6er Wheel Bearing failure

Author
Discussion

rockford22

Original Poster:

357 posts

131 months

Tuesday 21st July 2015
quotequote all
Hi,

Calling for suggestions on a noise that is quite annoying on my '04 645i.

Seems to be coming from driver side rear wheel area (although this is very hard to determine whilst moving). Squeeling/whistling sound that pulses in time with wheel rotations and increases in volume as speed increases. Amusingly it sounds very similar to the old creepy guy's whistle on Family Guy.

Not related to brakes - noise continues when foot and handbrakes are applied. After a drive all brakes seem the same temperature and front/rear pads/disks were replaced 6 months ago.

Not related to engine - Put in neutral and revved whilst moving, sound stays the same. Occurs in all gears and does not vary with engine load, only with road speed.

Not related to suspension - The noise occurs on both smooth and bumpy roads and certainly doesn't correlate to going over any bumps.

Visual checks don't show anything obvious, tire wear seems fairly consistent.

Other symptoms:
At between 65-75mph I get some vibration through the steering wheel

The car has just shy of 100k so it is entirely likely that it is due to wear and tear. My thoughts are wheel bearings?

Moved house and left my old jack and axle stands at parents so I will be off get a new set this weekend but ahead of getting it on stands what else should I look out for?

andyiley

9,101 posts

151 months

Tuesday 21st July 2015
quotequote all
try swapping the wheel for it's opposite number just in case it is tyre wear, some tyres can cause exactly what you describe with some strange wear patterns.

rockford22

Original Poster:

357 posts

131 months

Tuesday 21st July 2015
quotequote all
Thanks for your reply, will give it a go and have a thorough inspection of the tires when off.

You could well be right as I do occasionally get a slapping sound from the same wheel that may be the very early signs of tire delamination.

I have wanted to change to non-RFT's ever since I bought the car so perhaps this is a good excuse to get this done at the weekend too.

S0 What

3,358 posts

171 months

Tuesday 21st July 2015
quotequote all
Is the handbrake on the rear calipers or seperate shoes inside the bell of the disc? if inside the dise check the shoes havn't come loose ?

andyiley

9,101 posts

151 months

Tuesday 21st July 2015
quotequote all
S0 What said:
Is the handbrake on the rear calipers or seperate shoes inside the bell of the disc? if inside the dise check the shoes havn't come loose ?
Not relevant.

rockford22

Original Poster:

357 posts

131 months

Wednesday 5th August 2015
quotequote all
andyiley said:
try swapping the wheel for it's opposite number just in case it is tyre wear, some tyres can cause exactly what you describe with some strange wear patterns.
Thought I'd come back to this thread and just say thanks - you were spot on with this diagnosis. Changed for a nice set of non-runflats and not only has the strange de-lamination type noise stopped but so has the squealing/whistling.

As an added bonus the non-runflats ride a hell of a lot better than the original tires and road noise is massively reduced! Happy camper.

Cheers.