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Bad Luck and Driving Noise

2K views 11 replies 5 participants last post by  graywolfman 
#1 ·
So I have a quick question, but it will need a bit of history...

Previously: Bought my STi from a dealer. Everything was great until I took it in for the first service. I have the alignment checked and done, oil change completed as well. I get it back and the alignment is off a bit. Watch the dashcam footage, and the guy's girlfriend shows up and distracts him. Take it back, don't mention the girlfriend thing, but they re-do it for free... and I get it back and watch my dash cam footage... the guy drives it up against a sloped curb and turns the wheel against it 8x while saying "I don't give a f***." Then they 're-do' the alignment.

A few months later I end up hitting some unavoidable road debris on the interstate at around 60 mph at 5am... very unhappy. It jars the car enough to screw up my dash cam, so I couldn't even see what it was. It's still completely driveable, but then I got slight road noise while driving above 55 mph and it pulls. I take it somewhere else that I've had luck with before, they do the alignment and say everything else looked fine.

The alignment machine print-out shows it's within specs, as far as I know. Then I drive to the nearest tire shop and have my free balance/rotation done...

Currently: I'm still getting road noise above 55 mph, and when I turn while travelling near those speeds it gets a bit louder as well. Anything below 55 and I can't hear it. I also get a very slight pull to toward the driver's side above 55 mph, otherwise the pull is unnoticeable.

What would be the best bet causing this problem? Hub bearings? Tweaked CV-Joint? I am weary to take it somewhere and have them guess before I check it out. Problem is, I work 12 hour shifts, so I get to work in the dark and don't get off until twilight, so.... yeah. My days off are valuable and I would like to get it fixed ASAP.

Any ideas?

Thanks in advance!!
 
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#2 ·
Research, maybe posting in your local NASIOC chapter asking about a reputable, local mom & pop alignment shop. My experience with these types of places is you have a very knowledgeable owner keeping a keen watch on his employees, but not always, that's why he has to be there working in the garage, maybe with his wife at the cashier. Offer to pay cash, and have him go through the car, it may be more than one thing.
 
#3 ·
Thanks for the advice, I'm leaning toward Hub bearings. Took the temp of my rotors at the hub and the driver's side was 6° warmer after about 7 minutes of sitting, plus I could smell the tire slightly. Also would explain the slight pull even though the alignment is a-ok. Have to check soon.
 
#4 ·
Wow can't believe someone would treat a car like that when your paying them good money. Well I can believe it, just sucks it happened to your car. Id show that footage to the manager of the alignment shop. What an asshole. I'm sure that guy didn't help your current situation. Id say get it to a mom and pop subaru or alignment shop. Could be a lot of things. There are a lot of suspension components behind that wheel. Good luck man. I've had nothing but bad luck with the repair/alignment chains. Bunch of no talent grease monkeys. End rant.
 
#5 ·
Hah, funny story (not really that funny) actually I showed the dealer the footage of their tech doing that. They apologized profusely, had the damaged rim repaired by a 3rd party, and I had the alignment done at a mom and pop shop that I trust and have had very good experiences with. Then the dealer had their "legal council" contact me to "give [me] a heads-up" that they were contacting the police and reporting me for eavesdropping. After speaking with a detective four times over the phone, I told him I used the dash cam footage to prove damage, and that they worked on it even after they were aware it was in the car, so it was all dropped. I'm done with that dealer forever. I don't care if they have my exact dream car in the future.

Also, my car is new enough and I have low enough miles (28,600~) that the wheel bearings failing would be under warranty, so a different dealer, that I've had really great experiences with, is going to check out the car for me. I should find out what the issue is Wednesday morning. If it is the bearings, it's on the side that didn't hit any road debris, so it should be covered. If not, oh well, I'll pay for the dealer to do the work so it's still warrantied, done correctly, and I support a decent, upstanding dealer's shop.
 
#6 ·
It's not uncommon to damage struts, axles and lower control arms in an impact like you describe. If you have a shop nearby that races STi's I'd have them look at it. Racers have seen all kinds of suspension abuse...
 
#8 ·
That's exactly why I bought it. I had an unmolested 2007 OBP STi with 60,000 on it when the front end was ripped off by a lady speeding through an intersection, and no one stuck around to be a witness, so they gave me the ticket for taking the right of way illegally. Extremely unhappy about the car, ticket, and insurance hike. So I bought a dash cam, and look what it's saved me! Already avoided rim repair and alignment costs. Also let a dealer know about a terrible tech!

So, to be fair, the detective assigned the case said "I believe it's your car, and you should be able to record whatever you want, but I have to speak to the DA about this." I guarantee it was only because it was a large business with what is probably a team of lawyers. The DA said they would never prosecute, even if the charges were filed, so they didn't even formally submit them, thankfully.

Thank you guys for the advice and replies! I took it in to another dealer (one that I trust and have had great luck with before). They put it on a lift, ran it at the speed the noise was becoming very loud, used an automotive stethoscope, and found it was the front wheel/hub bearings (they checked them all). It was under warranty - 5-year 60,000 miles, go Subaru! - so it has been fixed. Already noticing better gas mileage, a quieter ride, and better handling response.

I have also purchased stickers that say "WARNING Audio & Video Surveillance on Duty at All Times". It's quite large, so I'm cutting it down to "Audio and Video Surveillance on Duty" and I'm going to place on on the lower windshield so it's visible from the interior. Then no one can say they didn't know, that it was eavesdropping, or try anything crazy.

Thanks again!
 
#10 ·
hey not to go off topic, just wondering which dash cam you are using and how exactly it works? Does it just activate when keys are in the ignition?

thanks for the info.

sorry to hear about all the troubles you've experienced, sounds pretty shitty. Hope you get your steering issues worked out.

FYI, when I had a bad wheel bearing (which I diagnosed myself and told the dealer to change under warranty - and they did), it would make a kind of cyclical vibration noise on one side, when I turned one way the sound would go away, turning the wheel the other way (and putting weight on it) and the sound would get slightly worse. Also only really made noise above 80ish km/h
 
#12 ·
Hah yeah it works pretty well. One of the cheaper ones, there is an issue where when it gets warm it sags, you just use a small piece of paper as a spacer. I have the EPrance Mini 0801 (1080p), but they now have an 0803 with higher res and better low light. Check out the discussions and stuff at dashcamtalk forums for a bunch of dash cams, I use it for lots of info and troubleshooting http://dashcamtalk.com/forum. It is just set to start when the key is turned on, but they have battery backups and a motion detector setting, so you can wire it up how you want. It comes with a cigarette lighter adapter for simplicity.
 
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