Whirring noise and squeak from front right end

frenzee77

Member
:
2015 Mazda CX-9
Hello all. I'm new here. My wife drives a 2015 CX-9 with 27000 miles on it. we purchased the car when it had 23000 miles. Recently at highway speeds she has starting to hear a moaning or whirring from the right front tire. There is also occasionally a metallic squeaking sound. Both of these sounds happen more often when switching lanes to the right. They never happen on short drives. Usually after she has driven 40-60 minutes. We took the car into the local auto place today.

They told us it needs new tires and all four sets of rotors and pads. They mentioned that the squeaking is because the vehicle needs new brakes. I mentioned that it only squeaks when we don't hit the brakes. I have googled this and apparently there are some brakes pads that will squeak without the brakes being applied to let you know that they need to be repaired.

They said the whirring sound is from uneven wear on the tires. This is possible but I don't know why it wouldn't make the noise on short drives.

What does everyone think? Does this make sense?
 
First of all I'd be extremely surprised if any of those components were in need of replacement at that low of a mileage. It's not out of the question, but they would have had to have a lot of abuse to reach the state that they all need to go. Particularly the rear brakes. Mine are at 60K miles and are still in great shape and my original tires are only at 4/32nds so are just coming up on needing replacement. You can check the condition of the tires pretty easily with the 'penny test' and the brakes can be visually inspected to see what kind of shape they are in. If you were experiencing vibrations when braking an argument could be made that the brakes are the issue but that does not fit your description at all.

With that said, it sounds very much like a wheel bearing issue going on with your vehicle. A sure sign they are going is the whirring/moaning sound and add to that the change in pitch or the sound going away on turns and it's even more likely.

If I were you I'd go to a different shop. On the face of it it would appear they are giving you bad advice.
 
1--Find different crooks at a new auto place.
2--Take a good look at your tires. If the tread depth anywhere across the tires is down to 2/32", buy four good new ones. If the wear is uneven, you need a wheel alignment. (My personal minimum tread depth is 4/32"...wet braking traction is somewhat proportional to tread depth, and I don't want to give up too much due to worn tread.)
3--Check the tire inflation pressure. The correct cold pressure is on the placard on the door jam. If the noise changes, it was due to the pressures.
4--Get the tires rotated. If the noise changes, you know it is somehow related to the tires.
5--Take a good look at the brake pad material. You may need someone to point it out to you. You can see the outside pads on each of the 4 wheels. The minimum thickness is about 2 to 3 millimeters...time for new pads. If you trust a shop, have all four wheels removed and all eight brake pads examined for thickness. This can easily be done when the tires are rotated.

I agree with rowlands about the possibility of the wheel bearing, although it is coming about 100,000 miles too soon. There are other possibilities.
 
Back