D'oh!
 

I'm setting aside whatever sliver of pride I have left and posting this for the good of the forum (and cause its pretty funny). Starting around the end of last summer I started hearing a faint humming noise coming from my right rear wheel. I ignored it for about a month, and it got worse. Then I started noticing it in the left rear as well. After doing a little poking around on the forum here I assumed it was wheel bearings, as "humming" is a pretty common symptom for that. Then I went up to my parents' house for Christmas. My dad, being the level-headed guy that he is, talked me out of ordering parts right away and do a little more diagnosing. So he asks me: "When's the last time you rotated your tires?"
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D'OH!!!

So I rotated them over Christmas weekend, and sure enough, the noise moved from the back to the front. I've been waiting just to be sure, but I just took a ride around the beltway on my way to work this morning and the humming has all but disappeared (I've put about 2k miles on my car since Christmas). Turns out not rotating your tires for 15k miles produces the same kind of humming noise that bad wheel bearings do.So I fail, let the flaming begin, and to anyone who finds this thread while searching about wheel bearings, when's the last time you rotated your tires?

Lol I'd say that's a win. Fail wouldve been if you had replaced the bearings and then found out a tire rotation was the fix. Glad to hear it:)

Thats a good point, I suppose this is one of those "glass is half full" situations rather than a fail. But i still felt like a d*ck when I realized it lol :rolleyes:

Everyone has dumbass moments from time to time. I've had some real gems myself lol

Er... not rotating your tires does not cause a humming noise. Your tires themselves did. Perhaps you have tires that just get noisy when they wear.

Well that was the implication...

The tires were wearing unevenly and they started humming. Maybe I just have shitty tires lol

Well, what tires do you have?

I still think it's a fail, NOOB! :D

J/K

Glad the problem wasn't a major one.

Bridgestone HP550's, 205/55 16"