Low humming/rumble after 38 mph. CVT problem???

Karasu · Sun Jun 16, 2013 3:31 am

I found a video with the noise I am hearing in my Kizashi:

I also noticed that when driving into a road dip the noise can be heard more clearly. As I said before, Shifting the weight of the car to the left or right does not make a difference in the sound but driving through a sudden dip makes it more audible.

Mon Jun 17, 2013 12:16 pm

I don't know....wheel balance would be the first, and cheapest thing to verify as you said. After that, short of a serious trans problem the only other thing I can think of that would rumble like that and change w/ speed, up front, would be CV joints or the Trans's output shaft bearing(s). Your car has 29,000 miles on it. Can't speak about Suzuki in Mexico, but in the states, the car would still be under the bumper to bumper warranty and if it were mine, I'd be at the dealer demanding a resolution. If they can't diagnose it correctly, then tell them they'll need to start replacing parts until it is corrected. I had to raise hell like that w/ my Jeep for a driveline noise I thought to be coming from the transfer case....it was, and they replaced it. (It's best to raise that type of hell when the service department is full of customers). good luck and keep us up to date if you will.

Karasu · Mon Jun 17, 2013 4:59 pm

I already took it to the dealership and they said the new cvt programming would solve the noise issue. It did not. They did not even drive it at the speed necessary to reproduce the problem so I think they just assumed that would make it. The warranty in Mexico is for 3 years or 60,000 km. I was just out of warranty when I took it to the dealership. Unfortunately, customer protection here is not as good as in the US. I will take the car to the dealership again and ask them to perform a thorough check this time. I will keep you up to date.

Fri Jun 28, 2013 12:11 am

Any updates on the diagnosis?

twoqttsdad · Fri Jun 28, 2013 2:58 am

Just adding a possibility.

Excessive heel and toe wear on tires is a common cause of road noise but it depends on the tire.

Karasu · Fri Jun 28, 2013 5:57 am

twoqttsdad:
Thanks for the advice. The 4 tires are brand new, so I doubt there is a trouble with the tires. The will be aligned tomorrow to rule out a possible aligment problem.

Ronzuki: If wheel aligment does not make any difference, I´m going to order the front wheel bearing hub from the US.
I have a hunch that it may be the problem. I have read in several forums that the new kind of bearings that are enclosed in a hub most of the time don´t show any play at all and most mechanics look for that as a sign. If I order it I should be receiving it in about two weeks. Tomorrow I will update the status about aligment.

Karasu · Tue Jul 02, 2013 4:11 am

Hi Everyone,
Quick update: The car was aligned and checked at the dealership. Huge improvement. The humming noise was greatly reduced. It is almost not there, while before aligment it was easy to hear it from 60 km/h and on. Now I´m wondering if what I hear is just normal noise. I´m really paranoid and I want my car to be in perfect shape. I noticed that when driving on straights the car just hums a little if there is a sudden road dip (barely audible) and when turning. I have not driven the car enough to come to a conclusion but I´ll keep you posted. I think I am still going to order the front bearing and rule out that as well if I´m not convinced the noise is gone.

Tue Jul 02, 2013 3:33 pm

Karasu wrote:twoqttsdad:
Thanks for the advice. The 4 tires are brand new, so I doubt there is a trouble with the tires.

I wouldn't bet on that as being true. I had a set of Scorpian A/Ts on our suburban that could NEVER be properly balanced. Four trys at 2 different shops. The wobble/vibe problems that were not there before those tires were installed went away when the tires wore out and were replaced.

I'm taking my new set of Generals back for a re-balance as soon as I get a chance. I am getting a slight 'wobble' sound (not a feeling) that's starting to become more noticeable. If left alone I'm sure I'll start to feel it. I have no doubt it's the tires/balance.

Karasu · Tue Jul 02, 2013 4:38 pm

I wouldn't bet on that as being true.

Thanks Ronzuki.

I meant the tires were not abnormally worn because they are brand new but I did not say they could not be the culprit.

As I said in my previous post, the noise I was hearing was greatly reduced by the aligment.

twoqttsdad · Tue Jul 02, 2013 6:57 pm

Maybe going for a test drive in another Kizashi to compare road noise would help?

What kind of tires are you running now?