My FWD 2001 Ford Focus has an odd rubbery squeak sound combined with a more thumpy sound from inside the vehicle at any speed. There is no sound when accelerating, and a slight sound (much less) when going backwards. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3THHZrpKKAU&feature=youtu.be&t=137

I replaced the axle and did some tight turns and the sound went away for a few weeks, but then came back in force. Any ideas?

My guess is that it's not the bearing, and that my "new" axle is remanufactured poorly, given the $40 price vs. the $140 motorcraft price on Rockauto. Not sure though!


Turns out it's a bearing issue. Because the axle rotates along with the wheel, it's hard for it to generate a squeak sound. There are apparently clicking sounds though.

Found a really helpful article for diagnosing different sounds: https://www.brakeandfrontend.com/wheel-bearing-noise-diagnostics/

The classic symptom of a bad wheel bearing is typically a cyclic chirping, squealing or growling noise that changes in proportion to vehicle speed. The sound may disappear at some speeds or only occur at certain speeds. The noise may get worse when turning, or it may disappear momentarily. So, it’s difficult to make a diagnosis based on noise alone.

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