Humming / whooping noise when I turn left

[WallaceMI]

Hi,
I have 2017 Ford Explorer 4WD with 67k miles on it. Recently I notice a whooping / humming noise when I turn left (at slight steering angle input already). I live in Michigan.

Here my observations:

1. Is most noticeable at 40 mph already at small left turn steering wheel angle input
2. I don’t hear it all the time (e.g. not at every turn but it could be “hidden” by other noises like wind etc.)
3. No noise if I turn right
4. Jacked up the car and checked all (left, right, front, rear) wheels for play (3/9 & 12/6 o’clock position) —> no play
5. No noise if I drive straight or brake
6. I also checked if any boots are ripped (e.g. drive shaft, strut etc) —> looks normal, nothing leaking

What could that be? My suspicion is a wheel bearing (but there is no play), CV joint or a tire itself. The noise is not so bad yet (I just noticed it) so what are the signs of it getting worse and what else could I check?

 

[mguy13sport]

Tires wearing evenly? Does wheel track straight down road?

Could also be a strut mount as they are known to go bad.

Did you use a prybar under the tire to see if there is frontend play?

I assume you have the electric steering (EPAS) but some cars have hydraulic.

 

[peterk9]

All 5th gens have EPAS.

Peter

 

[WallaceMI]

I uploaded 2 videos:
Youtube Video 1
YouTube Video 2

It's not super loud in the video (more noticeable if you sit in the car) but you can hear it when I start turning. Frequency goes up and down with vehicle speed. Seems to be when the vehicle tilts due to speed / turning. As I said, I can't hear it (yet) turning right.

- Tire wear looks normal to me
- Car doesn't pull into a direction (so alignment seems to be fine)
- How can I check "at home" if the struts are going out?
- Yes my Explorer has electric power steering
- Didn't try the prybar under the tire yet, just did it by hand to see if there is play

 

[ProjectSHO89]

Check your wheel bearings, particularly the right front. All your symptoms are consistent with that bearing getting noisy.

 

[WallaceMI]

So strange observation when I was driving today: the noise is gone!

How can that be if the bearing is on the way out. I tried different speed and turning radiuses and I couldn't hear it today at all. Could it also come from the tire or brake?

I'm confused.