Hello,
I was driving my rx today and I heard a weird noise. I will admit that the Goodyear Fortera tires are noisy so the sound may be present for a while but I noticed it today. I just left my driveway and I could hear from the rear tires, I believe the passenger's rear tire, a thud thud thud noise. The sound disappeared after a few minutes. But when I left the mall after the car has been stopped for a while a repeat performance. It appears that it only happens when the vehicle is cold, not moving, but will go away after a few minutes. I have stock sized tires and Lexus rims

I'm thinking a wheel-bearing issue.
Any thoughts,
Chris

 

Usual wheel bearing noise is directly proportional to speed - the faster, the noisier and it does not go away. At least in my experience on two rears that had to be replaced.

 

To eliminate tires/wheels you can try swapping.

Salim

 

Warped rotor is a possibility, along with semi frozen caliper. You can jack up the suspect wheel and rotate manually to see if the rotor is binding with brakes.

 

Check tires, wheel well covering, free rotation of wheel when jacked up, and look under car for debret. I'd bet on something being loose or bubble on tire. Inspect that wheel area very carefully friend.

 

Thanks for the responses. I will be taking my car into the mechanic to determine the problem. I will post will updates
Chris

 

I am betting on a tire issue.

 

Hello,
The problem was both rear wheel bearing were gone. The repairs are done for $1197. I guess the tires are not as noisy as I initially thought. To be honest I'm a little disappointed that the wheel bearings had to be replaced with only 150 000 KM/95000 miles.
Any ideas,
Chris

 

Do you have FWD or AWD?

 

AWD, unfortunately

 

Seems to be a common denominator to those having failures.

If I was buying used, I would stay away from AWD lest you get stuck with this repair down the road.

 

Have you given any thought to the fact the tires are also cold and may be retaining there shape until the tires warm up again? This was a problem when nylon belted tires first hit the market years ago. The part of the tire resting on the road created a flat area that stayed that way until the tire warmed up and became round again.