Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting Wheel Noise :(

------Hello and thanks in advance-------

Here's the order of me and my contour's events:

Driving around gentle curves at 20-50ish mph and i hear and slightly feel a wobbling seemingly coming from my front right wheel.

I put a post on here (thanks again) and was recommended to me to check my bearings and tie rod ends (the 6-12, and 3-9 tests)... don't have any tools here so took it to Firestone---they said my bearings were tight and tie rods were fine... they said it was my tires ( "your tires are chopped").. meaning "out of round"

I take my car to Discount Tire, where I purchased my 1.5 year old Goodyear Assurance 80,000 tires and they said that it was not my tires., and I saw that they were NOT out of round or "chopped"

So i can't say that the noise is getting louder, but the closer I listen, the more I think it's coming from near the middle of the front of the car. I don't know what else to do or to check... so I guess I'm asking for more assistance.

If it is my CV Joint- how do I check it and how difficult is it to change myself(is there a walkthrough somewhere?)

What else can / should I check? I'm going somewhere for this long weekend where I'll have tool access to check/repair things...

Thanks again and feel free to personally email me

Chris Burghardt
1999 Contour SE
2.5 V6
88,000 mi

Try switching your right front and right rear tires, see if the noise improves. Or do a complete rotation front to rear, it might be due. If the noise gets louder from a right or left turn (but not both) it might still be a wheel bearing. My bad bearings (Mystique and Dodge) all got louder over several months, and groaned noticeably when slowing to a stop.

remember that failing bearings CAN be tight, and not exhibit any "wobble" when testing.

Mine were tight. I have one that is loose, that is quiet, on my SHO..

thanks for your reply...I did have my tires rotated the day I took it to discount tire...the noise was exactly the same afterwards...

I guess I'm wondering this- can / should I check anything else before I spend the $250 to have my bearing changed? The noise is only there when going around curves. As soon as I straighten my wheel, the noise stops altogether.... thanks again

I think the FIRST thing you should do is step back and see that it isn't $250 to do them, if you follow the documented how-to (with picture walk-throughs). Go to the Duratec Maintenance forum, then read the Duratec Maintenance FAQ for the wheel-bearing how-to.

Do it yourself with, LITERALLY a jackstand, and 4 or 5 tools. (not including the pressing of the bearing)

(thanks)
doesn't removing some of those parts require a front end alignment once the wheel bearing is replaced? I WILL have access to tools and things, but I just don't want to get stuck messing up my car when the $250 includes an alignment. Even following the instructions seems pretty difficult of a procedure (unless it's easier than it looks to me) lol my skills ARE limited.

No, no replacement/removal of the affected parts will require an alignment.

as long as you don't turn the tie-rod end to affect alignment, your alignment won't change during this procedure.