This just started today, turn volume all the way up so you can hear it properly. The noise starts right when the car starts moving, but the whistle-like noises only start around 50kph.

I had the transfer case oil changed & the propshaft seal fixed on 2012-03-26 because there I spotted a tiny leak:


Indeed, they told me the leak had been very small and only about a spoonful was missing. It's just the propshaft spinning and splattering the oil around that made it look dramatic. They also told me that the magnet in the plug had few if any metal flakes on it, indicating that the transfer case is in good condition.

A moment ago, after returning home (I turned around pretty much immediately) I took this photo:


The bottom parts have been washed in between (anti-corrosion treatment) so the oil is all-new...

Is my transfer case doomed? I'm most certainly calling the shop as soon as possible regarding this...

 

that sounds like mine, ive been told it could be the propshaft centre bearing.

but with my car when I lowered the rear tyre pressure it stopped making that whine sound from 30 mph, it moved to 50 mph!

but only in cold weather?

 

At that speed I would guess that it is 99.9% the propshaft. Do a search on here as it is one of the most common problems our car has. Generally you replace the entire propshaft, but there are posts of guys doing just the bearings. A new propshaft is about $1000 at the dealer. If you buy a used one there is no guarantee that one won't have the same issue or will at some point down the road. Some have greased the carrier bearing, but that seems to have mixed success. There are write ups on here how to do that. Only happens in cold weather. Actually, I'm kind of surprised that this is one of the few posts this year on it. Usually starting in October/November every year you see posts on here for that very issues.

 

Hmm, now that I think it's possible the oil isn't new. The anti-corrosion treatment was obviously not performed on those parts but the chassis and body, so there would've been no need to clean them...

I'll search for propshaft noise threads. But indeed, the noise is so loud that I can't imagine anyone living with it day-to-day.

This day isn't significantly colder than any before, and this was the first day with these symptoms. However, the car was 2-3 hours in a warm garage (not often) the day before. Not sure if it matters.

EDIT:
Apparently it's the infamous propshaft carrier bearing then. I drove it today, and it didn't make the high whining noise it did yesterday. The low-end noise was gone in a few kilometres, and after that it's been completely normal.

 

I greased the carrier bearing using the needle approach on Saturday. Took all of about 5 minutes.

My "moaning" sound when cold has all but disappeared (it normally took about 5 km to go, irrespective of the outside temp), and the 60-80km/h whine has reduced in magnitude by about 50%.

I'll give it another go this weekend, and overgrease it and see if the whine further reduces.

Regards

Rob

Edit; Aonsaithya, our cars are identical (year, colour, trim) except mine is an auto...

 

Oh, they are! Dove/Granite isn't too common a combination.

I don't really have the necessary facilities to do the grease-procedure, but I'm certainly looking into it. Let me know how the overgreasing goes

 

When mine went it just started making the noise without warning. It didn't srat out as a slight whine that eventually got worse. Only happened between about 28-32 MPH. When the temperature got around freezing or above it wouldn't do it. Anything much colder than that and it was there. Yes, very annoying. I got lucky when mine went as it was still under warranty. Dealer replaced for free at about 47L miles. I have 120K on her now and can't help think in the back of my mind that it might start doing it again. I'm not sure if Jaguar ever addressed that issue in the later cars. Good luck!Hope greasing the carrier bearing helps at least for a bit.

 

Thanks! So far the noise hasn't come back.

Bonus exercise:
I caught another elusive noise on video today. This occurs maybe 1-2 times a week for a short time on low speeds, and appears to occur more often when the car is full of people so weight matters.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggG6guadi8w

The sound comes from the right rear corner and doesn't seem to be audible on the outside. Wheel bearing?

 

Aonsaithya, I think our cars must be twins off the production line!! (the last 6 digits of my VIN is C20919).

I too have that occasional sound - let me know if you get it diagnosed. My car is due for a service in a couple of months, so I'm not going to investigate it until then.

Regards

Rob

 

They do look quite similar, though not twins as mine is C14670

A local shop test-drove the car, and had a hard time making the noise appear. When it finally did, they said it's unlikely to be anything serious suggested to wait and see if starts to get worse.

 

Mine does the same from 30-50mph in the cold... once it gets warm it goes away.

 

The sound from the first or the second video? I've yet to encounter the first one again, second is an uncommon occurence.

Today at about 55mph I think I heard a really faint constant whistle. The two passeners were unable to hear it, but then again my hearing is pretty good. In a sense it's a bad thing as it turns every enjoyable drive into a bit of a diagnostics moment

 

Does the propshaft need replaced if car is doing this? Or is it just an annoying sound, in that case I can deal with the noise and save a $1000.

 

Read the thread greasing the bearing may help. It does seem to be just an annoying sound, the drivetrain should be fine otherwise. Of course a bearing that makes sound has a fault of some sort so the greasing may be a good idea anyway.

 

Had the car serviced, the shop said that in their experience, swapping drivetrain components for new ones doesn't help and neither does greasing the bearing. They had fixed one noisy X-Type by replacing the carrier bearing part of the propshaft with a Mercedes-Benz one, and another stopped making noises when they changed the rear differential oil and added some X1R into the mix, apparently a resonation issue.

My car had likely never had the rear differential oil changed, so this was as good a time as any, but it didn't do anything to the noise. It's been less noisy the last few days, but that's only because it's much warmer than it used to be. Still, it did the low-speed noise as heard on the first video even this morning (it's 0 degrees outside!). I can't help fearings it's something really serious, although it indeed still stops making the sound rather quickly. I'll ask them to grease the bearing maybe, it could be that there are multiple reasons why the bearing may be making noise and this was a fix for one of the possible causes, that just wasn't the case now.

While checking the rear brakes for the second video noise, they were initially suspecting that the rear brake something isn't properly in its slot (apparently somewhat common), and that prevents the auto-adjusting handbrake from properly adjusting, which then allows the pad to slightly touch the disc. That turned out to be the case indeed, and I have yet to hear that sound again. Unfortunately (or fortunately?) the right rear brake caliper was found to be leaking fluid and thus it must be swapped. They said there's a cheap repair kit available, but that the installation costs vs. the caliper would result in insignificant difference. They had no free claiper at the moment, so they said they'd order one and let me know when it arrives.

 

Well, a quick update.

Despite greasing my centre bearing a couple of times, the noise kept returning. A couple of months back my indie workshop serviced the car, and the mechanic told me the gearbox roll restrictor was shot. Essentially this is an oval shaped metal fitting with a couple of rubber bushes. Both bushes were out of centre, with the rubber tearing a little bit.

This is the part I'm referring to: Gearbox Mount Roll Restrictor - C2S38952 | Jaguar X Type | Jaguar | British Parts UK

Well, long story short. He replaced the restrictor, and now the whining sound has totally disappeared. I'm guessing the couple of mill movement in the gearbox to driveshaft relationship (yep, clearly I'm not an engineer!) has taken some pressure off the bearing slightly when it's cold.

Regards

Rob

 

Thanks for the update!

I'll definitely keep that in mind, though the issue can apparently be caused by a variety of problems, the symptom for all being the carrier bearing whine. How difficult is replacing that part?

 

He charged me an hours labour to change the roll restrictor and both rear shocks.

Regards

Rob

 

I have a 5 speed and I can tell, esp. in 1st to 2nd gear changes that something is not right with the motor mounts (roll restrictor & top mount). It's not a sound, but when I shift from 1st to 2nd gear at speed (3500rpm), I have to carefully exchange the accelerator for the clutch to get a smooth transition. Otherwise the car will kind of pull and give at the wrong time.

I found the roll restrictor for the X, apparently it's the same for all, but the upper mount is not as straight fwd. On Jagbits.com the front motor mount goes by VIN and is only shown for the S-Type. I understand that the X and S can share the throttle body, among some other parts, but do they share the top front motor mount?

Here is the Jagbits description:

ENGINE MOTOR MOUNT FRONT
Part #: XR857743
ENGINE MOTOR MOUNT FRONT FITS 2000-2002 S-TYPE 4.0 UP TO VIN M45254. Replaces XR82892

Also, has anyone replaced their own roll restrictor? I imagine I need to relieve the weight on it to R&R it. Thanks!

 

Hey all, I know this is an old thread but I figured I kinda had some inside knowledge... I worked at a Jaguar dealer from 04-08 and I used to see X-Types in at all different mileage with the driveshaft rubbing noise. I remember specifically picking up a brand new X from the doll up shop to drive to a customer (and it had 8 miles on it) and it was making the noise. The salesman I was driving with just told me to keep my mouth shut and let it be a warranty repair at a later day. About 100 miles later it came back. Multiple customers would come back multiple times to have the driveshaft completely replaced. Evidentially when I left there was still never a true fix for it- according to our top tech. Ironically enough I had an 02 3.0L that never once made the rubbing noise. It had 92K when I was t-boned. Tranny replaced at 45k and then again at 54K. My current one, an 05 has about 75k on it (tranny replaced at 55k as well) and has made the noise for quite some time, but just periodically. But to me, its no big deal. Its my winter car and/or gas saver... I have a Navigator which almost get the same mileage and it doesn't take premium but when I don't need to take clients around (real estate agent) this has been a generally good lil puddle jumper. In Feb I'll be looking for a used awd XF or will wait to see if Lincoln will step up their game with a car that doesn't scream old people... Being 30, this seem car has always felt fitting. I still get complements on it all the time- even though someone could easily pick one up for under 10k anywhere.. They just don't know...