Sokda Octavia Wheel Droning

[Rudge]

Hi All,

 

My gripe is with the DRONING NOISE from my newly purchased, 2010 SKODA OCTAVIA ESTATE.  Having brought the car from a reputable used (but high mileage) car dealer I thought this 64K MILE 1.9TDI would be the perfect car for the newly enlarged family.

 

During my first journey to work I noticed what can only be described as an annoying ‘PULSATING DRONE’ (not just a rubble) coming from the wheels which is really distinct and loud at 40MPH.  As I’d only had it a few days I contacted the dealer who recommended their pet garage to take a look.  Expecting a tyre or wheel bearing change I was gob smacked to hear a NEW GEARBOX was required.  Five days later I got my car back with a reconditioned gearbox and the SAME PROBLEM.

 

Straight back to the garage a few days later for a swap of wheels front to back (new for older) together with WHEEL BALANCING AND THE NOISE WAS PRETTY MUCH THE SAME.

 

Back to the garage again, convinced wheel bearings were definitely the cause and the garage carried out a TEST WITH ANOTHER OCTAVIA (borrowed from the same dealer) by completely SWAPPING ALL FOUR WHEELS and discovered the NOISE WAS SLIGHTLY REDUCED although not completely gone.

 

The NOISE IS UNFORTUNATELY STILL THERE and as bad as ever after having my wheels back and two new rear tyres.  I’ve been ASSURED IT IS JUST TYRE WEAR NOISE, A QUIRK OF SKODA OCTAVIA’S and is nothing untoward. I need to just ignore it and crank up the radio.

 

I’ve now CONTACTED A LOCAL SKODA DEALER who confirmed they have experienced this DRONING PROBLEM on a number of other Octavias and put it down to UNEVEN TYRE WEAR ON THE INNER EDGE OF REAR TYRES’.  Apparently the rear wheels can’t be realigned.

 

I now have two new rear tyres, to go with the reconditioned gearbox and balanced wheels all on the warranty.  I can’t fault the customer service of the garage where I brought the car and the efforts of the repair garage (I think!?), although I doubt I would have brought the car if I’d heard the noise on the test drive.

 

Finally, just to set my mind to rest once and for all it’s GOING INTO SKODA for a road test on Monday for a final check by those who should know if what I’m hearing is normal.  Hopefully then my wife will stop rolling her eyes when I mention the car.

 

If anyone can be of any further assistance or had the same issue I would be pleased to hear from you.

 

The End (now i feel better)!

 

(from a really fed up Octavia driver)

 

[Huskoda]

You need full hunter 4 wheel alignment. Whoever told you the rear wheels can't be aligned is telling you rubbish. Its a common problem with almost all Octavia IIs.

 

If you run your hand on the inside edge of the rear wheels, you will feel its smooth in one direction and stepped in the other, that is a common symptom of misalignment and is called sawtoothing.

 

Note, it needs to be proper alignment, not just the adjustment in toe most places will do for cheap, go here and you will see a list of local places that have the necessary equipment: http://www.alignmycar.co.uk/location/?postal_code=Halesowen&radius=50&x=-529&y=-407

 

Also, a Skoda dealer will almost certainly *not* fix it as, staggeringly, I believe their specifications aren't the correct ones and your wheels will be 'in tolerance' as far as they're concerned.

[2Kittys]

+1 ^

 

Bearings worth checking too, I had a bearing rumbling at 40K.

 

Hunter Alignment check made the biggest difference!

[bripete]

yes aim the same all new tyres 4 wheel alignment the chap said your tyres should wear better now i said why he said because it was all out. so we shall see  now just see how long it takes for the nosie to come back i hope it don't

does this happen on the new octavias would be nice to now if they have the same problem as the old ones pete

[kris1]

When they say the wheels can't be aligned, what they mean is they don't know how to do it.

It needs doing by a specialist who actually understands how to make the required adjustments. It's worth noting that even if you have them aligned now, you will still get a droning noise as the tyres are already damaged. Best time to do it is when you get new tyres fitted.

[Rudge]

Thanks all.  Wheel alignment is the only thing left before going down the bearings route.  I thought the garage might have done that as one of the first things.  Let's hope the warranty pays for it too!

[Sarge]

For further background info on this issue have a wee search as there are several wheel alignment/ tyre wear threads in the Octy II section.

I had a saga with my brand new vRS but Skoda did eventually contribute to cost of sorting it.

Sarge.

[Defenderben]

I find that generally Octavia's are quite a noisey place to be, my hatchback vRS transmits a lot of road noise not droning though, probably because of lowish profile tyres etc.

I had a brand new estate, not a vRS, so it had reasonably fat/high sided tyres, the other day and not sure if it is because of the larger open area behind of an estate but found that to be just as noisy at times depending on the road surface.

Obviously what you are describing has been given the correct advice to hopefully rectify above by others.

[nickguzzi]

As already mentioned, Octavias can be pretty noisy.  The incorrect settings from the factory on earlier cars causes the tyres to wear more on the inside edge, but also unevenly.  This causes the sawtoothing of the inside edge, which then causes the drone.  This was fairly common across all the mk5 golf platform Vag vehicles.

There is a revised rear suspension setting - and they are adjustable until corrosion seizes the top link.  Most Skoda dealers apparantly outsource the job, the results can be hit & miss. 

There are quite a few specialists who can do this with sufficient accuracy for it to be worthwhile.  As mentioned, best done alongside new tyres.  The improvement is not just an elimination of droning, your car will feel so much better to drive.

Wheel bearing failure is not unheard of, but nothing like as common as incorrect suspension setup.

[Aspman]

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/286466-sawtoothing/

 

Pretty commong on some vags with some tyres. Octys and passats especially.

[Rudge]

I've Just got back from a Skoda road test and they've said there's nothing unusual with the noise I've got (although getting it up to 40 mph in traffic was quite difficult).

 

I think i'll get the 4 wheel alignment done anyway and hope it improves it slightly!

 

Cheers all.

[Aspman]

If the tyres are trashed it will remain after the alignment.

[Morley]

I have been experiencing similar problems. I have had this car for 2 years when in March this year I took my 2007 petrol vRS in for its MOT. The guy doing the MOT rang me and said I needed two new rear tyres. They were worn through the rubber to expose the steel reinforcing and canvas on the inside edges. The nearside tyre was worse than the offside. So I had 2 new tyres put on the front and the part worn (6mm) tyres from the front put on the rear. I then took the car back to the dealer I had bought the car from. They got the wheel alignment checked/adjusted by a local specialist and put the issue down to pot holes.

 

3 months later I was aware of increased road noise checked the tyres again. There was evidence that the tyres were wearing in the same way. The dealer got revised settings from Skoda and sent it back to have the alignment done again. Confident that the problem was now fixed and I had "caught" it in time and the tyres were still legal, I put up with the road noise.

 

The car went in for service 3/4 weeks ago and the tyre report didn't highlight any problems. On Friday I was aware that the tyre noise was increasing again. When I got home I inspected the tyres only to confirm my worst fears. The nearside rear tyre was still showing 1-2mm in places on the inner edge, but bald in patches and just starting to go through to the carcass. The only option was to replace both rear tyres on Saturday morning.

 

I don't really know what to do next. I am almost at the point of trading the car in for another, but don't want to experience the same issues if I get another Octavia. I guess I need to talk to the dealer again!

 

I bet the tyre fitters and 4 wheel alignment companies love Octavias:-)

Edited 2 September, 2013 by Morley

[Rudge]

Does it have to be Hunter 4 wheel alignment so long as it's all 4 wheels?

[Rudge]

Problem solved!!  A front wheel bearing.  Both changed and sounds and feels like a different car.

 

Cheers all.

[mrnobody]

We thought our droning noise was the wheel bearing, but some of the replies on this site led us to check the wear on the tyres.  One of the rear tyres was worn unevenly with ridges on the inside edge and uneven tread pattern.  Swapped out the offending tyre and problem solved.  Now to get the alignment sorted!

2009 Octavia diesel

[Guest]

A good method I've used in the past to check for front wheel bearing damage/wear is to jack up and axle stand both sides of the front of the car so both wheels can rotate freely.

Making sure the handbrake is on and rear wheels are chocked start engine and run car up through the gears.

With top gear engaged you should be able to get up to the speed where the noise is most noticeable without too much engine noise.

Wheel bearings that are bad are easy to detect in my experience, they sound like a WWII bomber droning away.

Make sure nobody's about when you conduct this test as dirt, stones etc trapped in the tyre tread and any dirt falling onto spinning tyre could fly off and cause injury.

[peterhr]

We thought our droning noise was the wheel bearing, but some of the replies on this site led us to check the wear on the tyres. One of the rear tyres was worn unevenly with ridges on the inside edge and uneven tread pattern. Swapped out the offending tyre and problem solved. Now to get the alignment sorted!

2009 Octavia diesel

Don't dally on this, I had a front track rod done ... the garage did a 4 wheel alingnment check and fixed the rear camber ... 700 miles later and in france I needed two new back tires and to get the geometry done again

Sent from my GT-P5110 using Tapatalk

Edited 25 May, 2014 by peterhr

[jackpos]

 From the workshop manual...

 

If droning noises occur while driving, the following must be observed.

 

Remove balancing nut and balancing washer (see attached image).

 

Afterwards unscrew if necessary the propshaft with the flexible disk from the flange of the Haldex coupling and screw on again OFFSET TO A HOLE.

 

If the droning noises can still be heard, the propshaft must be screwed on once again offset to a hole

 

[Sarge]

That quote appears to relate to 4x4 versions. The issues previously described are in relation to fwd models.

[Antoin]

I had a recent wheel noise issue with my Skoda Octavia 2010 1.6 TDI. 

When getting to speeds over 100 km/h on the Motorway, there was a louding humming noise, and some vibration felt in the brake / accelerator pedals. 

From my position in the drivers seat, the noise  sounded like it was coming from the rear of the car.

Also felt that the car was not "rolling" as well as it used to, ... there was some resistance to forward motion. 

Tried various fixes, including replacing some worn tyres ... which did not fix the issue.

A mechanic replaced some worn brake pads and disks ... issue still not fixed. 

Had been thinking it could be a wheel bearing from reading internet posts.

A work mechanic suggesting jacking up various wheels and rolling the wheels to listen for any "crackly / clicking" noises.

I did that, and did notice, when spinning the front RHS wheel, half a turn back and then half a turn forward, and repeating a few times, that there was a bit more "clicking noise" coming from that wheel compared to the other wheels. 

I took my workplace mechanic out in the car to hear the noise, ...he sat in the passenger seat and listened to the noise. and he felt confident it was very likely a wheel bearing issue, and very likely with the drivers side front wheel. 

Took the car to a private garage, who changed front RHS wheel bearing, and the issue is fully fixed, ... car is back to normal operation.

Detail above, might help someone else diagnose their "noise" issue. Glad I got it sorted. 

 

[kernowalan]

Rear tyre road noise solved MK 111 VRS

I know there are several threads here and of course there can be a variety of reasons.

Having an MoT advisory regarding the uneven rear tyre wear and being increasingly driven mad by the worn wheel bearing type noise my trusted non Skoda garage and local tyre fitters have solved my issues.

At 33k and almost 4 years old rubber the original bridgestones were no longer round. This is a well know problem with the original fittment tyres which with age get hard and start to behave like 50p pieces.

I found all the advice have about wheel alignment, wrong factory specifications etc.  to be a red herrring although understandable as wear was most pronounced on the outside of both rear wheels. The tyre fitters 4wheel alignment check was well within tolerance and I was not charged as adjustment was not required.

Lessons learnt for me

Don’t buy bridgestones.

Your local independents are better than any main dealer.