I have owned this car for about 6 months now and cannot get to the bottom of this sound/action. I have taken it to multiple shops, including the dealer where I bought it from, a Honda dealership, and two other shops (Firestone Complete Auto Care, and a local shop which is goodyear backed.) Here is the deal:
When I accelerate past 50 mph and up to 75 miles per hour, and also when I cruise at any speed between those numbers, my car has a very distinct vibration in both the seat and steering wheel. It also has a sound that matches the intensity and magnitude of the vibration itself. The sound and vibration intensifies and decreases with changes in speed, the sound changes pitch when turning the wheel from one side to another, and the vibration gets worse as I drive up or down hills. This sound also gets louder if I apply the brakes suddenly, but also decreases with the speed of the car.
Things I have had checked:
Ball bearings
Rims (One rim was actually bent (steel rims), and now is replaced.)
Alignment (This was actually done at least 4 times since I’ve had the vehicle)
Replaced tires (to rule out tire noise, and also the tires were going bad from what I believe is this problem)
I have had this car test driven to try to get opinions and either the shop denies that they hear anything, or say they do not know what the sound could be. It sounds like it is coming from the front right. I have been told by the dealership from where this car came that the sound is “road noise” and should be ignored. I disagree, because if it is “road noise” then it should go away when driving on different surfaces. When I have had my alignment checked, Firestone found that my camber on my front right and left rear were off to the right, but were still within specifications. They also said there was nothing they could do, and suggested if I wanted it fixed, I should take it to a body shop.
Included are a scan of the alignment results from Firestone, and a sound clip of the sound that is captured on my phone. Also, the sound can be heard throughout the recording, but is especially clear at around the 42 second mark. Thank you all ahead of time for your advice.
For shaking in the seat the prime suspects are normally engine/transmission mounts and CV joints. For the steering wheel it’s things like tie rods and ball joints.
Given that it’s been through all of these shops, I’d assume it has been put on a rack and the front suspension and steering components have all been thoroughly inspected? Wheel bearings, tie rods, ball joints, control arm bushings, struts/strut mounts & towers etc. Engine and transmission mounts? The only thing you specified is that it was driven by people at these shops.
If all of these things have been verified as being in good and safe condition, then I’d also say you’re probably left with CV axles.
How many miles are on it, and are the struts original?
Sorry, I meant hub bearings. It has been put on a rack several times, now if they actually went through and checked the front suspension and steering components, ect like they had said they did, I don’t know.
Where would be the best place for me to go to get a mechanic that is knowledgeable about this part of the vehicle so I don’t run into some guy who thinks he knows something when he really doesn’t?
I have no clue about the struts, like I said, I just bought the car 6 months ago…
And there are roughly 134,000-135,000 miles on the vehicle as it is right now…
Bad wheel bearings are often misdiagnosed as road noise or tire noise
Keep in mind that bad wheel bearings aren’t always loose or obviously worn
Many, perhaps most, bad wheel bearings are rough. Meaning you can shake the wheel at 3 and 9 o’clock, or 12 and 6 o’clock and it’ll seem fine. Yet, when you spin the tire, it feels rough