# High-pitched whistling at 30+ MPH - Can't take it anymore!



## BillDawg (Jun 7, 2003)

A couple of weeks before I had brakes on all 4 wheels and rotor resurfacing done at the Nissan dealership, my car developed a high-pitched whistling noise whenever I reached cruising speeds. It wasn't quite as loud as the _obnoxious_ shreiking I've heard when the brake pads were worn down to the metal, but I figured that the whistling I was hearing had something to do with me being in need of brakes, since the car had clearly needed brakes for a while anyway. So I put up with the whistling for another couple weeks and figured that it'd be resolved after the service appointment.

Much to my _dis_appointment, the whistling still persisted, at the same volume or perhaps even a bit louder than before. I thought that perhaps the brakes needed a little time to seat themselves properly, but after a week of normal driving, the whistling showed no signs of disappearing.

I've had cheap Toyota Corolla wheel covers on the car for a while, which had big chunks missing from them - not from me hitting curbs, but because they were so flimsy that they fell apart when I was having the tires rotated and the tire shop attempted to reattach the covers afterwards. I thought that the damaged wheel covers could be causing the whistling, so I removed them from the car completely and jumped on the highway. Things seemed to improve for the ten minute duration of my trip - there seemed to be little or no whistling at all, none I could hear over traffic anyway - so I was sure that I had pinpointed the problem. I stopped at the major auto parts store around here and bought a new set of generic 13" wheel covers, which I attached in the parking lot for my ten minute return trip back down the highway. Things seemed okay for a bit, but soon the whistling returned. I pulled off onto the shoulder, removed the new wheel covers completely, merged back into traffic - and that whistling was still there, even with no wheel covers at all.

The last idea that came to my mind with my somewhat limited automotive troubleshooting skills was "brake dust" - I knew it was a long shot, but I stopped at the manual car wash, sprayed the crap out of the inside and outside of the bare wheel, kept the wheel covers off, and took her for another spin - still whistling.

What could possibly be causing this? I'm starting to hear the whistling in my sleep - it's driving me crazy , and I don't want to have to put up with that throughout the duration of my upcoming 1,800-mile road trip. Thanks in advance for any help you may be able to give me.


----------



## azkicker0027 (May 31, 2002)

hold up, whistling at cruising speeds with the brakes not pressed??? can you hear it inside the car with all the windows closed??? and it only happens when you reach a certain speed and disappears when you slow down??? could be body related, not brakes........


----------



## BillDawg (Jun 7, 2003)

Yes, this whistling seems completely unaffected by whether or not I have the brake pedal depressed. It is slightly audible with the windows shut, but seeing as I haven't used the A/C in the car or at home yet at all this year and most likely never will (I'm cold blooded, I suppose  ), all four windows are always open, and this whistling is driving me absolutely insane.


----------



## dono200sx (May 2, 2002)

I would check all the splash guards under the car including the wheel well covers. Look for any loose body pieces and tighten them down.


----------



## Token Moron (Mar 28, 2003)

dont use that break squeeling stopping fluid they sell, its weak, sticky, messy and a waste of money


----------



## Token Moron (Mar 28, 2003)

it must be a body issue......check for loose bolts/items that might whistle when air is passing thru it


----------



## psuLemon (Apr 23, 2003)

check to see if there is any holes in your muffler or any exhaust pipes


----------



## BillDawg (Jun 7, 2003)

Thanks for the suggestions so far.  I should probably clarify something that might make a bit of difference in your thoughts - this isn't just a straight, constant whistle. This is a "pulsating" whistle, which is why all my guesses have led me straight to the wheels. Hmmm ... what could it be?


----------



## Token Moron (Mar 28, 2003)

is there any change in performance?


----------



## BillDawg (Jun 7, 2003)

Nothing I've noticed.


----------



## BillDawg (Jun 7, 2003)

*Problem fixed*

I finally couldn't take it anymore this morning and begged the Nissan dealership five minutes from my work to take my car in for the day, shuttle me to work, and solve the problem. The front driver's side wheel bearing was shot, replaced to the tune of $274 parts/labor :balls:, but it's fixed nonetheless.


----------



## Token Moron (Mar 28, 2003)

*Re: Problem fixed*



BillDawg said:


> * replaced to the tune of $274 parts/labor :balls:, but it's fixed nonetheless.  *


OUCH!


----------



## FadedKM83 (Jan 27, 2003)

did bubb rubb get ahold of your ride?


----------



## BillDawg (Jun 7, 2003)

Whoever got a hold of it at the dealership thoroughly enjoyed pushing my driver's seat allllllll the way back, tilting the steering wheel up like a Greyhound bus, and putting my A/C on full-blast - I got a blast of it in my face when I started her up, and I *HATE* air conditioning - but it's fixed, so I guess I can't complain.


----------



## Irons (Jul 10, 2002)

Anyone replace a wheel bearing here? Any thoughts and the best way to go about it? Ohh.. is it replaced if you replace your axel?


----------



## PHILLY-KID (Jun 28, 2002)

I'm having the same problem, I took it to the dealer once and they could not find anything. I am going to take it to midas to see if the bearing needs to be replaced or lubricated. The dealer is gonna say you need a new one so I want an honest opinion first. . .


----------



## 200SEX (May 1, 2002)

i like that little picture with the guy smacking his balls, hahhahaha! funny shiet!!


----------



## BillDawg (Jun 7, 2003)

*THE NOISE IS BACK!* 

A couple days after the repair at the dealership, the car is once again noisy as ever. I dropped the car off again this morning, still waiting to hear what it is. I'll keep y'all posted ...


----------



## PHILLY-KID (Jun 28, 2002)

That sucks,

have you looked at your tires? Maybe its a small leak somewhere


----------



## BillDawg (Jun 7, 2003)

The tires are pretty new - Goodyear Aquatreds - so I don't think they'll be causing any problems for a good while. (Knock on wood ...  )

I just picked up the car from the dealership. I wasn't really listening to what the service advisor was saying when she called and told me the car was ready  , but she said something about some pin or something rubbing against the axle ... I don't know haha. All I know is that they didn't charge me anything, so that was good. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.


----------



## nismoracr (Sep 26, 2002)

im having the same problem, only its not my wheel bearings cause i had them both replaced when i changed my axles and we checked them and there fine and its also not my brakes. What we ended up doing was raising the front of the car off the ground and then accelarating to 30 mph to see if we coud here or see anything loose, now we think its the axle cause it was wobbling around ALOT and it was moving the tire. only good thing is my axles are under warranty were taking them out tonight.


----------



## holy200sx (Jan 8, 2003)

probably your tire.. as tires fade, and get lower and lower tread, road noise increases... hence the reason why they make tougher treads.. it tends to be quieter and last long.. whats the condition on your tire?...


----------



## HaulinSentra (Apr 30, 2002)

just a reminder guys/gals! Coming from a tech myself, you can have wheel bearing noise and no play!

if it sounds like the bearing jack the front end up and spin the tires to that speed, crawl under and listen with a sthpesescope.

If you ever hear noises, please first check for play in the wheels?


----------



## HaulinSentra (Apr 30, 2002)

just a reminder guys/gals! Coming from a tech myself, you can have wheel bearing noise and no play!

if it sounds like the bearing jack the front end up and spin the tires to that speed, crawl under and listen with a sthpesescope.

If you ever hear noises, please first check for play in the wheels?


----------



## azkicker0027 (May 31, 2002)

also shift the car's weight side to side while carfully cruising down the street, as in swerving and changing lanes, and when the noise occurs at the loaded side, that 's the bearing that's giving up, bearings like to make noise when loaded, but yeah, not too fast and be careful of surrounding traffic.........


----------



## hard_charger (Jun 3, 2002)

i've recently developed the same kind of problem. i too did not notice any dip in performance or braking. i thought the brakes were dragging ever-so slightly (not enough to physically notice, but enough to make a noise)...

...nope.

anyway, i ended up taking my car into the dealership and they told me my rotors had developed cracks. according to the tech, air passing through/over the cracks was making the noise...

...nope.

i replaced the rotors (they couldn't be machined any further) and the damn noise is still there. so, i'm off to the dealership again for a new diagnosis. i'd like to get to the bottom of this mystery because, as the original poster explained, it's really maddening.


----------



## PHILLY-KID (Jun 28, 2002)

I'm having the same problem. I took my car to the mechanic and they said that it was a shield behind the brakes whichs keeps brake dust from gettin into the bearings. I noticed that you have to drive a while and let whatever is making the noise heat up. Keep me post cause I agree that it is maddening


----------



## BillDawg (Jun 7, 2003)

Well guys, my noise ended up coming back _again._  I brought it back to the dealership, they kept it the entire day, drove it around, said that everything under the car looked "great" and "nothing is unsafe" mechanically with it. I insisted that I wasn't crazy LOL, and described exactly what you said above, that the noise only comes after a good long drive. They pulled it _back_ in the bay, pulled all the wheels off, checked to make sure nothing was rubbing, out-of-place, etc., had two technicians confirm each other's findings that nothing looked out of the ordinary, and nothing came out of it. So I have the car back, and even after my long drives to Boston and back, the noise hasn't resurfaced _(knock on wood)_, so I'm hoping that in the process of removing the wheels or whatever, whatever was loose or out-of-place was retightened and solved the problem. We'll see.


----------



## hard_charger (Jun 3, 2002)

*sad story*

well, my car was in the shop for two days and the techs couldn't duplicate the noise or find any hint of a problem. i kinda got the sense they thought i was making it all up. but they said to bring it in when the noise becomes more consistent ... great. so, i play the waiting game while the gremlins in the front end of my sentra play tricks on me.

but wait, it gets better! while a tech was test-driving the car in an effort to duplicate the noise, it was rear-ended by some a**hole driving out of the dealership parking lot too fast. it isn't too bad and the dealership is gonna fix it, but what a pain in the ass. all this just three weeks after one of the hooligans that lives on my street skipped a rock off the hood of my poor sentra. sigh.


----------



## BillDawg (Jun 7, 2003)

That sucks man! Sounds like my luck!


----------



## Nico Flax (May 3, 2003)

*SOMEBODY HELP!!!!!!*

Yes... I'm back... from the dead... and so is this thread!

Ok if you read through the thread you know that there is some sort of squeak, chirp, whistle, that occurs around 25mph+ (for me its around 20 and above).

The car has to be driven for a good while and heat it well before the noise appears, and it doesn't seem to be coming from the brakes.

Well here is my story. My dads mechanic replaced my axels about two years ago, ever since then there has been that noise. NOW hold on before we go accusing this guy for sloppy work, which he does do anyway..., the squeak may have been coming earlier then that, but I'm just not that certain. I believe after the axel incident is when I just got fed up about it.

The axels used to replace the old ones where from a local auto parts store, they were way skinnier then the old axels. They fit perfect but are just skinny for some reason. Everything checked out about them though, and they have been doing fine for these 2 years. Like I said earlier the problem only appears once you start picking up speed and it seems like the noise repeats itself faster the faster you go.

ONE important thing I noticed is when I turn the car the noise goes away... but once the steering wheel is straightened out the noise is back.

Anyone solve this problem yet!?!?!

Final and most important question, I have to make a trip to NJ from DC, about 4 hours. Do you think I can make it here and back... I mean I've gone to Ohio with this car from lower Virginia, 2 years, and everytime I bring it to the mechanic and tell him to check it out he says everything is perfect.

Someone help!!!!


----------



## Nico Flax (May 3, 2003)

Anyone?!?!


----------



## PTXer (Aug 31, 2006)

Like I replied to a similar complaint (about a tireing squeak coming from the front wheels) I was told by a mechanic that it is the rotor ever so slightly scraping the caliper or dust shield, or something. Mine had been bothering me off and on for a couple years when I took it to this guy. It stars around 20mph and goes away when I turn the wheel. I thought it was wheel bearings, but this guy said bad bearings would growl at any speed. I too noticed it doesn't squeak until everything gets warmed up. As a matter of fact, when I took it to this mechanic, the time it took me to wait for him to get a moment to go on a drive to show him the problem, it cooled down enough to stop squeaking. I begged him to hang with me long enough to start back up again, it did, and he was confident that was the issue. I was going to take the rotors off and sand the non machined areas down, but after spraying a bunch of brake clean in them, it stopped so I'm not messing with it. Its due for some new rotors this winter so maybe thats the end of it for me (hopefully). There's nothing worse than driving through my neighborhood with this awful squeak coming from the car.


----------



## Nico Flax (May 3, 2003)

PTXer said:


> Like I replied to a similar complaint (about a tireing squeak coming from the front wheels) I was told by a mechanic that it is the rotor ever so slightly scraping the caliper or dust shield, or something. Mine had been bothering me off and on for a couple years when I took it to this guy. It stars around 20mph and goes away when I turn the wheel. I thought it was wheel bearings, but this guy said bad bearings would growl at any speed. I too noticed it doesn't squeak until everything gets warmed up. As a matter of fact, when I took it to this mechanic, the time it took me to wait for him to get a moment to go on a drive to show him the problem, it cooled down enough to stop squeaking. I begged him to hang with me long enough to start back up again, it did, and he was confident that was the issue. I was going to take the rotors off and sand the non machined areas down, but after spraying a bunch of brake clean in them, it stopped so I'm not messing with it. Its due for some new rotors this winter so maybe thats the end of it for me (hopefully). There's nothing worse than driving through my neighborhood with this awful squeak coming from the car.



You know what I noticed though! That there are two squeaks, one from the brake rotor that makes a sorta of whirl, swirl sound. Only thing I can think of is the sound of someone sharpening a knife but really slow, pretty much to pieces of metal sliding against each other. For that noise I just bang the brake dust shield into place and its gone.

Now this squeak sound... it could be coming from the brakes I suppose, that has always been something I think about. But I'm not sure since I can solve the first noise by hitting the brake dust shield, why wouldn't it solve the secondary noise? I don't hear the first noise very often. Hopefully its nothing serious and I make it to and back from NJ in one piece, wish me luck please!!


----------

