just this past weekend, i noticed a constant whir-whir-whir sound from the front left of my Mini noticeable from 40kph up but doesn't increase in loudness after that. i usually leave the cruise control on 100kph, but upon deceleration (letting off the gas or stepping on the brakes) it makes a louder low-pitched "hummm" until about 40-50kph. there are no vibrations on the steering wheel. all tires are equal in pressure. the brakes are good

has anyone experienced this?

 

Nope, sorry. Take a look at your pads. Maybe something caught there, or maybe the piston is depressed a bit too far for some reason?

 

hmm...i visually inspected the pads without taking out the rims, they look fine. i'll check how they look like with the rims out later.

any other ideas guys? it couldn't be tires, right?

 

should i be worried about anything drivetrain related? tried freewheeling the Mini in 60kph, the same low-pitched sound can be heard

 

the sound has progressively become worse, my mechanics suspect that it could be the front left wheel bearing. has anyone had to replace wheel bearings?

 

If you have the Bentley manual you can see the job yourself. Easy easy. If you can do brakes, you can do wheel bearings.

- Matt

 

it sounds like a wheel bearing. not too bad to install.

 

should i just do the left side where the sound seems to be coming from? or replace the right one as well?

curiously, when we jacked up the car on all fours, ran it on 3rd gear to about 2k rpm (DSC off of course), we didn't hear anything from the bearings nor tranny. should i only be hearing this on the road when the wheels have a load on them?

 

yes, it needs a load. just taking off the axle nut and giving it a spin may reveal a lot.