Date:         Sat, 13 Apr 2002 09:45:56 -0700
Reply-To:     DaveC <voicebox@DNAI.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         DaveC <voicebox@DNAI.COM>
Subject:      Re: squeak be gone
In-Reply-To:  <001001c1e307$38e6a380$55f5fea9@oemcomputer>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" ; format="flowed"

>Background: I had a squeak in both front wheels, increased with
>speed, kind of like having a sparrow flying at window height every
>where I went. At the advice of listees, which I'll be honest I
>considered a ludicrous waste of time, I rotated my wheels front to
>back. The squeak has now moved to the back where the kids will have
>to suffer with it. Fine with me. I still cannot fathom why tires
>would ever squeak. My theory was that it was not the tires but the
>mounting bolts working loose, and that removing a wheel and
>re-tightening the lugs was the cure. I was wrong. It's either the
>tires or the wheels, and either one of those possibilities is
>astonishing, you know like "either we are alone in the universe or
>we aren't."

Bob,
Is the squeak constant? Or only with the up-and-down movement (bumps, etc.)?

Your diagnosis could be correct. The wheel's tapered lug seats or a
single bolt/nut maybe deformed slightly, just enough to cause some
movement between the wheel metal and the bolt/nut at speed even when
tightened. (Any lugs look like they might be slightly bent?)

The only way that I know of to check it properly is to use a spare
rim/tire at the offending location. If this doesn't help, swap
bolts/nuts side to side and see if the noise follows it.

My only guess...

Good luck,

Dave
--
Dave Carpenter

Whatever you wish for me,
May you have twice as much.

"Sometimes I think we're alone in the universe, and sometimes I think
we're not. In either case the idea is quite staggering." -- Arthur C.
Clarke