2006 Explorer Hum at Highway Speed

[rah11h]

I have a 2006 Ford Explorer Limited with about 104,000 miles. I have had a rather loud hum coming from the front end at highway speed. At first I thought it was my tires. Now my now so sure. I just replaced the front rotors and pad and did not notice anything that look bad. Any idea on what it could be?

 

[TourGuide]

Sounds to me like front bearings that need replacing. You can save a lot replacing these yourself - but if you're not handy you can still save yourself a lot by buying the parts online then having a garage replace them. When you go to replace these (if it turns out to be the bearings) I'd recommend either the Motorcraft parts or Timken. There are other quality brands too, but these will work for sure.

I have a 2006 Ford Explorer Limited with about 104,000 miles. I have had a rather loud hum coming from the front end at highway speed. At first I thought it was my tires. Now my now so sure. I just replaced the front rotors and pad and did not notice anything that look bad. Any idea on what it could be?

 

[tedchou]

Agree with TourGuide. The noises must come from front hub and bearings. I just replaced both front wheel hubs myself. It is quite unlikely that you would be able to replace bearings only. You have to purchase the whole assembly. Motorcraft does equip with ABS sensor and wiring harness.

The whole project took me about 3 hours. The most difficult part is to remove the old hub from CV joint. 3 lbs small sledgehammer is almost mandatory. Wheel alignment afterwards is not needed. BTW, I purchased both hub assembly from Rockauto, pretty decent prices. Good luck.

 

[pb3]

i'll add to perhaps ride in the passenger seat, and turn your head to make sure it's not coming from the rear of the vehicle.

 

[Davidm53]

Took me about a year to figure which bearing was bad on my Exp. One tire place had it on the rack and spun everything and could not find anything.

Another shop said it was the front left using one of those laser heat sensors, but did not have much confidence in that since the brakes are a heat source.

Went ahead and just kept driving it with the howl for about a year. Finally, it seemed louder in the rear than the front.

Took it back to another shop and they traced it to the pass rear wheel bearing.
Quoted me a price of $655. Long story short, bearing was replaced for $200 total.

Bought the better quality bearing from Napa and it was not made in China. Searched several shops for the best install price.
Some of the shops want you to buy the bearing and spindle combo which cost more.
I bought just the bearing for around $80 instead of $180.
Very quiet ride now.