97 odd noise at speed

I have a 97 2wd 4.0 OHV 4-door with 120K miles. In the last few weeks, I
have had a sound at freeway speeds (greater than 65-70 MPH) that sounds like
it is coming from the right front end. It sounds like "mwah" so when I'm
going down the freeway and hit about 70 MPH I hear a mwahmwahmwah.
My brakes had been squeaking and I can't remember the last time I replaced
the pads so I went ahead and put new front brakes on. The right front was a
little more worn than the left, but they weren't terribly thin. I havent
heard the squeak again, but the freeway noise is still there.
The sound has gotten somewhat louder as time has gone on. I only hear it at
freeway speeds, and it seems to be speed dependent. The faster I go, the
faster and louder the sound gets.
Could this be wheel bearings, or should I be checking into something else.
I jacked up the front end and gave the front tires a good shake. Nothing
seemed too loose.
Any suggestions appreciated as this has left me scratching my head.

Bad/cheap tires ??????

Try rotate and see if the noise moves

Also try rubbing your hand slowly over the tire tread , if it feels smooth
going 1 way and choppy going the other that can cause noise.




"Captain Coleman" > wrote in message
...
> I have a 97 2wd 4.0 OHV 4-door with 120K miles. In the last few weeks, I
> have had a sound at freeway speeds (greater than 65-70 MPH) that sounds
like
> it is coming from the right front end. It sounds like "mwah" so when I'm
> going down the freeway and hit about 70 MPH I hear a mwahmwahmwah.
> My brakes had been squeaking and I can't remember the last time I replaced
> the pads so I went ahead and put new front brakes on. The right front was
a
> little more worn than the left, but they weren't terribly thin. I havent
> heard the squeak again, but the freeway noise is still there.
> The sound has gotten somewhat louder as time has gone on. I only hear it
at
> freeway speeds, and it seems to be speed dependent. The faster I go, the
> faster and louder the sound gets.
> Could this be wheel bearings, or should I be checking into something else.
> I jacked up the front end and gave the front tires a good shake. Nothing
> seemed too loose.
> Any suggestions appreciated as this has left me scratching my head.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>

I'll try swapping the front and back tires. The noise is somewhat
intermittent. It's less prominant on the long flat straightaways. It picks
up a little when the crown of the road gets to steep or going around the
slightest of curbs.

"JohanB" > wrote in message
...
> Bad/cheap tires ??????
>
> Try rotate and see if the noise moves
>
> Also try rubbing your hand slowly over the tire tread , if it feels smooth
> going 1 way and choppy going the other that can cause noise.
>
>
>
>
> "Captain Coleman" > wrote in message
> ...
>> I have a 97 2wd 4.0 OHV 4-door with 120K miles. In the last few weeks, I
>> have had a sound at freeway speeds (greater than 65-70 MPH) that sounds
> like
>> it is coming from the right front end. It sounds like "mwah" so when I'm
>> going down the freeway and hit about 70 MPH I hear a mwahmwahmwah.
>> My brakes had been squeaking and I can't remember the last time I
>> replaced
>> the pads so I went ahead and put new front brakes on. The right front
>> was
> a
>> little more worn than the left, but they weren't terribly thin. I havent
>> heard the squeak again, but the freeway noise is still there.
>> The sound has gotten somewhat louder as time has gone on. I only hear it
> at
>> freeway speeds, and it seems to be speed dependent. The faster I go, the
>> faster and louder the sound gets.
>> Could this be wheel bearings, or should I be checking into something
>> else.
>> I jacked up the front end and gave the front tires a good shake. Nothing
>> seemed too loose.
>> Any suggestions appreciated as this has left me scratching my head.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>

Not sure this is it, but there is an issue with " IAC intake moan" known as
the moose horn issue in Explorers of that vintage (no joke). Usual solution
was to replace the IAC valve. I think that noise showed up at idle as well
though so it may not be it...

--
Allan Williams



"Captain Coleman" > wrote in message
...
>I have a 97 2wd 4.0 OHV 4-door with 120K miles. In the last few weeks, I
> have had a sound at freeway speeds (greater than 65-70 MPH) that sounds
> like
> it is coming from the right front end. It sounds like "mwah" so when I'm
> going down the freeway and hit about 70 MPH I hear a mwahmwahmwah.
> My brakes had been squeaking and I can't remember the last time I replaced
> the pads so I went ahead and put new front brakes on. The right front was
> a
> little more worn than the left, but they weren't terribly thin. I havent
> heard the squeak again, but the freeway noise is still there.
> The sound has gotten somewhat louder as time has gone on. I only hear it
> at
> freeway speeds, and it seems to be speed dependent. The faster I go, the
> faster and louder the sound gets.
> Could this be wheel bearings, or should I be checking into something else.
> I jacked up the front end and gave the front tires a good shake. Nothing
> seemed too loose.
> Any suggestions appreciated as this has left me scratching my head.
>
>
>
>
>
>

Captain Coleman wrote:
> I'll try swapping the front and back tires. The noise is somewhat
> intermittent. It's less prominant on the long flat straightaways. It picks
> up a little when the crown of the road gets to steep or going around the
> slightest of curbs.

It could be the wheel bearings. If you only hear the noise on a crowned
road or on a curve, thats a classic sign of worn bearings because you
are putting a load on the outer edge of the bearings, as opposed to a
flat straightaway when the load is more centered on the bearings.

Wheel bearings it was! Replacement took about 1.5 hours for the right side.
When I removed the outer bearing, one of the rollers fell out of the
bearing! Hand packing bearings is a pain. I'd buy one of the tools if I
had to do it very often.
Thanks for everyone's help.
"Mikepier" > wrote in message
oups.com...
>
> Captain Coleman wrote:
>> I'll try swapping the front and back tires. The noise is somewhat
>> intermittent. It's less prominant on the long flat straightaways. It
>> picks
>> up a little when the crown of the road gets to steep or going around the
>> slightest of curbs.
>
> It could be the wheel bearings. If you only hear the noise on a crowned
> road or on a curve, thats a classic sign of worn bearings because you
> are putting a load on the outer edge of the bearings, as opposed to a
> flat straightaway when the load is more centered on the bearings.
>