So I put snow tires on this weekend and I'm noticing a pronounced wooshing / howling sound coming from what seems like the front end. The sound is related to vehicle speed (not RPM or engine, etc) and is most noticeable at very low speeds when coming to a stop - the sound gets lower in pitch and sounds like a jet engine coming in for a landing (though not quite as loud). The noise does change pitch with speed, but doesn't seem to change when turning or applying the brakes. The sound also doesn't seem to pulse like I've heard in the past with bad bearings, but is a constant, almost wind-type noise.
I put the front end up and didn't notice any play when trying to move the tire in and out while holding it at 6 & 12 o'clock. Trying the same thing holding it at 3 & 9 o'clock I noticed some play on both sides, but the play appeared to be in the steering components, not the wheel (may be time for tie-rods eventually). If it were a bad wheel bearing, I assume I'd have play 6&12 o'clock and the sound would be most noticeable at high speeds, no?
I'm somewhat familiar with typical road noise from snow tires and this sounds different to me (particularly that howl at very low speeds) although it's the first time with these tires (Mastercraft Glacier Grip II). The tires are smaller than stock (205/50/R16) mounted on what appear to be stock steelies. I checked and there doesn't seem to be any rubbing I can see from the tires.
I didn't notice this sound before putting these tires on, but that doesn't necessarily mean it wasn't there before. I suppose I can re-mount the regular tires and test drive to see if is directly related to the tires (bit of a pain where I live, but I may try later this week). I figured I'd solicit opinions from the crowd as to other things to look into in the meantime.