I've also got a slightly sticking brake caliper on the same wheel. I've not done anything yet as I'm waiting on new pads (current are very low), disc retaining screws (stainless this time) & a new impact screwdriver so I can pull the disc off, if/when I replace the rear hub.
 
Its common for the rears to seize up apparently, I also had one go on me OSR too.

On mine it was the lever arm, the bit the handbrake cable pulls had become stuck and wouldn't return to the 'off position' to close the gap

seized_caliper_zpsc56fb281.jpg
 
Under the handbrake console there is a compensator, so you might not feel an issue through the handbrake itself.

tn_IMG_5708.jpg


I don't recall feeling it myself personally but I was concentrating more on finding stuck pins, corroded piston or swollen brake hose (the other contenders for a jammed brake). However as I said, it was the lever arm on mine.
 
Right Guys, I'll tell you where I'm at, oh and thanks for all the advise.

I received the Mixtex rear pads today, bought some brake cleaner etc etc. I've ordered new stainless disc retaining screws and a new heavy duty impact screwdriver (my old was never returned), also drill at ready!. Now, I was going to strip down the rear brakes tomorrow but after looking around at prices for a rear hub ***y I decided to order one from eBay.de, reasonably priced so I reckoned worth having to hand and if I've any doubts about either rear hub I'll just slap the new on, job done & dusted I hope.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/360528988058?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

Now, I reckon the quality is probably not the greatest, but hell at less than half the price for a decent SKF hub, this eBay 'special' will do. Await thread in six months warning everybody not to buy cheap Accord hubs :lol:
 
A little update.

Got stuck into the car this afternoon and on investigation I found the o/s/r hub bearings were shot, I've come across far worse but it was on it's way out and the caliper on that wheel was sticking slightly, 2mm of extra wear on the pads compared to the n/s. Of course the disc retaining screws were welded into the hubs but the impact driver saved the day. Also, the pads were near the limit so changed those too & had a go at freeing the slightly sticky caliper. Gave the caliper pins a good old cleaning removing the old grease and then re greasing them along with cleaning the caliper carrier, there was a bit of rust at the pad mounting points. Removed both discs and touched them on both sides with the angle grinder, I reckon the rear brakes never got any work by the previous owner. Checked the h/brake operation all was good there. Took it for a spin and delighted that madding hum you get from a shot wh.bearing was gone, oh and the brakes bed in fine. Now need to carry out a brake fluid change and by rights get a set of braided hoses while I'm at it.

Thanks for your input guys and Andy for the photos.
 
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