2005 XJ8 VDP, we have had her about 4 months and recently started hearing (and feeling) a rumbling noise near the front, especially when the road is rough.
Any thooughts? Thank you. Tamsruby

 

Possible wheel bearing on the way out.

Jack the car up and spin front wheels by hand while listening for rumbling or

roughness.

Does one wheel spin a bit easier than t'other?

Hold wheels at 3 o'clock and 9 o' clock and test for play.

 

Thank you, I was thinking it could be some suspension problems as the car seems to bounce quite a bit. It is a 2005 but only 42 k miles,

 

Hi tamsruby,

To add to the good info from meirion1, I have found that on the X350 it can be difficult to detect a failing front wheel bearing with the wheel and brake rotor installed. You may find that you have to remove the wheel, brake caliper and rotor to remove all mass loading. You will then be able to detect any grittiness or undue resistance in the bearing as you rotate the hub by hand. It helps to compare the feel of both front bearings to each other, or to have a new hub/bearing on hand for comparison.

The best deal I know of on new hub/bearing assemblies are the ones from Detroit Axle, available via eBay. Below are links to current listings for singles and pairs. Don't let the low prices fool you - these are quality parts and I've used them successfully on three X350s so far:

Detroit Axle Front Wheel Hub and Bearing - Single
Detroit Axle Front Wheel Hub and Bearing - Pair

Cheers,

Don

 

How are your tires? I had what I thought was front bearing noise but it turned out to be my dry-rotted tires causing the noise.