I changed the winter tires of my Golf 2013 MK6 for summer tires today and I can now hear a heavy noise coming from the front right wheel. I assume that the tires and wheels were properly balanced; however I was not the first owner of the wheels (bought them from craigslist). I did not have this noise on my steel rims + winter tires.
You can hear the noise when driving slow and fast (20/40KMH). I did not try to drive on the highway.
What could potentially cause this noise?
Different tires make different noise-levles. That said normally winter-tires tend to be the louder ones, and it should not be too loud.
Some conditions, such as driving with too little or too much air, bad alignment etc. can lead to uneven wear on tires and sawtoothing.
If it is only a little, it could adjust in a few 100k´s. Make sure the pressure is right and drive it a little.
Also make sure to check age - if it is older than 10 years, get new ones - these are probably hardened.
On the other hand, if it is a lot uneven wear or heavy sawtoothing, you should probably change the tires as good contact to the street is not ensured.
If the tires appear fine see if your winter tires have any signs of uneven wear, The problem may be with your wheel-hub or suspension assembly.
There can be many issues which can cause this noise. Most of the time when you get tire noises it's because of the tires hardness (age) or the way it was used before. (Abrasion) It can also mean the tire has build up some saw tooths over time which will intensify the rolling noise. You can prevent that by swapping the front tires with the back tires every 4000 miles.
You should check the tire screws, drive shaft, wheel bearing and the tire itself, if you can't see any external damage or anything bad I would suggest you keep driving and check if the noise will get quieter soon.
