Humming noise... but isn't consistent

[jonesmw10]

Hey all,

Tried searching a little bit, but I wanted some fresh opinions on this.. I'm 700+ miles from home right now so I'm a little concerned about the humming noise my 4Runner has been making. It just started doing it about 10 hours into my journey to NC. I can only hear it at 60+ mph, but it isn't a steady hum. Hums one second, stops for a second, hums for a second, stops, etc etc. It sounds like it is the passenger front bearing going bad, but wouldn't it consistently hum? It doesn't stop while turning the vehicle slightly but I don't hear it at lower speeds so I can't really test it that well. None of the wheels seem to be expelling a lot of heat either. I don't feel any vibrations... Maybe a u joint?? At a loss. I really want to get it fixed before having to drove 700 miles again. Last thing I need is a wheel to fall off, my driveshaft go flying, or a tire going pop! Lol. Thanks in advance everyone!!

 

[absolute yota]

Sound s like the early stages of wheel bearing. You will probably be just fine driving it for a while like that. You could try jacking it up and checking for play (hands at 12 and 6 and try to rock the wheel) also make sure they both spin freely. It might just be the tires too, when was Te last time you had them rotated? Are they in good condition and wearing evenly?

 

[jonesmw10]

Last time they were rotated was when I purchased the vehicle, so about 3k miles ago.. Tires do look like they are wearing evenly. The noise was only noticeable after about 10 hours of straight driving, not at all before, so maybe a tire issue? I've driven the vehicle since, sometimes for more than an hour at a time and have not felt any significant amount of heat coming from any of the wheels, so it doesn't seem like anything is dragging. I'll have to try and rotate the tires before I leave to see if it moves to the other side. I don't see any noticeable defects on them though, either :shrug:

 

[jonesmw10]

So I'm not sure if this is just freak coincidence or what... But I found what is pictured below this morning. Lol just a bb that managed to find it's way into some excess grease that I missed wiping off when I missed the zerk fitting? Or is this a ball bearing of some sort?? It was covered in grease when I found it, but staged this for reference lol. I haven't noticed any strange vibrations or anything... This was found directly below the ujoint in the rear, but those bearings look different within right?