Deep whining noise all the time

[follyrunner]

I have a 2003 V6 2WD sport edition with 220k. For the last 20k or so, there has been a noise only when driving. Something more than a whine, but not grinding. I has stayed through two different sets of wheels and tires and goes away when I turn left. I did some searching on here and found that the likely culprit was the drivers side wheel bearing. I bought a hub kit from a member here awhile back, but only recently got around to installing it (My Tundra is my daily and this rarely gets driven). Got the new bearing/hub assemble installed, but the noise persists. Another round of searching and now maybe it's the pinion bearing in the rear end. I have a line on a used complete rear for $200, but wanted to run this by the group before I throw money and time at the rear when I don't really know what the problem is.

Has anyone heard of a bearing/hub assembly being bad from the start? Is there a relatively easy way to determine if it is the pinion bearing?

 

[AuSeeker]

If the noise went away when you turned left you should of suspected the right/passenger's wheel bearing and checked it for play before replacing anything, 90% of the time or more when the noise ceases it's the bearing on opposite side of the way you are turning that is bad, always check a bearing for noise and or any play before just replacing it.

 

[firebirdguy]

if you cant determine for sure whats causing the noise, its probably best to take it to a competent mechanic who can confirm what it is. throwing parts at it or doing a full rear end swap is a waste of time & money if you dont know for sure what is causing the noise.

i agree if it goes away when turning left to check the right bearing.

 

[follyrunner]

Thanks for the replies. I guess I read the threads about which side needed the replacement wrong

 

[twa318]

Yes sounds like wheel bearing, not uncommon over 200k

If it makes you feel better it’s recommend to replace them in pairs anyways since it’s only a matter of time the other will go bad as well

 

[importman]

If the noise went away when you turned left you should of suspected the right/passenger's wheel bearing and checked it for play before replacing anything, 90% of the time or more when the noise ceases it's the bearing on opposite side of the way you are turning that is bad, always check a bearing for noise and or any play before just replacing it.

Have to respectfully disagree with this. When you turn left the weight is shifted to the right side and taken off of the left. If taking the weight off the lh side reduced the noise that would identify the lh side as the faulty one.

 

[RonJR]

It's pretty hard to absolutely tell which bearing is going out based on noise (or lack thereof) while turning. There are two bearings on each wheel, an inner one and an outer one. The inner left and the outer right bearings get stressed in a right turn (and the outer left and the inner right get unloaded), and vice versa for a left turn.

The best advice is to replace both sides at the same time, as said above, especially if you have more than 150K miles on them anyway.