front end high pitched scraping sound... i'm stumped!

thegoldnugget · Post by **thegoldnugget** » Mon Jul 09, 2007 7:35 pm

okay. (84 4wd wagon) so for the past few months my car has been making a high pitched scraping sound that seems to come from the left front, although it's tough to pinpoint. it's not constant, and will come and ago when i hit bumps. it does not stop when i hit the brakes. i took the wheel and brakes off today, checked things out. nothing obvious. brakes are good, no spots where metal has been rubbing. wheel bearing? hopefully not something worse. thanks!

nathan

takza · Post by **takza** » Tue Jul 10, 2007 4:11 am

Probably the shield behind the rotor? Just turn the wheel so you can get to it and pull the shield away from the rotor.

Or it could be the brake pad warning thingy that is supposed to screech to tell you your pad is worn.

Post by **Petros** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 8:53 pm

you did not say, but I presume it only happens when the car is moving so it is not likely from the engine.

Sometimes oil can contaminate the brakes and it will make a scraping sound. Also check the brake pads are not worn out (they are cheap, get the low cost organic type if you replace them). Sometimes the metallic ones always make a bad scraping sound. Also could be bearing, it has to pressed off the spindle, though you can ususaly drive this until it gets so bad you KNOW It is the wheel bearing. You can save some money by taking the strut out of the car and take it to a repair shop that will charge you a nominal fee to press off the old bearing and press on the new one. Otherwise it is a pretty costly repair.