Howdy, I have an '03 explorer AWD 100,000 miles on it. Past few months it has developed a wa wa sounding noise gets faster as you accelerate and has been getting louder the longer I let it go. Have rotated the tires, no help. Have it up on jack stands and no grinding or noise on any of the axles everything feels tight. I did notice the rear end is out of alignment but didn't want to align it until I find out if I need to replace anything. Either the CV or the diff. is leaking from the seal on the rear end. I checked the fluid and its overfilled but looks good. It seems to get louder going down the road when you turn the wheel just a bit. Any ideas?

 

Had the same thing start August of '07 with 43K on the original Rugged Trails. Bought a set of Michelins and had a 4-wheel alignment done; noise went away and hasn't been back. Don't know if yours is tire/alignment related but it worked for me. BTW, my '04 is 4x2.

Steve

 

Thanks for the reply, I think I'll take it to my alignment guy tomorrow and have him take a look at it, see what he thinks.

 

Matt2ts Did you ever find out what is causing the wa wa sound. I am having the same problem. I'm hoping that it is tire noise like Steina had.
Thanks, Jay

 

Howdy, Yes I found out what the noise was. Turned out it was a front wheel bearing going out. I took it to my alignment guy. He had to hook up his machine to find it. We both thought it was the driver side making the noise and it turned out to be the passenger side. Funny how noise travels. The bearing assembly costs $300 and $75 to align it. Total bill to was $500. After he took the bearing off, there was no doubt that was the problem but with the vehicle in the air you couldn't hardly tell a difference. I was talking to the guys at NAPA and they said the rear bearings go out more often than the front and they can rebuild the assembly cheaper than a new one. Hope this helps.

Matt

 

Thanks, Matt. I'll have to check the front and rear bearings. That sounds a lot cheaper then a rear dif.
Jay