I’ve had a set of these in 225/70R16 on my van for a couple years now. Mileage unknown, since I have a winter tire/rim setup and I don’t track mileage for each. I’d say the Nokians have about 5/6 32nds left on them. For the past year or so, they have gotten progressively noisier. Like really noisy. Almost to the point that my winter setup is quieter than these. The noise comes and goes at different speeds but has gotten more consistent with wear. Sometimes it’s a roar, other times I get the “whomp whomp whomp” type noise (typically at lower speeds). Balance is still spot on and no vibrations are present even at high speed. Psi is set to the placard-indicated 35psi. Anyone else had this issue with these tires, or heard of it? They have a very high load rating for this application (107 vs 102 OEM). They have plenty of meat for a 3-seasons tire but the noise may push me to replace them sooner.
I know that some may suggest that this is a wheel bearing issue, but given that this has been going on for over a year (and I drive a lot), and there is no play in the bearing and no excess heat generated in the hub areas after long drives, I can’t see that being the issue. The noise is also sort of coming from everywhere and not a specific corner of the vehicle.
One thing to note is that as these wear down, one of the rib sections is basically solid with no siping, with another that is nearly solid. Almost looks like summer tires perhaps this is contributing to noise?
I know that some may suggest that this is a wheel bearing issue, but given that this has been going on for over a year (and I drive a lot), and there is no play in the bearing and no excess heat generated in the hub areas after long drives, I can’t see that being the issue. The noise is also sort of coming from everywhere and not a specific corner of the vehicle.
One thing to note is that as these wear down, one of the rib sections is basically solid with no siping, with another that is nearly solid. Almost looks like summer tires perhaps this is contributing to noise?