Rumbling noise 30-40 mph on Clio 172, advice needed

[Salamura]

Hi all,

My 172 has recently developed a strange rumbling noise coming from the front passenger side. Initially it was barely audible and I thought I'm making it up, but it has gotten progressively worse. The symptoms are a rumble noise (constant, not pulsating) between 30-40 mph, it is not audible at low speed, and at high speed it either disappears or it's being drowned by engine/wind noise. The noise is present regardless of engine rpm or in/out of gear, and doesn't seem to be too affected by cornering. Although, I think it is a bit worse off-throttle than on throttle. I took it to a local mechanic who swore that it was just the NS wheel bearing and I changed it, but the noise is still here. I did have a look under the car and saw a split in the driveshaft boot which has been stapled together (!) by some canny mechanic. My hopes are that it's a driveshaft and not a diff or gearbox.

I've seen a few different topics, and sometimes it turns out to be unevenly worn tyres, other times it is something a bit worse, so if anyone has got more experiences and advice to share, that would be appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[RIC172]

sounds like one or more of your wheels aren’t balanced properly. Possibly a rear wheel if your steering wheel isn’t vibrating at speed

 

[White16valver]

You could try swapping the front wheels to the back to see if the noise moves.

 

[Salamura]

Thanks, I'll try swapping the wheels over to see if that helps. It is true that I first started hearing the noise when I swapped my winter rubber to summer about a month or so ago, and literally the same day I thought that there's a bit more noise than usual, but I thought that it's just my imagination.

 

[White16valver]

Thanks, I'll try swapping the wheels over to see if that helps. It is true that I first started hearing the noise when I swapped my winter rubber to summer about a month or so ago, and literally the same day I thought that there's a bit more noise than usual, but I thought that it's just my imagination.

Sounds like you may have found the culprit