woo woo

[BHunted]

About a week ago, started hearing a woo-woo sound coming from the tires. Checked for stones in the threads, nothing major. Checked tire pressure, only slightly off. The noise seemed to have calmed but not totally eliminated. There is only about 3200 miles on the factory tires...... Any thoughts as what s causing this? I've read some causes and uneven tire wear, wheel bearings, etc... Find it hard to believe so early on. I don't beat on my truck and it really hasn't been off-roading yet. Just typical every day driving..

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[BHunted]

Doesn't quite sound like that....

 

[NOVA_Ranger]

no doubt this is your problem

Ford accidentally pumped this into the speakers rather than engine noise? Will there be a recall?

 

[Lunchbox88]

Whistle tips?

 

[Chrisalford]

There were not any blue flashing lights in the rear view mirror??

 

[Anthony]

Have you added anything to the exterior of your truck lately? It could be wind noise from an accessory.

 

[HenryMac]

I's suggest rotating the tires and see if that helps. I rotate ours every 4,000 miles. On our previous truck, Tacoma TRD, if you didn't rotate them ever 4,000 miles they'd start talking to you. We had Hankook AT M's on it also.

 

[P. A. Schilke]

About a week ago, started hearing a woo-woo sound coming from the tires. Checked for stones in the threads, nothing major. Checked tire pressure, only slightly off. The noise seemed to have calmed but not totally eliminated. There is only about 3200 miles on the factory tires...... Any thoughts as what s causing this? I've read some causes and uneven tire wear, wheel bearings, etc... Find it hard to believe so early on. I don't beat on my truck and it really hasn't been off-roading yet. Just typical every day driving..

Hi John,

Weird. ? From my experience when tires suddenly start making an unusual noise, something like the belts shifting has occurred..not always, but I would recommend taking the Ranger to a trusted tire shop for analysis. You might be able to start by jacking up each end of the vehicle and rotating the tire by hand and examine the tread to see if there is a shift in a portion of the tire. If they all run true...not sure what would cause such tire noise... Better to get it checked so you are not on the side of the road with a shredded tire. Though I have seen tires shift belts a few times in my Ford career, the tires were usually prototypes of a new model tire.

Good luck!

Best,
Phil Schilke
Ranger Vehicle Engineering
Ford Motor Co. Retired

 

[BHunted]

Just got back from Ford. Mechanic and I took it for a ride. He could hear nothing and while usually louder, I could barely hear it. Tires have no uneven wear, etc... nothing new has been added.
One of those when the doctor is in stories...
Tomorrow I may go in for an oil change and have them rotate out the tires... we shall see.
Thanks for the useful tips guys... You other clowns? Suck my tip...

 

[Lunchbox88]

Just got back from Ford. Mechanic and I took it for a ride. He could hear nothing and while usually louder, I could barely hear it. Tires have no uneven wear, etc... nothing new has been added.
One of those when the doctor is in stories...
Tomorrow I may go in for an oil change and have them rotate out the tires... we shall see.
Thanks for the useful tips guys... You other clowns? Suck my tip...

All in good fun man, sorry your mechanic wasnt able to diagnose it for you.

Reference about the whistle tips:

 

[Texasota]

Hi John,

Weird. ? From my experience when tires suddenly start making an unusual noise, something like the belts shifting has occurred..not always, but I would recommend taking the Ranger to a trusted tire shop for analysis. You might be able to start by jacking up each end of the vehicle and rotating the tire by hand and examine the tread to see if there is a shift in a portion of the tire. If they all run true...not sure what would cause such tire noise... Better to get it checked so you are not on the side of the road with a shredded tire. Though I have seen tires shift belts a few times in my Ford career, the tires were usually prototypes of a new model tire.

Good luck!

Best,
Phil Schilke
Ranger Vehicle Engineering
Ford Motor Co. Retired

Come on, Phil! I'm needing a back story. You let me down.

 

[HenryMac]

Tire pressures correct?

 

[rang19ca]

That is a strange sound for tires to make. It does sound like tires though. Many years ago I bought a new truck that the dealer had installed aggressive off road tires on, before I bought it, and they were really LOUD. They howled on the highway and eventually I replaced them with all terrain tires.

 

[P. A. Schilke]

That is a strange sound for tires to make. It does sound like tires though. Many years ago I bought a new truck that the dealer had installed aggressive off road tires on, before I bought it, and they were really LOUD. They howled on the highway and eventually I replaced them with all terrain tires.

Hi Chuck,

Wife and I walk almost every morning, We encounter some vehicle traffic on our walk to the Copper Mine may miles up the road. The miners with their MACHO trucks with their big honking tires are heard way before we see them... Noise inside the cab must be enough to require ear protection. Tire noise in the aftermarket is a big problem and never addressed here to my knowledge.

I used to participate with customer experiences where we Ford Engineers were on the hot seat so to speak. Many trucks with complaints of interior noise had aggressive, over sized tires. So the take away is that when you put new tires on the truck...you might be disappointed with the increased tire noise. Just my experience.

Best,
Phil Schilke
Ranger Vehicle Engineering
Ford Motor Co. Retired

 

[JimJa]

Tires can be weird. I would suggest to not rotate tires in an "X," only front to rear. Given the road crown, think about what happens to the belt when the tires are rotated in an X. Tires will take a "set" after a few heat cycles and the belts adjust to the crown. By Xing them you are asking the belt to move to the opposite side of the tire. It's not much but can cause issues with vibration that comes and goes.

Now, even with the above paragraph, in your case I would suggest trying to first swap the front tires side-to-side. If that doesn't work, return the tires to their original side and try the rears. If the sound goes away leave the tires in that position and rotate front to rear in the future.

Sometimes tires are out of round. Jack up one end, hold an object like a screw drive and turn the wheel. there should be no change in the gap between the screwdriver and tire.

In the early '90s Ford had systemic vibration with the Explorer. In '94 they added several "fixes," none of which worked. I owned a '92 with this vibration. I finally fixed by having the tires shaved. Two of the four were out of round 1/4" but it was enough to impart a very annoying vibration.

Tire noise can be very annoying. Good luck.

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