The guy at the auto repair shop indeed drove my car and he was pretty confident the noise is from the rear/back of the car. He thus lifted the car and used a flashlight briefly checked the area around the two rear tires and he pointed to me the rear left tire (the one hit by the curb) is a bit closer to the car than the rear right one thus suggested I do a tire alignment (his shop does not have tire alignment service and he suggested me to TO Haas ). But unfortunately the tire alignment did not fix the noise problem. Several of you suggest that the noise likely be caused by wheel bearing problem. I am to make an appointment with the auto repair shop: Usually how much will cost for checking the wheel bearing? How much it will cost if I need replace the rear left wheel bearing? Thanks.
If you were told the tires were the source of the noise they will have to be replaced to eliminate the noise, correcting the alignment may prevent a noisy wear pattern from developing on the next set of tires.
You need to have the rear tires removed and have the strut springs closely inspected.
If the mechanic noticed that the left rear tire is closer to vehicle, it could mean that strut spring is dislodged or broken. And what you’re hearing is the tire coming in contact with the strut spring.
This tire came off a Camry with a broken strut spring.
Tester
Thanks Tester. Should the mechanic noticed a dislodged or broken strut spring when I did the tire alignment yesterday? I saw he took off all four tires.
The fact that the left rear tire is closer to the vehicle indicates that there is suspension damage to that side.
This doesn’t only mean possible damage to the strut assembly, but possible damage the control arms on that side.
That’s why I suggest that the rear suspension be closely examined.
Tester
I called a local Toyota dealer and was told the diagnosis will cost $105 and if the problem is caused by wheel bearing of the back driver side tire, the replace of wheel bearing will cost ~ $500. And he said it probably will cost an extra $200 because they may also need replace the ABS sensor when they replace the wheel bearing. Is this a reasonable price?
The ABS part is probably true. Look on rockauto.com to see the part prices. The dealer quote is going to be high because they are the dealer. Get another quote from an independent shop. If they accept you bringing the parts in, I think it should not be more than a one hour job for the mechanic. So expect to pay $100-150 in labor fees.
I went to a local auto repair shop today. They did a diagnosis and replace the rear driver side hub and wheel bearing assembly and the noise it gone!! It costs me ~ $400 (including labor). Thank you all for your input. The parts come with a lifetime warranty. But the receipt mentions that “wheels must be retorqued 50-100 miles”. What does that mean?
Between 50 to 100 miles they want to check the lug nuts on the wheels to make sure the wheels are secure. But why would you not ask the place you got the receipt from in the first place?