Will replacing struts improve wheel noise?
 

I have a great deal of wheel-noise on my 08 accord. I was sure it was a balance issue but the guys at firestone are telling me my struts need to be replaced; the tires are wearing unevenly which is causing the noise.

If i go ahead and swap out the struts can I expect the noise to improve, either right away or over time or am I going to need to replace the tires as well?

thanks!

My first guess is that you are hearing the result of a lack of tire rotation and nothing more. As for swapping out your struts, unless they are leaking (visible oil on the outside of the strut), or if they don't attenuate bumps well (does your car continue to rock after hitting a bump or when you deliberately rock the car), then they're operating properly.

no leaking oil on front struts, but i have had the tires rotated regularly... the noise is definitely coming from them as it's worse up front now that they've been rotated. that suggests to me that the rear tires are wearing unevenly....hence the firestone people claiming the struts are bad.

or do you think they're taking me for a ride?

Honda struts are very reliable and we don't see many cases of failed struts. I would ask for a 2nd opinion. Unless some indications of failure, you will get no improvement w/ a new set of struts.

Have anti-sway bushings/links been examined for looseness. These frequently fail on many models and will cause noise when loose.

good luck

thanks all - i will definitely take it in, probably to Honda directly!

Keep in mind that until the tires are replaced, you're going to be hearing from your tires.

yeah...i was hoping maybe over time that would go away but it sounds like new tires are in my future.

i was thinking i could swap out the tires with another accord just to see if the noise goes away but that wouldn't really tell me much...

Yes, that will tell you if it IS tire noise. Say you have wheel bearing noise together with tire noise. We can't hear it firsthand, so if you swap tires for a test it'll tell you which part of the noise is caused by the tires.

exactly...but i'm pretty sure that the problem is tire noise. for one thing it got "worse" when i rotated them. so probably just closer to my ear, you know?

i'm sure enough that i'm not sure it's worth the effort anyway

If the tires are wearing unevenly that should be an alignment issue. If the tires are bad enough you will need to replace them in order to silence the noise. Is it high pitched noise? Does it get worse as speed increases? If so it could be a wheel bearing. Had a bad one on my 2010 Civic