Alfa Romeo Forum banner

Drone/Hum at Wheel Speed

4K views 35 replies 13 participants last post by  AR147 
#1 ·
I have a pulsating Drone/Hum that resonates at wheel speed. At first I thought it was a tyre fault. It sounds like a problem I had with the Punto 2 years ago which turned out to be a piece of missing tread. The sound is not noticed by passengers until I point it out (so not that noisy). It’s worse on the super smooth new tarmacs that are being used for re-surfacing and almost inaudible on rough surfaces. It makes no difference if I’m on or off power.
I have fairly new Dunlop Sport 01 tyres all round. I was so convinced it was tyres that I used an old Michelin shod wheel to test on each corner. After 4 test runs I found no difference to the sound level regardless of which corner the Michelin was on.
So, anybody else experienced this noise?
 
#29 ·
Worn shocks will do it, too. Best get those checked as they can be very dangerous
 
#31 ·
Just found this thread, had a very similar problem in my GT (Running EagleF1s)
In the end, new tyres all round (Pirelli zero neros) front tracking done(which was very much out of line) and the problem has gone.
I thought it was a wheel bearing on the back end. I had uneven tyre wear all round, very odd.
 
#32 ·
Looked at the tyre condition and can see inside edge is taking a hammering. Checked the tracking and despite setting it to Zero 12 months ago the readings say -3mm. Now reset to Zero and the noise is much reduced. Perhaps the tyres are now too far worn. Going to put the rears on the front at the weekend.
 
#33 ·
Changed all four wheels and noise gone.
Left these replacements on the back but put the Dunlop rears on the front and the noise was different - much lower (almost imperceptible) but definitely no rhythmic drone.
Bit the bullet and got a pair of new front tyres. Went for Goodyear Hydragrips. Decision based on the Autoexpress tyre test.
Car now transformed - probably the lowest noise ever.
 
#34 ·
Interesting.
I have the new Goodyears on the front and all is well.
Got a puncture in one of the rear (original) Dunlops so I put on a good spare Michelin for a few days. And guess what; the noise returned. So that initial test I did using this very Michelin was null & void because it was also a noisy tyre. Exact same rythmic drone.

So it's not just Dunlops.
(What is it about the Alfa set up that makes this happen)
 
#36 ·
Im so glad i found this thread!
Ive just purchased a 147 with a droning noise!! Checked my tyres.
The rears are pirelli p7000 and the blocks on the inner edge on both sides are all over the place, you can feel it just by running your hand over it!!! will get them changed asap, any recommendations??
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top