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CV Joint Noises?

Anybody have any experience with front CVs going bad, but without torn boots and/or any play in the joints?

Our wagon has been making a lot of noise from the right front when going around corners. At first it was just going around left hand corners, but now it seems to be making as much noise going around right turns too. It's not a clicking noise as I've heard with some vehicles with bad CVs, but more of a roar, roar, roar that diminishes as the wheels go back to straight. There is a bit of vibration in the steering wheel too when cornerning.

The sound definately seems like it is coming from the corner of the car, but could the problem be differential related instead? I'm not familiar with FWD diffs, but the sound reminds me of noises my RWD van made when it had bearings going out in the rear diff.

I've had the car on jackstands and checked the CVs carefully for torn boots and looseness anywhere in the frontend and it all seems tight.

Thanks for any thoughts on this.

Matt

00 Focus SE Wagon
Reply to
Matt Mead
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that would be the front Wheel Bearings needing to be replaced... a bad CV would give you the click/clunk sound.. when the front wheel drives bearings start to go they whine when you turn aginst the bearing so if the left bearing went it would whine when turning right and vice versa...

small test Jack the car and set on jackstands... grab the wheen from the top and bottom and see if there is play/movement if there is then either the bearings are toast or the balljoints are but if you look at the back you will tell if its a balljoint or not

Reply to
Rob Brincat

I had a CV Joint go bad last month on my 2002 SE and it sounded like a squeaking belt. I agree with Rob that it sounds like a bad wheel bearing.

Reply to
Mike

I have a 2000 Focus SE wagon and a month and a half later I had a few probs but the dealer told me when I buy the car they give me a 2 year warranty on EVERYTHING and a 1 year (3 visit) oilchange package well a month after I heard a road noise whine like Matt discribed and when I took it in they said it was the right bearings so instead of changing just one they did both bearings free of charge :)

Changing the bearings on a front wheel drive car is easy I estimate it will take about an hour to 2 hours

Reply to
Rob B

Hmm, I hadn't really considered the wheel bearing, although (I failed to mention) I had already done the wheel shake test mentioned below and it is tight.

Although unrelated, I have since picked up a noise in the right rear which I'm attributing to a wheel bearing as well, and I've got a new one on order. That bearing too is tight, but other than tires and brakes, there just isn't any other possibility of problems that would cause the noise I'm hearing back there.

Maybe it is time for bearings all the way around.....

Thanks for the input guys.

Matt

00 Focus SE Wagon

Reply to
Matt Mead

correct I also failed to mention that aswell not all problem bearings will be loose due to a factor of reasons one being the brakes on the focus are strong so if you tried tilting the wheels the rotors/pads may not let it...

My focus is an offlease 00 Focus SE Wagon that had just a smidge over

100,000k (100,503km) and it had a few small problems but the dealer who is awsome covers it all including the replacement of the 2 front wheel bearings. he also saw some heat degrading on the CV boot and replaced that aswell.. my used car warranty even includes the replacement of the instrument cluster bulbs which needed 3 :)

as for the bearings I am about 99.9% sure thats your problem my nephews car had it aswell but him being young and not one to get his hands dirty he drove on it till they had just under 2 inch's play he left it so long that the heat produced by them FUSED the Half shaft to the bearings which means he needed a whole new front end which cost him alot I had to replace the pair of upper/lower balls, the wheel frame, bearings and both drives.. that was a costly mistake of his but when I was done he said the front end was never as tight as it is

Reply to
Rob B

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