droning sound from rear

[cheesebox]

My 318iS is making an odd sound, from the rear when driving at speed. It's most noticeable above 50mph. It's a constant droning/whining sound. It gets louder on right handers and almost disappears on left handers. My guess is it's a worn wheel bearing, but I guess it could be the diff. What do you think? I've checked there's no passengers.

[Dan318-is]

I would say its yoru diff mate.

small cases done tend to last too long

whats the milage on your car?

get underneath it an check that your diff isnt leaking oil. alternatively, jack the rear up, secure it on axle stands, and wiggle the wheel with your hands on the tyres to check the wheel bearing play.

otherwise i would suggest its the diff mate!

[cheesebox]

The diff does look pretty oily. If the problem's due to oil leakage, is it easy to top up? I'll check the wheel bearing as suggested too. Thanks mate!

[Dan318-is]

Could be to do with leakage/wrong oil but its unlikely

is it an open diff or a limited slipper?

[mrLEE30]

had a similar problem on my old 318 (drone, more on left turn then right), thought it was the rear but in the end was a front wheel bearing.

very hard to find these things. wheel bearings would be my first guess.

rear bearings not too hard to change, remove the half shafts, remove brake disk/drum, drive the wheel hub out of the bearing housing, remove circlip, remove the wheel bearing (may need a puller to do this bit)

be carefull when refitting or you will damage the bearing when re-inserting

mrlee

[Chris-W]

Sounds more like a bearing gone that anything to do with your diff.

[rickk]

Could be diff (bearing), could be wheelbearing. I've had both and they sound very similar.

The sound from the diff changes more on accel/deceleration though.

[stuartgallafant]

its more likely to be your wheel bearing than your diff, but check your diff to make sure!