Help with squealing sound! - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

br3g0 · 03-23-2018, 11:48 AM

A week ago I bought my first Porsche, a 2000 Boxster S with 48k miles.

I cant seem to figure out what the squealing noise I am hearing intermittently.

https://youtu.be/_CzYIcOVMDg
https://youtu.be/xhiLo54W0D8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4eXyL_mhBc&feature=youtu.be

I hear it typically at speeds greater than 30mph. It 'goes away' when I brake and drop overall velocity below 30mph.

Loose Belt?
Wheel Bearing?

Any help at all would be appreciated!

Thank you,
br3g0

br3g0 · 03-26-2018, 10:57 AM

I had a friend help me pinpoint the source of the sound and it appears to come from the passenger front wheel well. So, maybe a bearing issue in the wheel hub??

dav9515 · 03-26-2018, 11:36 AM

definitely seemed to change tone based on speed so would appear to be rotational. You can remove the panel behind the seats and start the car, should be really easy to tell with the panel removed if the sound is coming from the belts, tensioners, or pulley's. At least this could eliminate some possibilities.

however if the noise only happens while driving and is speed dependent it will be a little harder to diagnose

rexcramer · 03-26-2018, 12:15 PM

Wheel Bearings; Jack each corner off the ground. Then grab hold of the tire and see if you have any movement or you feel/hear anything when you spin the wheel.

Belt; The belt won't be loose. It has a tensioner on it. Pull the belt off and spin each item and see if you hear/feel anything also.

Rotors; Are the brake pads glazed? Rotors warped? Small stones wedged into something?

Anker · 03-26-2018, 12:58 PM

Worn bearings give a grinding or rumbling noise. Squealing is more likely worn out brake pads. The metal backing on the pads hit the disks and make a horrible squealing sound.

SC-986 · 03-26-2018, 06:10 PM

FWIW - several years ago I developed a high pitched squeal/screech at the rt. rear of my '02 base. Definitely rotational and amplified when driving with a wall or concrete barrier to the right of the car. After checking brakes and finding no issues I replaced the rt. rear hub bearing as a last resort. That took care of the noise.

br3g0 · 03-27-2018, 09:37 AM

Thank you for all the input, insight, and help on this. I have a mechanic in the car now working on identifying the issue. We are focusing on brakes and wheel bearings at this point.

br3g0 · 04-12-2018, 12:21 PM

To close the loop on this, it turned out to be the wheel bearing.