For your car to work properly, hundreds of components have to be working in synchronicity with each other. All it takes is just one of these parts to deteriorate and the results can be catastrophic. However, it’s more likely that when one of these bits of plastic or metal begins to let the team down, there will be a noticeable change to the way your car behaves before the whole mechanical operation fails. Sound is often a dead giveaway that something’s not quite right, so if you can hear a humming noise, these are the possible problems you should be wary of.
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Why Your Car Might Be Making A Humming Noise
As we said, there’s a lot of individual components in a car that could cause trouble, so there’s no way to guarantee exactly what is causing a humming noise without investigating it. However, we can point you in the right direction and offer you some starting points so that you know what might be to blame. Whether you take on a DIY repair job is up to you, but if in doubt, it’s best to let a professional handle it – you might end up doing more damage!
Humming Noise That Gets Louder With Speed Or Acceleration
There are a few areas that this noise could be coming from, but we’ll start with the most common – your wheel bearings might be worn or damaged. You can test this by accelerating to a high RPM before releasing the pedal and allowing the car to coast. If the sound continues, it’s probably the wheel bearings – especially if the noise changes when you turn around a corner.
If the sound does stop when you let the vehicle coast, then it could be a problem with the engine. A leaky power steering or exhaust system could be the culprit, but it’s best to let a professional mechanic look into the problem.
This particular hum could also be caused by a misaligned steering wheel or loose steering belt.
Car AC Making A Humming Noise
There’s a good chance that a hum coming from your car’s air conditioning system is down to a damaged compressor. The job of the compressor is to turn the liquid refrigerant into a gas that can be expelled by your air conditioner to cool the car. Fixing (or more likely replacing) this part will probably be a job for a qualified mechanic.
If the noise sounds more like a buzz than a hum, it could be because there’s too much refrigerant in the system and it’s flowing into the compressor in a way that it shouldn’t. This is often how compressors break and start to hum.
Car Makes A Humming Noise When Driving
Once again, there’s a number of things that could cause a humming noise while you’re driving. If you’re confident that the problem doesn’t lie with anything from the section above regarding a hum when you’re accelerating, then it could even be down to the tyres you’re using. Wear and tear, low pressure or poor alignment could result in a dull, droning hum caused by the unusual connection between the rubber and the road.
If you think this is the case, it’s important to get them inspected as soon as possible. Bad tyres are extremely dangerous and therefore, they’re also illegal!
Car Makes A Humming Noise When Turning
Like with a hum when accelerating, hearing this noise when turning could be due to faulty or worn out wheel bearings or a power steering pump that’s leaking. If you notice that the noise is worse when turning in one direction, then it’s probably going to be one of these issues at the root of it.
Car Makes A Humming Noise When Idling
If your car is even making a humming noise when it’s sitting still, it could, once again, be an issue with the power steering pump or air conditioner compressor. However, it could also be the drive belt. Bear in mind that it needs to be something that’s moving even when the car isn’t, so that should narrow down the list of potential problem parts somewhat.
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