Tyre Noise - Not Wheel Bearing Noise

[nat225]

Richo64 - will be interested to see how they go after a few thousand kms because I have the same issue as you - GTI and Bridgestones. How much by the way?

Toss-up between these and the Primacy HP. They get a fairly good reception on Tirerack.com reviews. The other one which doesn't appear available for the GTI is the Pilot Super Sport, which comes up top of the pile in the same reviews (quiet and grippy)

Has anyone been able to get the Pilot Super Sport in Australia (225/45/17)

according to the official Michelin Australia 2012 price list, the PSS is not available in 225 45 17. 225 40 18 is not available either. It is only available in 235 35 19 for the Golf, rrp $681 each.

the Primacy HP would be a lot more comfortable and quieter tyre than the PSS. and it lasts a long time too! i have these on my other car, 25,000km traveled and there are still 5-6mm of tread remaining (approx 50,000km reported on the new Accord Euro). it's also OEM on the Toyota GTS 86 which they call Prius tyres in Japan.

[Steveo]

Thanks nat225

Interesting about that price. The PSS is listed as $177 on Tirerack

Michelin Pilot Super Sport

User reviews on Tirerack suggest the PSS is quieter than the Primacy HP

[wai]

I have just been through this. My Caddy Maxi Life has done just 15,000 km and the rear tyres are doing this. The dealer says it is scalloping and is not their responsibility. Oh, they did suggest that I have the "toe in" corrected...on a beam axle!

Basically, the non-drive tyres are prone to this where the tyres are asymmetrical and tyre pressures are at the lower end of the pressure range. This is caused because the two halves of the tread have different rolling resistance (not friction) because of the different tread blocking. With low tyre pressures, this sees the carcass plies on one side dragging relative to the other side and this has the effect of changing the toe in of the wheel.

The only way around this is to replace the tyres with non-asymmetrical tyres so that it will roll true and not have one side dragging relative to the other. It is expensive to have to replace tyres after just 15,000 km (in my case).

[Steveo]

I have just been through this. My Caddy Maxi Life has done just 15,000 km and the rear tyres are doing this. The dealer says it is scalloping and is not their responsibility. Oh, they did suggest that I have the "toe in" corrected...on a beam axle!

Basically, the non-drive tyres are prone to this where the tyres are asymmetrical and tyre pressures are at the lower end of the pressure range. This is caused because the two halves of the tread have different rolling resistance (not friction) because of the different tread blocking. With low tyre pressures, this sees the carcass plies on one side dragging relative to the other side and this has the effect of changing the toe in of the wheel.

The only way around this is to replace the tyres with non-asymmetrical tyres so that it will roll true and not have one side dragging relative to the other. It is expensive to have to replace tyres after just 15,000 km (in my case).

I've had non-asymmetrical tyres develop the roar from the blocks feathering (or scalloping), so I think there is more to it than that. However what you are saying could still be the case with standard tyres.

I am going to have to bite the bullet and and I think I will line up for Michelin PS3s. The noise from my current tyres is just too annoying even though they still have a lot of tread.

[Steveo]

Got the PS3's yesterday - and the noise level difference is marked. Suddenly I can hear the engine and turbo burble again - great. (Now I'll probably start hearing other things and getting worried.)

Hopefully they will stay this way - will get them checked - balanced and maybe another wheel alignment in 5000kms.

I just have to wait for the initial sheen to wear off. At the first set of lights I managed to spin the tyres with a normal take-off. (At least I hope this is caused by the initial residue and I will get better traction soon)

[Richo64]

Glad to hear you're happy with your new tyres Steve. The traction will improve (my PS3's have done a bit over 1000km), and I agree that regular rotation, balancing ect. is necessary. Enjoy. For me it made it feel like a new car.

[Tom Sawyer]

I had this exact problem from the rear of my GTi. Thought it was a bearing problem initially, but when I had the front tyres replaced due to wear with some Conti's and had them put on the rear (i.e. 4 wheel swap around), the noise moved to front and was very noticeable when braking between 30-40kmh, with a juddering through the steering. Changed that front pair (Bridgestone Potenzas) to some Goodyear Assymetrics (great tyre!) and the noise just totally disappeared. Car is quite again.
Would never touch Bridgestones again!

[wai]

(Now I'll probably start hearing other things and getting worried.)

Thar's easily fixed.

Just place a small steel ball in the ash tray. You will know what that noise is and it will drown out everything else

[thirdwill]

My MK6 GTI is making vibrating sounds most prominent around the 70km/hr mark (sounds like a hovering UFO inside the car). It actually fades off when driving at higher speeds. But I think the problem is gradually getting worse.

I took the car to the dealership last friday and they said its the tyres. They said something about edges but the only thing that stuck to me was complete tyre replacement was the only fix I asked them to do a wheel rotation but that didn't fix anything.

Is this a problem with my tyres as a set or do you think getting the front two or the back two replaced would fix the problem? The tyres have done around 33,000kms and still have a bit of mileage left. How many km's are the stock tyres rated for?

[rosslm]

I did the same change from Bridgestone RE050's to Michelin PS3's the Michelins are very quiet, the tyre dealer recommended the Michelin's and he said he was aware of complaints about the noise generated from the RE050's it was particularly noticeable coasting to a stop at traffic lights on smooth bitumen.

As mentioned earlier in this post I changed tyres as above, done about 6000km now still silent. I can certainly recommend the Michelin's a bit pricy $1000 fitted but well worth it.