I posted this in North Texas forums and haven't really gotten anywhere, anyone have any idea what it could be? If at all possible I would like to forego having someone else charge me for telling me something I already know. I'm having a hard time believing the noise is from the diff. The noise developed shortly after, if not when, I had my new wheels put on.

For those that are too lazy to click on the link, its a noise that comes from the rear of the car and it sounds like a metal on metal sound. It only makes it when the wheels are rolling. It's very noticable when rolling at speed in neutral (No exhaust noise). I tried jacking up the car and spinning the wheel to reproduce the noise, but I don't think I was able to turn it fast enough. All I heard was the pads on the rotor.

https://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=309354

 

Whatever you do, make sure you don't listen to "Tx_Phantom" anymore. ........................
(or that "CosmosMpower" either) Those two got some really weird ideas about this car.

My guesses:
-wheel bearing
-brake components dragging or bent
-foreign object lodged someplace that affects the moving parts of the wheel/tire.

A loose hub nut will produce a click when moving off. Did it ever do this? A REALLY, REALLY loose hub nut might screw up the bearing enough to make the sound you now hear.

 

Would you mind being more specific in regard to what the two you mentioned said? Are you saying that there are CV joints in the back, and that they could be the problem?

But! Now that you mention it, it did used to every once in a while make one loud clicking sound when taking off after sitting for a while. I remember someone mentioning the same thing in a post here, and the consensus was that it was just the pads sticking to the rotors. So I just assumed thats what that noise was.

Since I have your attention, theres another noise I hear every once in a while. When turning the key to the on position it sometimes makes a loud noise. Hard to describe, but I have a suspicion its the fuel pump coming on. Please make me feel better and tell me that its nothing and everything is ok.

BTW is there anyway to actually see if the wheel bearings are bad, or is it one of those things where you just have to replace them and see if it fixes the problem. If thats the case I hope it isn't too expensive, I would hate to spend money unneccessarily.

Thanks!

 

Yes, we have many CV joints at the rear of this car. There are NONE in the front. On each 1/2 shaft (and there are two), there is an outer and inner CV joint. Go under the rear of the car and have a look. You'll see 4 boots. Also, there are two more CV "type" joints on the propshaft (called driveshaft on other RWD cars). In this threads topic, it is not likely it's a CV that is causing the whining. CV usually click when bad and they produce a severe driveline vibration upon acceleration.

Without actuall hearing it, it could be either the "loose hub nut" thing (for which Honda has a TSB) or the brake pad shifting. The click on the hub nut would happen at the point of power application when moving off forwards or backwards. The click of the brake pads would be upon application of the brakes when coming to a stop forwards or backwards.

This is the noise of the fuel pump doing its initial pressuring up. It goes on for about 2 to 3 seconds after you turn the key to ON. In case this comes up in your mind later, you will also hear another noise right after you do a cold start on the engine. This noise is the emissions air pump that is located behind the left front fake airduct. Depending on how cold the engine is at the time of start up, this pump can run upwards of a few minutes

You can't "see" if the wheel bearings are bad without taking them out of the wheel hubs. They are pressed in. You need to press them out and press a new one in. Typical symptom is a whining sound that increase inintensity and volume as road speed increases. Another "old fashioned" way to tell is to feel the wheel hub area after a long drive. A bad bearing creates tremendous heat and it will be nearly impossible to touch that area if the bearing is bad. However, if the brakes had been used extensively before you touch that area, then you can't really tell the difference. Best thing to do is to go out for a 30 minutes highway drive where you don't have to use the brakes much and come to a slow stop with minimal brake use and then go out and feel the wheel hub area through the spokes of the rim. Be careful not to burn yourself. If you have a bad wheel bearing, it will get extremely hot there.

 

You're the man.

I'm now convinced that the hub nut was loose and it caused damage to the wheel bearings. I'm guessing the new bigger wheels just compounded the problem and thats when I noticed it?

As for the other noise, its really loud and it definately comes from the rear. I'm pretty sure its the fuel pump, it's definately not the air pump as I don't have one. I was just wondering if the noise was a sign that its dieing and needs to be replaced.

 

Hmmm, bigger wheels themselves won't necessarily be an issue. However, different (bigger or smaller) with the improper offsets will. This causes a change in the "lever moment" forces acting on the hub. A loose hub nut will aggravate this.

As for the fuel pump making this noise from time to time, this has been reported a few times. The stock fuel pump can make unusually loud whining noises (like a jet engine) during certain kinds of conditions (low fuel level, hot ambient temps outside, changing engine fuel demands, etc.). This is not always a sign of the pump going bad. It may just be a normal occasional characteristic.

Of course, fuel pump whine will be constant and not related to road speed, whereas wheel bearing noise won't be constant and varies with road speed.