Trouble finding source of noise.

2001 Honda Accord. V6 Automatic with 140,000 miles.

I have a noise that starts up around 15mph and gets louder with speed.
Slight vibration to go with it. Alignment and tires are good. I don't
/think/ it is the transmission as A) power and fuel economy remain unchanged
and B) if I put it into neutral at highway speeds and just coast (letting
engine RPM drop to near idle) noise remains constant (in regards to land
speed).

Pulled all 4 tires (1 at a time) to inspect brakes and boots and all appear
to be in order. No rips or leaks.

Any ideas of what it could be or what I should check next to help narrow it
down further. Any pertinent info I should add to the above?

Thanks.

 

When - how many miles ago did you rotate your tires - also did you
check inflation. Cupped rear tires can make a funny noise - should
rotate every 10K or so. Putting tranny in neutral and coasting is not
good for extended duration but since the noise remained the same and
varies with speed - could be in the tranny. At what mile interval do
you change tranny fluid? Could be the thingy in the tranny that
connects to the short shafts. Got a slight howl in mine - some idiot
forgot to fill the tranny and drove for 10K one quart low.

Tires first and tranny second.

 

When - how many miles ago did you rotate your tires - also did you
check inflation. Cupped rear tires can make a funny noise - should
rotate every 10K or so. Putting tranny in neutral and coasting is not
good for extended duration but since the noise remained the same and
varies with speed - could be in the tranny. At what mile interval do
you change tranny fluid? Could be the thingy in the tranny that
connects to the short shafts. Got a slight howl in mine - some idiot
forgot to fill the tranny and drove for 10K one quart low.

Tires first and tranny second.

 

When - how many miles ago did you rotate your tires - also did you
check inflation. Cupped rear tires can make a funny noise - should
rotate every 10K or so. Putting tranny in neutral and coasting is not
good for extended duration but since the noise remained the same and
varies with speed - could be in the tranny. At what mile interval do
you change tranny fluid? Could be the thingy in the tranny that
connects to the short shafts. Got a slight howl in mine - some idiot
forgot to fill the tranny and drove for 10K one quart low.

Tires first and tranny second.

 

Tires are inflated to proper PSI and not cupped.

Agreed, that was just done for a few seconds at a time to see if noise was
tied to RPM or speed.

Every 35K, most recent being yesterday.

So, if it is this "thingy" howling, A) is it more of a noise/annoyance issue
or B) is it one of those things that will get worse and break down?

 

Tires are inflated to proper PSI and not cupped.

Agreed, that was just done for a few seconds at a time to see if noise was
tied to RPM or speed.

Every 35K, most recent being yesterday.

So, if it is this "thingy" howling, A) is it more of a noise/annoyance issue
or B) is it one of those things that will get worse and break down?

 

Tires are inflated to proper PSI and not cupped.

Agreed, that was just done for a few seconds at a time to see if noise was
tied to RPM or speed.

Every 35K, most recent being yesterday.

So, if it is this "thingy" howling, A) is it more of a noise/annoyance issue
or B) is it one of those things that will get worse and break down?

 

Wheel bearing?

 

Wheel bearing?

 

Wheel bearing?

 

i'd say bearing or inboard driveshaft cup.

 

i'd say bearing or inboard driveshaft cup.

 

i'd say bearing or inboard driveshaft cup.

 

Being relatively new to car maintenance (other than oil changes) any hints
for determining which wheel? Driving with the windows down didn't help me
narrow down which corner it is coming from, and jacking up each corner and
spinning the wheel by hand yielded nothing.

In addition, is this something a "typical" DIYer can accomplish? Special
tools needed? Or am I better off having a shop do it and not waste my time?

Approx costs to DIY and have a (non Honda) shop do it?

Thanks

Note: I have nothing against my Honda dealership, they were easy to deal
with when I bought the car new, but they are not convenient to me where I
have a decent shop 5 minutes away.

 

Being relatively new to car maintenance (other than oil changes) any hints
for determining which wheel? Driving with the windows down didn't help me
narrow down which corner it is coming from, and jacking up each corner and
spinning the wheel by hand yielded nothing.

In addition, is this something a "typical" DIYer can accomplish? Special
tools needed? Or am I better off having a shop do it and not waste my time?

Approx costs to DIY and have a (non Honda) shop do it?

Thanks

Note: I have nothing against my Honda dealership, they were easy to deal
with when I bought the car new, but they are not convenient to me where I
have a decent shop 5 minutes away.

 

Being relatively new to car maintenance (other than oil changes) any hints
for determining which wheel? Driving with the windows down didn't help me
narrow down which corner it is coming from, and jacking up each corner and
spinning the wheel by hand yielded nothing.

In addition, is this something a "typical" DIYer can accomplish? Special
tools needed? Or am I better off having a shop do it and not waste my time?

Approx costs to DIY and have a (non Honda) shop do it?

Thanks

Note: I have nothing against my Honda dealership, they were easy to deal
with when I bought the car new, but they are not convenient to me where I
have a decent shop 5 minutes away.

 

Thanks for the response. Please see my follow up to "High" in regards to
"if" it is a wheel bearing.

In regards to "inboard driveshaft cup", that's sounds ugly. Is it as ugly
as it sounds? Any advice on how to narrow it down to this vs. wheel
bearing?

And as before (in my response to "High"), is this something a typical DIYer
can/should attempt on their own? Costs of DIY vs. a shop?

Are either of these possible causes of the noise safety and/or increased
wear issues (i.e. will get steadily worse to the point of non-drivable) or
merely annoyances that I have to deal with till I get it tracked down and
repaired?

Thanks

 

Thanks for the response. Please see my follow up to "High" in regards to
"if" it is a wheel bearing.

In regards to "inboard driveshaft cup", that's sounds ugly. Is it as ugly
as it sounds? Any advice on how to narrow it down to this vs. wheel
bearing?

And as before (in my response to "High"), is this something a typical DIYer
can/should attempt on their own? Costs of DIY vs. a shop?

Are either of these possible causes of the noise safety and/or increased
wear issues (i.e. will get steadily worse to the point of non-drivable) or
merely annoyances that I have to deal with till I get it tracked down and
repaired?

Thanks

 

Thanks for the response. Please see my follow up to "High" in regards to
"if" it is a wheel bearing.

In regards to "inboard driveshaft cup", that's sounds ugly. Is it as ugly
as it sounds? Any advice on how to narrow it down to this vs. wheel
bearing?

And as before (in my response to "High"), is this something a typical DIYer
can/should attempt on their own? Costs of DIY vs. a shop?

Are either of these possible causes of the noise safety and/or increased
wear issues (i.e. will get steadily worse to the point of non-drivable) or
merely annoyances that I have to deal with till I get it tracked down and
repaired?

Thanks

 

for bearings, jack the suspected wheel off the ground and, leaving the
wheel on for leverage, check for play.

if it is a bearing, take it to the shop. the tools necessary to press
the old bearing out and get the new one in without damaging it are not
cheap or the kind of thing you have laying about in the garage.

if it's the inboard joint, it can damage & loosen the output socket on
the diff. driveshafts are relatively easy to replace. check out
tegger's faq's regarding the joint separation tool you'll need to do
this job properly. when removing the outboard joint from the steering
knuckle, try and avoid hammering it - you can damage the wheel bearing.