Bad wheel bearing causing rough ride?

Question

I have a 1997 Bonneville. A few months ago, I slid into a snow bank hard enough to break a piece of my right front wheel. After that (and after I replaced the wheel), the car seems to ride rough - not in terms of suspension, but I feel a high-frequency vibration (it reminds me of when a stick is caught under an ATV and rubbing against the wheel). It doesn't seem to change much with speed, but turning back and forth from one side of the lane to the other seems to affect it.

I had the front end aligned. My mechanic took it for a road test, and said the only thing he could find was that the right front wheel bearing was a bit noisy and probably starting to go. He said it didn't move at all, so there was no real hurry to replace it.

Could a bad wheel bearing be causing the rough ride? It's starting to get worse, and I'm not in a financial position to replace it only to find out that it didn't fix the problem.

TIA,

Joe

shiden_Kai · Accepted Answer

I'd say that you have a bad bearing. That's already been confirmed by the other tech, plus you ran that right wheel into the curb. I've seen very few front wheel drive cars that don't damage the front wheel bearings after curbing the car. Often, the noise doesn't appear for a while. You should probably have the front suspension checked out too, as hyundaitech mentioned. If you broke the wheel, I wouldn't be surprised if you bent something else.

Ian

hyundaitech · Answer

It's possible, but there could be other suspension damage, too.

Harry Face · Answer

harryface : sitting here trying to visualize beaking a chunk out of an automobile wheel.

========= Harryface =========

1991 Pontiac Bonneville LE 3800 V6 ( C ), Black/Slate Grey _~_~_~282,025 miles_~_~_

~_~_~_~_U.S.A._~_~_~_~_~_

~~~The Former Fleet ~~~

89 Cavalier Z 24 convertible 78 Holiday 88 coupe 68 LeSabre convertible 73 Impala sedan

Bret Chase · Answer

with a cast alloy wheel it's actually not all that hard, it's damnnear impossible with a steel one.-Bret

Bad wheel bearing causing rough ride?

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