really weird grinding noise
 

so i took my girlfriend to starbucks tonight, drove her home but before that got some gas. as soon as i pulled out i heard this really bad grinding noise coming from the front right wheel. it sounds almost like the rim is grinding on the fender, but i know it's not. is this a wheel bearing? CV joint? brakes? ugh i have school in the morning and i don't want to drive my car home and damage it. if it was wheel bearings it would have got gradually louder too... :(

the car isn't pulling or acting any different, and it sounds like it's only on one part of the wheel (not a steady grind) i guess i know what i'll be spending my time doing tomorrow afternoon

Re: really weird grinding noise
 

I doubt very much that it is the wheel bearings. You say " it sounds like it's only on one part of the wheel (not a steady grind". That sounds like it is a worn pad on the disc.
Plan B. It may be the lining under the guard rubbing.

Harvey.

Re: really weird grinding noise
 

well should i not drive it? i really don't feel like doing any serious damage. :[

Re: really weird grinding noise
 

Your probably fine driving it. If it gets any worse then you should stop. It does not sound too critical if it is not a wheel bearing. How do your brakes feel? What's it sound like when you hit the brakes? anything out of the ordinary? Does it do it more when you turn? In one particular direction? The more specific you are about the problem the more we can help you :)

Re: really weird grinding noise
 

the brakes really don't affect it. it's the worst at around 5mph. it doesn't make much noise if i turn left hard. it sound like something warped is hitting part of the wheel. i don't see anything lose though.

Re: really weird grinding noise
 

Did you change the brakes? Try to look through your wheel and see if the metal clips are still holding your pads into the calipers. I have friends who throw their clips away because they are a pain sometimes. This causes the pads to just "sit" in the calipers and can come loose easily and ride on the rotor.

Re: really weird grinding noise
 

Grinding or scraping? My blue car came with both of the dustshields scraping against the rotors. It sounded pretty scary. Not sure if that could happen just from driving around though.

Re: really weird grinding noise
 

i don't know. it had new brakes apparently when i bought it last october (2009) but it doesn't visually look any different than normal. it does sound like that though, and i know my brakes are warped. could it be a cv joint? i know those are going on me too. well. i guess when i drive her home if a wheel falls off then i know it was something serious. lol

Re: really weird grinding noise
 

I have had that with...Loose lug nuts...on my drivers front...they just seem to come loose every few months for what ever reason.

Re: really weird grinding noise
 

Jack up the car and pull off the wheel on that side and look and see if the dust shield is bent a bit to where it could be touching the brake rotor. Also look for any scrape marks on the inside of the rim, and any suspension parts. If the noise is that bad, chances are it will show itself visually. I don't think CV joints would make a sound like that, those feel like something is shaking or wobbling and kind of like an unbalanced tire. It could be that something is scraping against the axle shaft though. It will also be worse with increasing torque (the harder you push the gas pedal, the worse it feels). Wheel bearings usually don't sound like that either. You usually start to notice them at higher speeds before lower speeds also.

Re: really weird grinding noise
 

yeah that't what i thought. i got home fine, the noise is slightly less intense. when i put my window up i can't even hear it. i'm almost positive it's something with the brakes. i don't have time tomorrow with school and work, so i'll probably just drop it off somewhere by my work and let them fix it. it didn't increase with torque, the only thing making it louder was if i slammed the brakes. oh well. it's 19 years old. it's supposed to have issues. :rolleyes:

Re: really weird grinding noise
 

yikes! Time for new studs I think man..
And for the grinding noise your hearing Im guessing its brake noise. I had a pad separate on my 92 and it was a god awful noise.

Re: really weird grinding noise
 

Could be that black plastic shield that is fastened to the wheel-well came lose. I think it is in a couple of pieces and it could come lose and be dragging. wouldn't have any affect on the driving.

Keith:cool:

Re: really weird grinding noise
 

i encountered this once and found it to be the dust sheild i just pushed it back towards the underneath of the car with my fingers (needed a fair amount of force) and havent heard the noise since

Re: really weird grinding noise
 

well i thought it could be something like that but i know nothing is touching the wheel that shouldn't be (at least that i can see). i think it's the dust shield or something, cause if i hit the brakes hard it gets louder but goes away, as if it's a little uneven and i'm "evening" it out by grinding it with the brakes.