With the low temps outside here lately (cars ext temp readout was -1!) I noticed a high pitch whining sound coming from the right rear of the car when I first start driving. This after the car had been sitting for an hour or so. With warmer temps prior to this it was never present.

Anyone had something similar to this??

The sound dissapates and goes away after ~1/4mile of driving. But the frequency (higher)and loudness increases with wheel speed. I checked by pushing in the clutch to make sure it was not drivetrain or engine related.

Wheel bearings? Any thoughts?

Thanks a bunch guys!!

Now I get to go see why I have no reverse lights. They worked when I was at the dealer a week ago.

 

My car is a little loud and it's like you can hear the wheel bearings turning and trans. noises when it's really cold but like you say it goes away pretty quick after I get rolling for a bit. I just think it's the extreme cold making everything stiff. I would see if it still does it after it warms up a little.

 

Hey badmojo, thanks for the reply. Does your sound come from the rear as well?

Regarding the reverse lights not working I checked Fuse 79 and 82on the passanger compartmentfuse panel and all was OK. Which further leads me to suspect the transmission switch.

 

Over reading on the Roadfly Jag forums and many that had the exact same cold weather whining and said the "prop shaft" was the cause. Fix: replace with a new one.

Question: is the propshaft the 'driveshaft'?

 

I found this while doing a Google search for the propshaft. See the blue highlighted section down below.

Quality problems bedevil Jaguar's X-Type; two drivetrain issues cited


By MARK RECHTIN
Automotive News

L.J. Blake, a 51-year-old illustrator from Sausalito, Calif., was driving his new Jaguar X-Type sedan in cold weather in the Sierra Nevada mountains when "a very loud, screaming sound" came from the car's rear. It sounded like someone striking a tuning fork.

"This happened in the low gears as I upshifted through each one. It slowly stopped occurring as the car warmed up," Blake said. Blake says the sound has occurred repeatedly and has persisted even though his dealer replaced the car's prop-shaft. What's more, Blake is not alone.

Jaguar Cars Ltd. is at risk of alienating its newest group of owners, many of whom complain their new X-Type sedans have an array of irritating quality snafus. While none of the problems directly affect safety or operation, they are of sufficient annoyance that some first-time Jaguar buyers say they're ready to bolt the franchise.

"I am very frustrated at Jaguar's lack of interest in solving this problem," said Mike Price, a 58-year old retiree from New Orleans.

"There has been no follow-up by either Jaguar or my dealer on this matter," he said.

The issue could have a harmful effect on the automaker, which is trying to grow from a small-time player to one that sells 200,000 units annually, with the X-Type accounting for half of those sales. Reaching that goal requires not only winning new buyers but retaining them. Being the highest-volume nameplate, the X-Type is Jaguar's broadest-brush effort to reach the consumer buying a luxury label for the first time.

"I can't think of a carmaker that doesn't have an occasional glitch in their new models," said Charlie Moss, an independent industry analyst in London. "A drivetrain noise isn't the same as people being stranded or killed, but what they do about it is still very important.

"Jaguar can be the greatest friend these consumers ever had, and the people will love them for being really super about how well they are treated. The alternative is for people to be sick of the product and say, 'Next time, I'll buy an Audi.' "

Jaguar spokesman Colin Cook said the automaker became aware of the problem in January. He said a fix was engineered within eight weeks. "We've obviously taken steps to rectify the problem with customers as well as in the production process," Cook said. "We put a process change in manufacturing, and that has cured the problem."

There are two separate drivetrain problems. During deceleration from about 70 mph, a high-pitched whine will come from the all-wheel-drive differential unit. That problem is so widespread that Jaguar has issued a technical service bulletin to its U.S. dealers.

The fix: adding mass to the differential-mounting bracket.

But the cold weather noise is another matter. It occurs anywhere from 20 mph to 70 mph. For some owners it goes away quickly; others have the tuning-fork sound ringing for minutes at a time.

This problem has been the most bothersome to owners because Jaguar Cars has not officially acknowledged it exists.

Some owners say they have had several prop-shafts replaced under warranty - one American owner says he is on his sixth.

Steven Miller, a 41-year-old attorney from Long Beach, N.Y., suffers from both drivetrain problems. While he says he loves his X-Type, Miller is frustrated by his dealer's inability to repair the problems, despite three visits to the service bay. "I made a tape recording of the noise," Miller said. "The attempted fix was to put some sort of additive into the all-wheel-drive system. This quieted the noise for several days, then it came back."

According to Jaguar service technicians, there are two explanations for the noise. One is that the rubber bushing in the prop-shaft hardens in cold weather and squeaks when it rubs against moving parts. The other is that the center bearing in the prop-shaft is slightly off-center, and the cold temperature keeps the grease from heating adequately to insulate the metal-on-metal contact.

Said Cook: "We certainly do extensive cold weather testing, but obviously this wasn't picked up. It's something that comes to light when you build thousands of cars, rather than hundreds. It affects a very small minority of the cars under certain conditions."

Jon Kennedy, a 41-year-old registered nurse in Charlotte, N.C., says he has had his prop-shaft replaced twice, with two different part numbers listed on his repair orders.

But the prop-shaft is only one of several problems Kennedy cites, including a rocking driver seat, weeping windshield washer nozzles, vibration from the tires above 45 mph, and an apparent knocking from the CV joints when turning.

"It seems to me that Jaguar doesn't know how to handle my problems, and it's taken them a long time to get this under control," Kennedy said. "I'm trying to give the dealer every reasonable chance to deal with this, but the general manager knows this is their last chance."

The X-Type driveshaft and half-shafts are supplied by GKN Hardy Spicer in Birmingham, England. GKN declined to comment for this article. Within a couple of years of purchasing Jaguar, Ford Motor Co. claimed it had banished quality glitches to the past. Jaguar's quality scores in the J.D. Power indices soared from below average to the top tier. Many of the X-Type customers are buying their first luxury car and are bristling that a luxury carmaker can't solve the problem on its first attempt.

None of the customers interviewed for this article said they had been contacted by a Jaguar representative.

Said Moss: "If you insult one customer, you lose 25 of his friends down at the country club. And Jaguar is still considered a risky purchase."

 

Shoot I've heard of the noise since I've been on here...Jim had the same noise if I'm not mistaken...

 

k My noise was similar to that big article. High pitched whining, like a tuning fork. Usually on deceleration and sometimes on acceleration around 30-35 mph now. ONLY comes during Cold Weather. Hmm...

So is this something bad that is fortelling that something is going to break? Or is it just an annoyance that isn't harming my car?

 

I personally wouldn't worry about it until it does it full time. Every car in cold weather I've ever owned does different things in the cold weather. Shoot look at how your body reacts in this cold weather!

 

Well it only came this season. I've had the car for more than 5 years since new and its never made any wierd sounds in the cold that persisted after the car was warmed up.

But the car started up without skipping a beat when it was -15*F outside. Windchill in the -20-30's. Doors were almost frozen shut but i yanked it open. I love the car. I guess I will live with the sound. I don't have money to pay for all the diagnostics the dealer will charge since I'm out of warranty.

 

Just keep your eye out...I've noticed a very minute noise from my car before...

 

Thank you Bo for the heads up on Karl having a possible solution. I will see what I can find for a grease syringe. I have some spary grease but I suppose I could not get it in where the bearing needs it. Glad to hear there is a fix versus just replacement.

Just to clarify this propshaft is the driveshaft that runs from the transfer case to the rear differential? And the hanger bearing is it by the transfer case or back by the rear differential?

BTW: Does anyone have a part number and/or price for a reverse switch that screws into the tranny? All my fuses related to the reverse lights are good and the bulbs are good too.

Thank you all for the responses and help!!

 

Here are some grease gun needle adapters and fittings:

http://www.mcmaster.com/ctlg/DisplCt...MMainWidth=800

What do you think would be an appropriate gauge? And what angle fitting (straight, 45, or 90) to get at this hanger bearing?

 

Yep, I had it too Aquill, although only happened for a short while and always from cold

Jim

 

And to answer the other question, the center bearing is just that. In the center of the propshaft between x-fer box and final drive unit.

 

Thankyou FJT! I appreciate the clarification [sm=smiley20.gif]

 

I have a high pitch same thing but the dealer told me its prob a wheel bearing but told me to wait till it gets much louder.

 

I got a 2007 x-type for rental while mine is in the shop and every now and than when under 30mph and above say 10 mph I get a high pitched noise like warped rotors kind of sound. I can hear it over the radio. It doesn't cause vibration or anything I think its just in the brakes. It also is coming from the pass. rear! Man this car is nice but I miss mine! Mine drives the same even though mine has a little over 70k miles and the rental has 12k...z