[carl.csa]

Hi!

I’ve had a BMW E90 328xi (manual transmission) for 2 months now and since I got I’ve been experiencing like a “roar” noise while driving. Nothing at all while idling. Only comes up between 1500-2500 RPM while driving and mostly after shifting to the 3rd gear and higher. It’s a weird noise as I couldn’t really find anything similar to it over the internet.

FYI, the car is BMW Certified and got from a BMW Dealership in Canada. I don’t recall hearing that noise during the test drive (only after driving the car off from the dealership). The car was safetied (they had to change the oil pan gasket and there was a leak from the oil filter cap which was also replaced). So the oil filter and engine oil are new. Not sure if they could’ve messed up anything through the process as it’s a BMW dealership.

I don’t think it’s a wheel bearing as it’s more related to the engine not to speed or car movement. And it’s not a humming/whistling or any kind of that noise related to a differential.

Did anyone experience anything similar before? Any help is appreciated.

Please take a look at the video in this link (not sure if the noise is noticeable) but you should here it at 0:10 when I shifted to 4th gear, than it goes at away at 5th gear (0:16) and comes back when I downshift back to 4th gear (0:24). Although it is not related to which gear the car is running cuz you can hear it also in most gears but in this video it is mostly on the 4th.

https://youtu.be/xXnl1XkuY-Y?feature=shared

[carl.csa]

Anyone?

[Hoody007]

Perhaps a pulley? Do you hear it at a standstill if you rev to 1500 rpm?

Since your car is an xDrive, could be related to the front differential perhaps. If the car is BMW Certified I wonder what the dealer would say. Would be helpful if you could record the noise.

[lordnikon]

If it's a CPO car, take it back to the dealer for them to diagnose. The car should have some sort of warranty?

[carl.csa]

Unfortunately, the car is not under warranty. It’s a 2010 model. The parts they replaced for safety are under warranty but I don’t think they are related to the issue.

[carl.csa]

I’ll try recording it in the next couple of days Hoody and no it does not do any of that noise while the car is parked (just while driving). I never got back to the BMW dealership yet cuz I know they will charge a decent diagnostic amount. I am just waiting till the coming two weeks to see if it is a tires issue as I would be switching to summer tires. I’ve seen some people saying that their tires would make some similar noise sometimes. I don’t currently think it’s a differential issue either cuz it’s not a humming noise (which is more common for differentials) and should most probably make it while parked too. Thanks for the reply btw!

[Hoody007]

Originally Posted by carl.csa

I’ll try recording it in the next couple of days Hoody and no it does not do any of that noise while the car is parked (just while driving). I never got back to the BMW dealership yet cuz I know they will charge a decent diagnostic amount. I am just waiting till the coming two weeks to see if it is a tires issue as I would be switching to summer tires. I’ve seen some people saying that their tires would make some similar noise sometimes. I don’t currently think it’s a differential issue either cuz it’s not a humming noise (which is more common for differentials) and should most probably make it while parked too. Thanks for the reply btw!

Could be tires too. What’s currently on the car? I’ve had Bridgestone RFTs which made a similar noise. Solved by getting some Continental DWS06+!

[carl.csa]

Originally Posted by Hoody007

Could be tires too. What’s currently on the car? I’ve had Bridgestone RFTs which made a similar noise. Solved by getting some Continental DWS06+!

The current tires on it are Michelin. These winter tires were bought by the previous owner in November 2023. So it’s their first season on the car. I do believe the summer tires are continental tho and it would be their second season as they were also bought new last summer. Just waiting for the weather to get better next week maybe to do the switch.

[John 070]

maybe a mountain lion is stuck in the engine bay

[TheMidnightNarwhal]

If the car doesn't have warranty than it is not certified pre-owned BMW. Maybe they are using certified as a marketing term and to say they fixed the car before selling it but yeah these generation cars definitely aren't sold as certified pre owned anymore.

But on to your topic, if you had a video with the sound it would be better.

[carl.csa]

Originally Posted by TheMidnightNarwhal

If the car doesn't have warranty than it is not certified pre-owned BMW. Maybe they are using certified as a marketing term and to say they fixed the car before selling it but yeah these generation cars definitely aren't sold as certified pre owned anymore.

But on to your topic, if you had a video with the sound it would be better.

BMW Ceritfied here means that it went through the safety process at the BMW dealership and they did the required repairs for it to be safe to drive in Ontario. They do have an extended warranty option but it is paid so I didn’t take it.

Thank you for your reply btw! I just attached a link to the video in the initial post if you wanna take a look at it. Not sure if the noise is heard clearly in the video but I did a small paragraph explanaining where the sound is head directly above the link.

[carl.csa]

Originally Posted by Hoody007

Perhaps a pulley? Do you hear it at a standstill if you rev to 1500 rpm?

Since your car is an xDrive, could be related to the front differential perhaps. If the car is BMW Certified I wonder what the dealer would say. Would be helpful if you could record the noise.

Just added the link to the video and a small explanation paragraph above it if you want to take a look at it.

[whyzee125]

Interesting. I can't quite tell from the video, but does it go away when you push in the clutch? What about if you rev it while moving but with the clutch in? Does it do it in neutral while the car is stopped?

[carl.csa]

Originally Posted by whyzee125

Interesting. I can't quite tell from the video, but does it go away when you push in the clutch? What about if you rev it while moving but with the clutch in? Does it do it in neutral while the car is stopped?

Yes it does go away if I push the clutch. So more likely something related to the engine. Not sure if the differential can make that noise but I’ve seen a lot of videos for differential making a humming noise while the car is parked. So I dont think it’s the differential in my case. And just to answe all your questions: it doesn’t make it if I rev it in both clutch positions. So nothing while neutral or parked at all no matter what I do. Mostly between 1300 to 2500 rpm when I switch to a higher gear and push the gas pedal.

[whyzee125]

Throwout bearing.

Everyone says it should be the opposite, and that throwout bearings only make noise when the clutch IS pushed but I've had TWO cars where it was the exact opposite. It was a growly type noise like what you're describing. My previous e90 335i and previous supra

[carl.csa]

Originally Posted by whyzee125

Throwout bearing.

Everyone says it should be the opposite, and that throwout bearings only make noise when the clutch IS pushed but I've had TWO cars where it was the exact opposite. It was a growly type noise like what you're describing. My previous e90 335i and previous supra

At first I expected it to be a throughout bearing cuz I’ve had an e34 that made the same exact noise but turned out to be the clutch disc and it made it at phase where the car could barely run so at the end of it’s life. That’s why I did not remove that possibility from my mind yet but since the clutch is running great on this car, I did trying searching for other stuff that might cause this noise. But since you’re saying that, then I guess this might be the issue if it does not necessarily affect the performance.