[rjkrej]

I have an 04 AWD with 40K miles. Today my wife was driving over a rough road that was under repair, and afterwards she noticed a "thumping" sound from the front end. It sounded like bad spot in one of the tires. I looked it over when I came home this evening and did not noticed anything wrong with the tires. No damage on the underside. I took it for a short drive and the sound is speed sensitive. I put it in neutral and the sound was still there. It seems like a bad wheel bearing or maybe something worse, like transfer case related. No evidence of leakage anywhere. Any thoughts on what I might be in for? I bought the extended warranty, thank God. Any help would be appreciated. Bob

 

[njjoe]

rjkrej-

My guess would be a bad wheel bearing or a damaged tire. The warranty would cover the bearing but not the tire.

-njjoe

 

[Tyler_Canada]

That pretty much exactly describes what happened to me. Transfer case failed, but I wasn't under warranty. Get it to a dealer and good luck.

 

[Gonzo]

Silly question but when you looked at the tires did you look for something stuck in the tread?

 

[rjkrej]

I had time to check out this problem closer today, and it turns out that two lug nuts on the front driver side wheel were very loose! They must of loosen up after my wife drove over the rough road! I tightened them up and no more "thumping" noise! I am surprised that driving over rough pavement was able to loosen two lugnuts. I will have to keep checking these from time to time.