Left Front End Whinning

[GoneFishin05]

Once again I am coming to you guys with the hopes of getting some suggestions and or advice. I have a 2005 Ford Explorer with 72,600 miles, and I have a whining noise coming from the left front end when I make left turns are relatively slow speeds 20-30mph. I've replaced both the left and front wheel bearings within the last 5k miles, and this has just started recently. I'm not sure if it could be a tie rod or ball bearing.

A little help!

 

[workman482]

2wheel drive or 4wheel drive/AWD?

 

[fornetti14]

My problem is similar and I haven't figured it out yet. My list of things replaced are tires and drivers side half shaft (had to do them anyway) and then the wheel bearing.
Still the problems is there. It sounds like excessive tire noise at about 40 mpg.
I have the 4.6L with the auto 4X4.

Here is another thread that talks about this problem:
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=290720

No resolution yet.

 

[workman482]

K.I.S.S. (Keep It Stupid Simple)

Following the KISS rule here is a couple of things to check, they may be redundant as you may have already checked;

Have you made sure you don't have any tire tub by jacking the vehicle up and taking the tire of on the problem side to see if there is any tire rub on tire or fender well.

Another thing to check is your power steering fluid or to see if your power steering pump is making a whining noise while the steering wheel is being turned.

 

[egoodwin]

I am having kinda the same problem on my 2002 mercury mountaineer v6 awd. I think it could be my power steering pump but not for sure. I get a growly noise when I turn left or right at slow speeds. It does not make the growling noise when I am sitting still and turning the steering wheel. Only when I turn slow at speeds 5-20 MPH. do you you think this is my power steering pump going bad. I have no leaks but the fluid was dirty and had it changed/flushed. It still is making the same noise. The flush do not help. Any thoughts on what to do next? Thanks!!

 

[jakedrew]

I am in the same boat....

Swore my left front bearing was howling . replaced it ( ford OEM from tousley ford for 170$ shipped) . No luck. Good practice though. Did the brakes as people said worn brakes can make noise, plus I needed them. No luck.


got brand new tires on , no luck.

" Not sure if this is recommened," but had a buddy come over and jacked up the vehicle and put it on jack stands. Got it up to 40 mph ( put it in 4x4 high) and he listened. Left rear bearing sounds louder then the rest. Havent replaced it yet . But I will post a update when done.

 

[cbrock]

Not sure if this is the same thing y'all are experiencing, but I've got a similar problem myself (2002 Mountaineer AWD). Mine is a mixture of a howling/growling sound and I can feel a vibration under my feet when I start moving (forward and reverse).

Replaced both front hub bearings and CV half shafts. I knew the hubs were bad from a previous tire rotation so I replaced those first. Next came CV half shafts and also replaced brake pads and turned rotors just to rule that out. I need new upper (and probably lower) ball joints but I'm almost positive those aren't the source of the issue so they can wait.

I know no one likes to hear this but I want to say it's something to do with the transfer case, maybe a seal blew and the lubricant/oil leaked out because it sounds/feels sorta like metal on metal. I've got the GF's dad (seasoned mechanic thankfully!) coming to check it out this afternoon and hopefully to give me some insight or at least point me in the right direction.

edit: ruled out tires as well... anyone think an alignment would help something like this?