Driveline whine/whistle

Kenneth Olsen

Kenneth Olsen

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Location
La Conner, WA, USA
1973 3.0cs with Getrag 265 OD high-pitched whine/whistle at 40 to 60 mph in 3rd, 4th and 5th under load. Noise disappears off throttle. Think of flute or wet wine glass rim. Increases in intensity with road speed. No vibration felt through shifter, all shifting smooth, no synchro issues. Transmission output shaft bearing? Center support bearing? I value your thoughts.
 
Center support typically causes driveshaft wobble/vib you can feel in the seat, at least when the rubber is worn. I would think that wobble would be there all the time, not just under load.
Hopefully it's improper spacing on your diff ring and pinion, that feels like the least expensive option.
Transmission bearings are more complicated.
 
Up on a lift today, (thank you NW European) 2000 rpm in 4th and 5th, listened with stethoscope...whine definitely from front of differential...suspects are the pair of tapered roller bearings on the input shaft. Scheduling a replacement of bearings in June.
 
I have a slight whine in first and second only. The box has been rebuilt twice by an expert in the UK and he says it is "just a noisy box". It works well in all gears.
 
I would recommend that you get the car up on a lift with someone in it to drive it through the gears while you listen with a mechanic's stethoscope or a long screwdriver held to your ear with the tip at the transmission or differential. This way you will quickly discover the source of the noise. We did this and were quickly able to isolate the noise to the front of the differential indicating worn pinion shaft bearings...a relatively inexpensive fix.
 
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