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Model specific boards => Golf mk7 => Topic started by: DarrenG on 15 September 2020, 10:22

Title: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: DarrenG on 15 September 2020, 10:22
Hi,
I’ve recently purchased my 2016 5dr Manual PP Mk7 and noticed over the weekend a droning noise when I get to 70mph...it’s noticeable at 65, very noticeable at 70 and starts to go away at 75+!
I was thinking wheel bearings however I’d assumed this type of noise would be there constantly but I’m no mechanic  :wink:
The car has Santiago alloys with brand new P zeros all round and the pressure was a bit out on two tyres however I’ve just made sure they are all at 41psi.
I’m really enjoying the car besides this niggling issue as it’s the exact spec and colour (carbon grey) that I was looking for, any help or advice would be appreciated.
Cheers
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: dubber36 on 15 September 2020, 10:37
How new are the tyres?

Run your hand over the inside portion of tread on the rear tyres to feel for any uneven 'sawtooth' wear pattern. This can cause the sort of droning noise you describe. It's caused by misaligned geometry, most probably rear toe.

If this is the case, then the only fix is new rear tyres then a full alignment check using a Hunter or similar machine and someone that knows how to use it.
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: DarrenG on 15 September 2020, 10:57
Thanks for the reply.

I’ve just checked and all four tyres are just over 7-8mm and I can’t seem to see or feel any uneven wear however I can see how the geometry being out would be a problem.

I’ll try and get it booked in with someone in the Birmingham area who knows what they are doing/talking about asap.

Cheers
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: Snoopy on 15 September 2020, 11:16
Swop the wheels over. Move the front wheels to the rear and the rear wheels to the front. See if the noise goes away or changes.  :wink:
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: fredgroves on 15 September 2020, 11:22
I've had the rear inside edge saw tooth problem before - it wasn't noticeable at speed, you heard that at sub 40mph.

Do you have (major) vibration with the drone or not?
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: DarrenG on 15 September 2020, 11:51
...there’s no vibration at all at any speed and the car tracks dead straight with no drift right or left and it’s the same when braking hard as in its dead straight.

I’ll definitely give the tyre swap front to rear a try this weekend  :wink:
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: vapourtee on 15 September 2020, 12:22
I had this on my 14 plate PP. It seems the standard fit Bridgestone's cause this saw tooth issue when they get to a certain mileage. I had just bought the car when the issue occurred. The car already had Conti's on the front and the original fit Bridgstones were on the rear. It was cured by a change to Continentals all round - courtesy of the VW dealer
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: Watts on 15 September 2020, 19:30
P-Zeros generate a fair bit of noise. Michelins were quieter.
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: dervdave on 16 September 2020, 09:00
Mine needed a new nsf wheel bearing after only 7k miles because of a very similar noise @ 65 ish
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: DarrenG on 16 September 2020, 10:47
Ok so I’ve found a wheel alignment specialist who have the Hunter machine that is localish and I’ve got it booked in for Friday, they’ll carry out a check first before confirming what does or doesn’t need doing.

I’ll also try and jack the car up before Friday and check for any play when moving the wheels and check for excessive noise when I turn/spin them however the MOT is a week old and I’d assumed they would checked for any excessive play on each wheel?

Process of elimination I guess....

Cheers
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: Al1040 on 16 September 2020, 15:40
I also had a wheel bearing replace albeit as c. 35k miles for similar noise.  :sad:
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: dervdave on 17 September 2020, 10:03
Money on its a bearing  :wink:
I also had my alignment done and checked for bearing play and noise (there wasn`t any) but still proved to be the nsf wheel bearing. :smiley:
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: DarrenG on 17 September 2020, 17:31
Hi Dave
I jacked up each corner of the car this morning and checked for play, movement and noise on each wheel to try and eliminate if it was a wheel bearing issue but nothing noticeable at all....how did you know it was a nsf wheel bearing issue in the end?
Cheers
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: dervdave on 18 September 2020, 11:29
As I said there was no play or anything so thinking it must be the tyres I put on some PS4s, no change but the sound quickly progressed to an unmistakable racket coming from the front at 65 and slowing down.
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: DarrenG on 18 September 2020, 12:18
Ok so I’ve just got back from the wheel alignment specialist who were very knowledgeable and knew about certain golf’s having issues whereby if you go by the recommended factory setting for rear camber it will cause the sawtooth issue on your tyres...apparently VW wont say which cars are affected and it’s not across the entire range.

To that extent the rear camber was aligned as close to the -1 15’ setting as possible (I’ll try and add the Hunter readout) which will reduce/stop the tyres developing the sawtooth pattern going forward however....because my tyres already have this sawtooth pattern it will not totally eliminate the problem.

He also believed the previous owner had swapped fronts to backs due to the wear on the tyres which didn’t help either...

What I can say is the droning noise at 70 is noticeable but not as bad.

I know I need a new set of tyres to cure the issue however I go on the motorway one or twice a month so it’s not a big issue at the moment.

The garage was called A line based in Dudley and I’d highly recommend them with the full toe and camber alignment at £65.

Cheers
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: fredgroves on 18 September 2020, 12:47
Sawtooth and camber have been talked about a lot on here, for example:

http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=280913.0

As I said earlier, I had it on my Mk7, but it was only noticeable at sub 40mph - definitely sawtooth though, but I go 60k out of those rears before sawtooth ate them.... and the rest of the tyre still had life!
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: DarrenG on 18 September 2020, 13:44
Wow...60k that’s good going  :wink:

As you said in the 2017 post it’s annoying more than anything else and as I’ve got 7mm left on the rears I can live with it for now.

Thanks to everyone for their help and advice.
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: dervdave on 18 September 2020, 16:05
Good result Darren  :smiley:
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: GPL on 17 May 2021, 09:56
Ok so I’ve just got back from the wheel alignment specialist who were very knowledgeable and knew about certain golf’s having issues whereby if you go by the recommended factory setting for rear camber it will cause the sawtooth issue on your tyres...apparently VW wont say which cars are affected and it’s not across the entire range.

To that extent the rear camber was aligned as close to the -1 15’ setting as possible (I’ll try and add the Hunter readout) which will reduce/stop the tyres developing the sawtooth pattern going forward however....because my tyres already have this sawtooth pattern it will not totally eliminate the problem.

He also believed the previous owner had swapped fronts to backs due to the wear on the tyres which didn’t help either...

What I can say is the droning noise at 70 is noticeable but not as bad.

I know I need a new set of tyres to cure the issue however I go on the motorway one or twice a month so it’s not a big issue at the moment.

The garage was called A line based in Dudley and I’d highly recommend them with the full toe and camber alignment at £65.

Cheers

Hi did you fit new tires and did it solve the droning problem finally.
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: fredgroves on 17 May 2021, 10:05
New rears is probably the only way of fixing the noise - its just a Mk7 Golf thing.

The rear of a Mk7 hatch is super light, you won't use up the tyres before the saw tooth gets them.

Just swap them out... or if you want to be totally @nal about it.... when you front tyres are shot, get new ones and stick them on the rear. Move the rears to the front.

Putting the newest rubber on the rear isn't actually such a bad idea anyway.

I was getting about 14k from the fronts and as I said, the rears more like 60k. Rotating the tyres like I suggest will mean you'll never develop the drone.
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: madstaff on 17 May 2021, 11:52
Always put new rubber to the rear, as understeer (from worn front tyres) is a whole lot easier to deal with compared to oversteer (from worn rear tyres).
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: JP2021 on 25 May 2021, 20:25
Sorry to respond to these posts late, but I hope to get this annoying sound sorted this weekend. Does anyone have a specific YouTube clip that shows the process well?
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: JP2021 on 25 May 2021, 20:36
Sorry again, I've a busy weekend fixing the fuel flap and hopefully the whirring sound..... Referring to the whirring sound, my tyres and tracking have been confirmed as fine, so the next prime suspect I guess is a wheel bearing. The thing is, I've jacked up the car and can't feel see any normal failed wheel bearing signs and it's impossible to definitely say which corner the sound is coming from. Any suggestions on where to go next, many people say it's been their nfs bearing, is this particularly prone to failure?
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: dervdave on 26 May 2021, 09:36
. The thing is, I've jacked up the car and can't feel see any normal failed wheel bearing signs and it's impossible to definitely say which corner the sound is coming from. Any suggestions on where to go next, many people say it's been their nfs bearing, is this particularly prone to failure?

Other than the noise there wasn`t any of the usual signs of a bad bearing, start by changing the most likely...NSF  :wink:
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: JP2021 on 26 May 2021, 15:14
NSR it is. I'll post the results once done! Thanks again for all the invaluable advise, this forum is such a useful source of information!
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: JP2021 on 28 May 2021, 21:33
I believe I may have found the issue causing my particular droning sound around 70mph. So, I called my local VW main dealer out of curiosity to get a price for diagnosis - £60 for 30 mins with their first availability being in 2 weeks. Then called my local do it all garage that I take my wife's 2007 Honda Jazz to when needing attention. They saw me the next morning, took it for a test drive and pointed me towards a buckled rear passenger side alloy, and the cost for this £0! I have a video of the wheel in question where you can most definitely see the buckle as it spins (unfortunately can't attach it to this post), what are the thoughts of the forum on this being the cause of the droning noise - has to be the culprit doesn't it?
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: dervdave on 29 May 2021, 12:30
I doubt it but easy to confirm by using your spare  :smiley:
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: madstaff on 29 May 2021, 13:00
Easy to eliminate by changing that wheel, but I would imagine if a buckled wheel was making a noise it would be a rhythmic "bump, bump, bump"

A drone/hum type noise is normally indicative of a wheel bearing.

Does it get any noiser when going round bends??
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: Watts on 29 May 2021, 17:34
If you have hit something hard enough to buckle the wheel, it could be that the bearing has gone too. It happened to my MK7.
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: JP2021 on 04 December 2021, 19:10
Whirring Update!

After almost giving up on my well documented whirring sound that appears to emanate from the rear of my 2013 GTi PP manual at 70mph, I believe I’ve found the issue.

Inspiration came from a recent episode of Wheeler Dealers where mention was made of a harmonic damper that reduces sounds caused by resonance, specifically in chassis and suspension. With this in mind and some surfing the forums, I stumbled across the posts made by ‘golfdave’ who is a mine of excellent information. He gives detailed information regarding a harmonic damper that is factory fitted to some Audi’s and has the mounting holes drilled into the Mk7 Golf chassis. I won’t go into further details, but please do view the thread as it explains everything very well.

So, I bought the harmonic damper from my local Audi dealership, fitted it which was simple and the whirring that’s been bugging me for months is reduced to almost nothing, still slightly audible but so much better!
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: JMS on 05 December 2021, 08:20
Please could you share the link to the thread?

You have given me hope! :smiley:

I’ve still got the noise even though I’ve changed wheels & tyres.
The damper sounds a cheaper troubleshooting fix than wheel bearings!

Cheers
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: SRGTD on 05 December 2021, 08:40
Please could you share the link to the thread?

You have given me hope! :smiley:

I’ve still got the noise even though I’ve changed wheels & tyres.
The damper sounds a cheaper troubleshooting fix than wheel bearings!

Cheers

Other forum members have also fitted the harmonic damper - use the advanced search function; search on ‘harmonic’ and restrict your search to the mk7 forum board.

Here’s the link to golfdave’s thread over on golfmk7.com forum;

https://www.golfmk7.com/forums/index.php?threads/how-to-retro-fit-the-rear-subframe-harmonic-damper-from-the-audi-a3-saloon-2013.369369/
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: JMS on 06 December 2021, 11:00
Thanks
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: Sootchucker on 06 December 2021, 12:17
Over the last 18 months or so, I've retro fitted the Harmonic Dampener, the exhaust forward under cover, the exhaust rear undercover, the rear wishbone covers (spoilers) and the extended front engine underside splash shield. I'm not sure if any or all of them contribute to sound reduction, but if I have the artificial noise generator set to Eco at 70mph in the driver profile setup, then my GTI is commendably quiet (even on the not so quiet original Pirelli P6 tyres) at typical motorway speeds. Only those horrible concrete sections of the motorway spoil the quietness (but I guess that would be the same in any car) ?

In fact, I would say it's quieter at motorway speeds than the Audi A4 and Jaguar XF we have as pool cars that i drove recently, and much quieter that the company's BMW X1 pool car.
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: JMS on 06 December 2021, 12:52
Sootchucker- did you have the cyclical droning that only comes between 65-75mph and is not present at other speeds before your mods?

My soundaktor is turned off with VCDS, and the noise is still there  :undecided: Even with my winter wheels & tyres on, it’s still there. My Indy can hear it but is adamant it’s not a bearing, quite disappointed they didn’t know about the harmonic damper. I still haven’t ruled out the bearing personally.

Looks like a simple DIY, so I think I’ll wait until it’s warmer then fit one.
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: Sootchucker on 06 December 2021, 15:10
To be honest, no I didn't (or at least didn't notice it if it was there) ?
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: golfdave on 23 December 2021, 16:59
Whirring Update!

After almost giving up on my well documented whirring sound that appears to emanate from the rear of my 2013 GTi PP manual at 70mph, I believe I’ve found the issue.

Inspiration came from a recent episode of Wheeler Dealers where mention was made of a harmonic damper that reduces sounds caused by resonance, specifically in chassis and suspension. With this in mind and some surfing the forums, I stumbled across the posts made by ‘golfdave’ who is a mine of excellent information. He gives detailed information regarding a harmonic damper that is factory fitted to some Audi’s and has the mounting holes drilled into the Mk7 Golf chassis. I won’t go into further details, but please do view the thread as it explains everything very well.

So, I bought the harmonic damper from my local Audi dealership, fitted it which was simple and the whirring that’s been bugging me for months is reduced to almost nothing, still slightly audible but so much better!

Glad you found that it reduced some of the noise from the back of the car..!!
Title: Re: Droning noise at 70mph...
Post by: golfdave on 23 December 2021, 17:01
Over the last 18 months or so, I've retro fitted the Harmonic Dampener, the exhaust forward under cover, the exhaust rear undercover, the rear wishbone covers (spoilers) and the extended front engine underside splash shield. I'm not sure if any or all of them contribute to sound reduction, but if I have the artificial noise generator set to Eco at 70mph in the driver profile setup, then my GTI is commendably quiet (even on the not so quiet original Pirelli P6 tyres) at typical motorway speeds. Only those horrible concrete sections of the motorway spoil the quietness (but I guess that would be the same in any car) ?

In fact, I would say it's quieter at motorway speeds than the Audi A4 and Jaguar XF we have as pool cars that i drove recently, and much quieter that the company's BMW X1 pool car.

Working your way through my mods list I see... :nerd:

What annoys me is that the parts are there at the factory for this car & due to penny pinching they decided NOT to fit....if they did fit them the cost on the showroom SRP would be minimal, but the car would be better!!..