Noisy Tires

Have you tried to exchange front with rear ones? For Michelin on my Sonata I do it every 6-8000 miles.

Zotto:

Actually I first noticed this noise problem when I had them rotated in January. Do you think that could have something to do with it ?

I could put them back but then the fornt ones will wear more fast than the rear.

Thanks.

Don't discard the possibility of a hub bearing. They tend to make humming noises when worn.

Thank you hyundaitech:

The Santa fe has about 70,000 miles on it. Should I have my dealer look at it ?

Can you pinpoint if it is the front or rear? How many miles on the tires? I found that with FWD cars, the rear tires get little wear and while they can last a long time, they can start to cup and make a lot of road noise. A few years ago I got rid of a couple of tires that still had at least 15000 miles left on them but could not take the noise any more.

Edwin:

The tires have about 20,000 on them. The sounds appears to be coming from the front. These are the tires that were on the back until about a month ago.

Thanks.

Edwin:

What do you mean about the tires starting to "cup" ? I never heard of this before.

Thanks.

Check that they rotated them correctly... that if they cross rotated them that they could be done that way, not just front to back....

My Friends Wife had a set of tires that they kept cross rotating and they were only supposed to go front to back.. when they cross roated them they were spining in the wrong direction making it drive like crap and noisey...

Pete...

Take a look at the tread. The outer portion may have a series of flat spots around the circumference. If worn enough, it will be visible. but in any case, you can usually feel it if you run the palm of your hand around the tire. Once unevenly worn, it is going to get worse.

My thoughts exactly, Mr. HyundaiTech.

And it hasn't helped that a couple of my vehicles, one Hyundai and one Kia, have had such hub troubles.

They may be much simpler to replace than a bearing by itself, but man are those hubs expensive.

Certainly you should have someone look at it. If it's a hub bearing, you should have it fixed. If it's just a tire tread issue, it's okay to keep driving until the tire is worn out.

Thank you Mr. hyundaitech, you were right on the money. I had my dealer look at it today and sure enough it needs a new wheel bearing. Much to my surprise, it's covered under the 100K Power Train Warrentee.

Thanks for the tip.