..is it supposed to be so loud?

[Jcomnislash]

hello everyone,

I have a 91 ford festiva L 2 door...its got 130k on it(umm not sure how many miles that is), 5-speed..the car is pretty much stock all i got in there is a small sound system upgrade. So here's the issue. I've had this festy for like 6 months and i noticed the thing is so loud, i drive to school everyday and its about an hour there and an hour back, and when i get out my ears are ringing, cuz the car has such a crazy hum going thru it the whole time.

I recently (3 weeks ago) had the car checked out and i had the back bearing replaced (both wheels), a front wheel bearing seal, a rear spindle and new lower ball joint all replaced. And the car is still super loud, its not the engine. I tested that, i went out and did about 100kph/65mph and turned the engine off and the car was still loud as heck...its like a humming from the tires or something and it gets louder and louder the faster i go...at 120 kph...its unbearable. Has anyone else experienced this? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

also...would it have anything to do with the lack of insulation in the car, or perhaps the tires being so small...i was thinking of getting bigger tires for the winter ( ilive in canada, it gets crazy up here sometimes)...would that reduce the humming/echo noise?

thanks,

;D

[5.0zone]

Does the sound come from one location on the car (ie left, right, front back)?

If its coming from all over it could be your tires. Tires will get louder as they get older and some tires are just louder than others.

If you know someone else that has a Festive you could try swaping tires around to see if thats it.

[Jcomnislash]

hey thanks for such a fast response...well the noise is definitely coming from all over, not just one place, thats why i'm almost certain its the tires that suck. Unfortuantly there no one for a hundred miles close to where i live that has a festiva...everyone drives hondas in canada...(losers..lol)..So would going up to 13' tires help at all? No other car out there has 12' anyways, well except for the old austin mini. Or would i just be off trying to find some insulation of some sort or something?

Thanks

;D

[5.0zone]

The 12" tire on the Festiva are dirt cheap.
Tirerack has 155/12s for $23 each or 165/70SR12 for $43 each.
Check your local tire stores.

Festivas came with either 145/12 or 165/70SR12s (optional).

If yours came with 145/12 just upgrade to the 155/12
The 145/12 is harder to find and hydroplanes worse.

[nattyphysicist]

Hey, I live in Canada and I drive a Festiva! heh.

Canadian Tire used to sell the stock Festiva tires. I have some all seasons from there. You might have to get them ordered, but that usually only takes a day. Check your tire pressures and look for signs of uneven tire wear on the tread.

You had a front bearing seal replaced? If the seal was gone, what about the bearing?? I take it that was the inner seal?

I would jack up the front of the car and rotate each wheel by hand and listen for the sound. If you hear it, then it's probably your front wheel bearing(s).

Where abouts are you located?

Nat

[Jcomnislash]

hey thats awesome, a fellow Canadian with a festiva..lol..i live in brampton Ontario, its like 20 mins west of Toronto....oh yeah i just noticed i i forgot to mention that it was the front bearings and seals i replaced...so yeah, the cars got all new bearings on all wheels...and i jacked it up this morning and checked for noises, and there wasnt any...which leaves me with only one conclusion so far....those tires suck...lol...and i have 145/12's on there. How does the festiva handle winter?...i've never driven it in winter, i've been driving a big truck the last few years and well..its gonna be a big change for sure.

But yeah, i still would like to know if there's any type of sound insulation that would help?...

has anyone put 13's on thier festys, and did it improve anything?

[oldgrezmonke]

try 155/12 first . if you go too tall with 13" you might not be able to get a matching spare into the spare tire well, or the flat tire either. i have driven one in what you would call light ice and snow with no problem, except for weaving around stuck SUVs. [haha] without chains.

[Jcomnislash]

cool...lol...i didnt even consider the spare tire part...but yeah 12' tires are seemingly difficult to find at dealers, lol...when you ask for them, they just stare at u funny...but thanks for the advice

[studdyhalllooser]

try 155/12 first . if you go too tall with 13" you might not be able to get a matching spare into the spare tire well, or the flat tire either. i have driven one in what you would call light ice and snow with no problem, except for weaving around stuck SUVs. [haha] without chains.

what snow? im just north of new albany and it hasnt snowed in the past 4 years iv lived here....oh, your talking about that little white cover with grass still visible, jk, lol. im from michigan and used to real snow. it is kinda funny tho when we get a quarter inch and everything around here shuts down, lol...sorry to be off topic

[nattyphysicist]

hey thats awesome, a fellow Canadian with a festiva..lol..i live in brampton Ontario, its like 20 mins west of Toronto....oh yeah i just noticed i i forgot to mention that it was the front bearings and seals i replaced...so yeah, the cars got all new bearings on all wheels...and i jacked it up this morning and checked for noises, and there wasnt any...which leaves me with only one conclusion so far....those tires suck...lol...and i have 145/12's on there. How does the festiva handle winter?...i've never driven it in winter, i've been driving a big truck the last few years and well..its gonna be a big change for sure.

But yeah, i still would like to know if there's any type of sound insulation that would help?...

has anyone put 13's on thier festys, and did it improve anything?

I use the 12's in the winter and 195/45-14 in the summer. I think a skinny tire is best in the snow and rain, less hydroplaning. Ice is another issue. I keep thinking about getting some real snow/ice tires for the winter... BTW, the 14's I have are pretty close in diameter to the 12's, so the spare would work reasonably well.

I don't really notice a drastic difference in sound going between 12 and 14. I've never really listened for the difference, but it hasn't jumped out at me either.

When you did your 100 km/h check, did you clutch in?

Is your stereo completely off when you're hearing the noise?

Maybe it's just the car

[oldgrezmonke]

try 155/12 first . if you go too tall with 13" you might not be able to get a matching spare into the spare tire well, or the flat tire either. i have driven one in what you would call light ice and snow with no problem, except for weaving around stuck SUVs. [haha] without chains.

what snow? im just north of new albany and it hasnt snowed in the past 4 years iv lived here....oh, your talking about that little white cover with grass still visible, jk, lol. im from michigan and used to real snow. it is kinda funny tho when we get a quarter inch and everything around here shuts down, lol...sorry to be off topic

i drove through that ice storm in arkansas from texas a few years back. and i have driven one in what i did call light snow to northern folk up here in memphis. thank goodness my indiana-born father taught me how to handle ice and snow. i agree most other drivers in our area absolutely can't cope

[AlaskaFestivaGuy]

Noise solution

If you want your Festiva to be super quiet, try disposable yellow foam E-A-R brand earplugs. I've used them for years for all long-distance driving and also on airplanes, from puddle-hoppers (for engine and prop noise) to jets (for wind noise). They're extremely comfortable, and you can still hear the car radio clearly if you crank up the volume a bit.

Industrial safety stores sell boxes of about 200 pairs for something like 25 cents/pair, and you can even use them a few times before tossing them. E-A-R (and maybe other) brands come in little cardboard containers so you can keep them clean between uses.

Note: My LX is much quieter than my Ls.

[festerzilla]

I found 12" rally tires with seriously aggressive mud/snow/ice tread being sold in England. I'll have to look again, but I think they were ~$100 each. Festivas are already so good in the snow, these would make it a tank. .... T*rerack also has 145R12 yoko's which were a stock brand I think, for $34 each.

[Guest]

so we're talking tires here.. How about bearings? Bad bearings can sure make a Fesiva roar down the highway....

[Jcomnislash]

lol...ear plugs...thats awesome man, although it probably aint that safe when you cant hear whats going on around you, but ya...thats funny, and true at the same time....actually all my bearings are brand new...so its definitely gotta be el'cheapo firestone/goodyear tires i got on there. oh and i got a fuel saver brand tire on there too...

but yeah i was thinking more along the lines of actual insulation...i know the festiva has next to none in it, so i was looking for some advice on quieting the monster down...