Tires make groaning sound

I have a Honda CRV 2004. A couple of years ago I bought new tires and noticed that when I made sharp U-turn it made a groaning noise. It does it turning either right or left. When I took it back to the repair shop that put on the tires the guy said “Its always made that noise, you just never noticed it before”. Actually, I don’t believe it did because I WOULD have noticed. Its still doing it and don’t know if its dangerous. It even has started groaning if I make a 45 degree turn, going slow in a parking lot, for instance. So is it dangerous?

Is your CR-V front wheel drive or all wheel drive? Has anyone checked the wheel alignment?

Its an all wheel drive. I don’t think the wheels have been aligned, wouldn’t that have been done when the tires were put on? Its been doing it since then.

It’s a good idea to have the alignment checked when new tires are installed, but it’s not automatic, and you would have had to either request an alignment or authorize one a the tire installer’s suggestion.

Poor wheel alignment can cause the tires to “scrub,” and make noise. A fault in the AWD system can cause “binding” between the front and rear wheels and make unusual noises. This is more common on vehicles with full time AWD, as opposed to your CR-V, which has part time AWD (Honda calls it Real Time AWD).

It’s also possible that the type of tire installed, or the tread pattern, may be different enough from the original to make more noise.

I’d start by having the alignment of all four wheels checked to make sure it’s within factory specifications.

thanks, I’ll do it.

If the alignment is proven correct, it will just be the rubber compound of these tires, different from the previous ones, against the pavement surface that you’re hearing.

In my 30 bay ford dealer, you should hear some of the tires sing on this glossy painted floor. skweeee, skweeeee, as they turn into/out of stalls.

It could be from the tires, simply because some tires do make more noise when in low-speed, sharp-turn maneuvers.

OR, it could be the notorious CR-V center differential syndrome.

If you have never changed the differential fluid on this 5 year old vehicle, it is definitely possible that your CR-V now has this known problem that seems to crop up after ~60,000 miles.

If the differential fluid has never been changed, take it to either a Honda dealership, or to a reputable independent mechanic, and request that they change the differential fluid. On this model, when you drain/refill the rear differential, it also drains and refills the center differential, believe it or not!

Just be sure to use ONLY genuine Honda Multi-Pump Fluid for this application. Since independent mechanics are unlikely to stock this specialized fluid, you may need to buy it at the Honda Parts Department and take it to the mechanic.

If the noise goes away after the fluid change, then you will know that it was not the tires. If the noise does not go away, then you can safely assume that the tread design/compound on these tires does make noise in low-speed, sharp-turn maneuvers. For some tires, this is normal.