Was just going to replace a rear wheel bearing on Octavia II est 1.8 tsi 1Z5 (130K miles) when I read this forum about tyres that can cause the rumble.With the wheel off the hub seemed okay.

I have had three tyres ruined by pot holes over the winter so now have two new matched Michelins up front with a Pirelli and Firestone at back it rumbled a little .I put the a spare Michelin in place of the Firestone and no rumble.

Question is :-

is it a fault in the car spoiling the tyres ?

Is it a bad tyre mix on a sensitive chassis ?

Do  I chuck two legal tyres and buy a pair of michelins and keep out of the pot holes ?

I am not used to writing in Forums so I maybe have put this in the wrong place , any help will be greatly received .

Thanks Keith

This is probably as good a place as any of the sub forums and it gets quite a wide readership.

 

Nothing wrong with the info and questions in your post.

 

I would say mixed tyres with differing tread and compounds is never a good start for problems like these.   Also, at 130k miles, rear wheel bearings probably not a bad place to start even if they still seem ok on static testing. Once under load and temp and pressure their performance might be different.

 

If it was me, I'd probably replace rear wheel bearings and if still problems a new set of matched rear tyres....

Whilst this is by far a non divinitive answer it's my experience, when I test drove my Octavia way back in July '14 with 49k showing I would have laid money on one or both rear wheel bearings grumbling, selling dealer said fine he'd sort this so deal was done, next day he phoned, spoke to my wife stating that there was no issues with the bearings but both rear tyres were enevenly worn " sawtooth ?? " may have been the term ? my wife told him " fine two new tyres should sort that " tyres, much to our surprise were indeed fitted issue resolved .........

Most likley rear wheel alignment, sticking new tyres on wont sort the problem long term, rear wheels need aligning/checking.

 

Personally I'd go for a 4 wheel laser alignment.

 

 

Edited 12 June, 20179 yr by Auric Goldfinger

not an exclusive skoda problem. my daughters 207 pug had a monotonous "bearing" drone from the rear. even my local trusted independant commented it would need doing. then i replaced both rear tyres which werent matched (they werent that low, but i could see the sidewalls were starting to show minute cracks) and drone immediately vanished.

 

Well thank you all for your time and advice I will have a think tonight .

 

Regards Keith

It will probably be tyres. You can run your hand round the tread. If it feels uneven or bumpy then it's probably the cause. Over the years the tyres on the back may collapse a little causing the noise. 

Keith,

easiest option, swap front and rear wheels, if no change quite likely not the tyres, if noise goes take car to tyre fitters and get them to check and advise, make sure if you haven't swapped wheels back ( to be fair I would it should make an audible ' check me ' notification ) you tell the fitters so !!

Yes I had this on our Polo 9n.

The rear tyres had a feathered/saw tooth/uneven wear pattern which was causing an almost wheel bearingy type noise,I put 2 new tyres on the front and put the 2 half worn  ex front tyres on the back - result - no noise

I have been told it could be due to the design/type  of bushes fitted somewhere in the rear suspension which allows the wheels to 'steer' slightly,I do not know if the octy has similar suspension design but suspect it prob does.

I'd a similar issue with my car where just about a year after buying it developed a terrible rumble on the back and I was convinced it was the bearings, according to the paper work with it they'd both not been long replace though,  so after reading the forums on here I decided to try a 4 wheel Hunter alignment ...

 

At the tyre station the 2 rear tyres where in an awful state on the inside edges and alignment out by a country mile ... Two new tyres and alignment sorted and the difference was like night and day and the car handled better into the bargain ... 

Rear tyres are probably saw-toothed on inside edge due to alignment.

 

You need a 4 wheel alignment with the rear cambers set as upright as possible (-0.5 to -0.75) and minimum toe-in.

 

Then your choice is to continue to run the mismatched tyres on the rear until they are bald (that will take forever) or put them on the front and drive like a larrikin until they are bald (probably not a great idea) or throw them away while they still have tread on them.

 

long term, you should be doing a cross rotation every 10,000km.