bearing noise soon after tire replacement?

Question

I had my tires (all four) replaced recently, and had an alignment done at the same time.  Soon after I noticed a slight "warble" coming from one of the rear wheels.
Update: I was in the waiting room while the work was being performed so I'm fairly certain the car didn't fall off the lift or anything like that.  And the mechanic in question was not a new hire.

I thought maybe the tire was misbalanced or the alignment wasn't quite right, so I mentioned it when I next took the vehicle in to have the oil changed.  They're telling me the noise is from a bad bearing.

... which I suppose is possible.  But it begs the question, why did the noise start after replacing the tire?  (Put another way, why didn't I hear any noise from the bad bearing before I had the tires replaced?)  And several co-workers have since shared similar experiences (at different shops).

So I'm wondering: is it possible for a bearing to be damaged by routine work such as a tire/brake maintenance?  Or is it possible that before the tire replacement the old tire was somehow "masking" the problem (and how)?  Or is this just a coincidence?

The vehicle in question is a 2004 Honda Odyssey if that makes any difference.

I should also note that the shop in question is one which I've used for a number of years.  The owner sold the business 1-2 years ago because he could no longer afford health care for his employees; the staff has mostly remained the same (other than normal turnover), but I don't trust the new management nearly as much as the former owner.

race fever · Accepted Answer

I've had this issue with cars fixed at my past shops. The old tires would mask the sound of the wheel bearing starting to go bad. New tires would suddenly make the sound stand out. Old tires can also affect the wheel bearing if their wear is uneven. They could put uneven pressure on the bearing as the tire rotates.

Could the shop have done it?

There is a slight slight slight chance that they might have warped the hub by over-torquing the wheel nuts. But this is very unlikely and lugs tend to break off before this happens.

Go ahead and replace the bearing and move on. This is a safety issue. Afterwards, ask around and find a mechanic you can trust.

cloudnyn3 · Answer

This is a bit of a difficult question to answer over the internet because none of us can physically be there to observe the symptoms you're describing. However though, cars are just like any other man made functional device used on a daily basis. You could go in for an oil change and your piston rod bearing could fail. Is this the lube shop's fault? There is no way to tell unless you're a skilled technician that can find scientific evidence. Your statements are anecdotal.

I can tell you this from personal experience. I've seen guys handle tires rough and sometimes when new management gets involved shops hire people out of desperation and they aren't always skilled. I do know, that van had some wheel bearing issues and a few other problems with CV axles. I worked at Honda for quite some time and wheel bearings were a recurring issue.

To answer your core question, I've never personally seen a wheel bearing damaged by routine maintenance. That's not to say something couldn't have happened while doing the repair. I've worked in a few places and have seen cars dropped off of lifts, catch on fire, and damaged because of poor workmanship. Don't assume they didn't do something wrong. The last thing a shop will do is own up to their mistakes if they think they can get away with it. Take it somewhere else, don't tell them what the other shop said and let them give you a conclusive answer.

If you tell them about your previous experience they may agree just to rope you into a job. That wheel bearing isn't cheap. If you made a video and asked an additional question with good audio, maybe some of could help you more.

TMN · Answer

It might not be the tires so much as the alignment. If the bearing was worn but had "gotten settled" in a particular orientation, it might not have been noisy. Then you changed the alignment and started stressing it slightly differently, and now it's gotten loud. I wouldn't be too quick to blame the mechanic.

Answered by TMN on April 27, 2021

Jun · Answer

I have similar issue after my car tires replaced. I am reading all comments but it's kind of odd when a problem arises just after replacing old tires. I wouldn't directly blame the technician but I would assume the thing he did on my car (on how he actually performed) might have contributed to the problem on wheel bearing.

Answered by Jun on April 27, 2021

blacksmith37 · Answer

Once when my tires were rotated, I got a rumbling sound/feeling just like a wheel bearing. I found the lugs on one front wheel were only finger tight. It only required tightening.

Tani Can · Answer

I just installed a new set of wheels and tires, the same day, after driving 20-30 km the tires started popping loud, one first and then an other in a while.
I'm assuming it bad installation, the tires werent seating totally against the rim. Was the last costumer for the day. That sys allot.

bearing noise soon after tire replacement?

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