Why a Motorcycle Squeaks or Screams When You Turn the Grips

A sound from the bars on a motorcycle is usually a small thing, and in most cases it is one of a handful of inexpensive items. It is worth knowing which sounds are which, because one of them indicates a component that will eventually stop working and one of them is a purely cosmetic annoyance.

This guide covers the sounds and what each means.

The Cable or Control Housing

The most common source, and the cheapest to fix. A control cable slides inside a housing, and where the housing has been routed so that the cable rubs against it, or where a bend radius is too tight, the cable wears and the sound appears. It presents as a squeak or a creak on slow steering, and it gets worse over time as the cable wears further.

A cable that has been replaced with one of the wrong type is a common cause, because some cable constructions have a different outer diameter or a different liner. Where the noise started after a cable replacement, that is where to look.

The Brake and Clutch Levers

A lever pivoting on a dry or corroded pivot produces a creak or a click that is audible on slow steering and often when the brakes are applied. A drop of lubricant on the pivot resolves it in a minute. A lever that is slightly bent, or a perch that has become misaligned, produces the same kind of sound because the lever is being loaded off-axis.

Where the noise is from the clutch lever specifically, and it is a click rather than a creak, it is often the clutch cable or the cable adjuster rather than the lever.

The Steering Head Bearings

A steering head bearing that is dry produces a notchy or gritty feeling through the bars on slow steering, and it feels like something catching rather than a smooth movement. It is also accompanied by an uneven or wandering feel at speed, and eventually by a clunk as the bearing has play in it. The causes are an insufficient grease in the bearing, which is the factory condition on many machines, or a bearing that has become pitted.

This is the one in the list that is genuinely worth dealing with promptly, because a bearing that has gone from dry to pitted is a much bigger job than greasing one. Checking the steering for notchy movement at the first sign of it is the preventive measure.

The Wheel Bearings

A front wheel bearing that is developing wear produces a rumble that rises with road speed rather than a sound on the bars, so it is not the same complaint. A rear wheel bearing is not connected to the bars at all. Where the sound does change when you turn, it is in the steering or the front brake, not the wheel bearings.

The Front Brake

Brake Pad Wear Indicators

Many front brakes have a small spring clip attached to the pad that contacts the disc when the material has worn to a specific depth, and it produces a deliberate, sharp squeal. It is a designed warning rather than a fault, and it means the pads need replacing rather than any adjustment.

A Dragging Caliper

A caliper that is not retracting fully makes the pads rub the disc continuously, which produces a continuous high-pitched squeal or a scream that varies with speed and with brake application. It also produces heat at the disc, which is worth touching to check, and it will destroy the pads and the disc very quickly. The disc-and-pad side of this is covered in how to fix a squealing or grinding brake noise, and the car equivalent of the same fault is in why a car hesitates when braking.

Glazed or Worn Pads

A pad that has glazed, or worn unevenly because the caliper is misaligned, produces a squeal under light braking. Where the noise appears on light braking and disappears under firm braking, it is the pad moving rather than the disc. Bedded correctly and with the backing plate lubricated, it usually resolves; otherwise the pads need replacing.

Contaminated Pads or Disc

Where a pad has been touched with oil, or where a disc has been contaminated by chain oil from an over-lubricated chain, the friction characteristic changes and the pads will not grip cleanly. A disc that has chain oil on it can often be cleaned with a specific product and a light application of the brakes, whereas a disc that has been contaminated with oil-based lubricant may need replacing.

Misaligned Caliper

A caliper that has been fitted with the wrong orientation relative to the disc, or that has been dropped during fitting, produces a squeal that no amount of lubrication will fix because the geometry is wrong. It is a genuine consequence of a previous repair and it is worth checking the mounting rather than treating the pads.

A Loose Caliper Bolt

A caliper that has worked loose moves enough to change the pressure on the pads unevenly, producing a squeal that comes and goes with braking and often a knock over bumps. The bolts should be checked for correct torque and for a locking compound. A caliper that has moved also affects the braking badly.

The Disc

A disc that has been machined unevenly, or that has been contaminated, produces a squeal under braking. A disc that has rusted on the surface produces a sound on the first application after standing that clears after a few firm applications, which is normal rather than a fault. A disc that is scored deeply cannot be cleaned and must be replaced, and it is worth looking at the pad material at the same time, because the material that caused the scoring came from the pads.

Other Sources

The Mirrors and Levers

Mirror stems and lever perches that have worked loose vibrate and produce a rattle or a buzz that is felt through the bars. The mirrors themselves can rattle against their stems. Both are trivial to fix and both are frequently mistaken for something in the steering.

The Instrument Cables

Speedometer and clutch cables that are routed across the steering head can rub or catch as the bars turn, producing a click or a creak. Routing and clamping them properly resolves it.

Loose Fairing or Bodywork

Fairing panels, screen fittings, and indicators that have worked loose produce a rattle that changes with road surface, and it is not really a steering noise even though it feels like one.

The Front Mudguard or Forks

A mudguard that has become loose, or fork seals that have started to weep, produce a sound that changes with the suspension movement. A leaking fork seal produces a film of oil on the fork leg, which is worth finding because it eventually gets onto the tyre.

How to Diagnose

First establish whether the sound is from the bars or from the machine. Turn the bars with the engine running and the vehicle stationary, and listen. Then check whether the sound changes with brake pressure, which identifies the brake side. Then raise the front wheel off the ground and turn the bars slowly through the full lock, which loads the steering head and the cables and will make both audible.

For the steering head, the test is whether the movement is smooth or notchy through the full lock in both directions. A notchy feel means the bearing needs attention. For the cables, the test is whether the noise changes with the bar angle, since a rub at a particular point of the travel identifies where the housing is contacting.

Prevention

Lubricate the control cables with a cable lubricant rather than a general spray, and use the sealed ends of the cable where they exist. Grease the steering head bearings at the service interval, which is the single most useful item on this list because a dry bearing that is serviced becomes a pitted bearing that is not. Check the lever pivots annually. Keep the chain correctly lubricated so oil does not reach the front brake. And keep the brake pads free of contamination, which is largely a matter of not touching them.

If this guide was helpful, you may also want to read motorcycle chain care for the chain lubrication side, why a motorcycle chain slips for a related driveline noise, and why a motorcycle dies at low speed for the running faults that follow a dragging brake.