300SDL "Ringing"

I would check the "doughnuts" that hang the exhaust system.

The other thing I would check is the bushings (I think they are nylon) on the rear torsion spring/swar bar behind the rear wheels. Do you get a _clunk_ when your rear wheels go over a speed bump?

You'll feel the diff and smell diff fluid long before it fails.

Sounds more like a wind noise than anything mechanical to me.

not sure what you might mean by 'ringing', but in the even that you might mean 'whining' rather than ringing like with a bell, it could be your drive shaft support bearing..... does it get worse when cold?

cheers, guenter

Whining would be an adequate description. The sound does have a metallic quality to it, though.

Yes, it does! And until you asked, I hadn't noticed that the noise is present when I drive to work very early in the morning when the temps are in the 30s or 40s, but absent when I drive home in the afternoon in 60-70F temperatures.

Assuming the noise is from the drive shaft support bearing, is this something that I should have looked at soon because it could fail catastrophically and without warning, or can I wait until the noise becomes annoying? Is it an expensive fix?

Thanks to all who answered.

Geoff

-- "GHACK!" -- Saddam Hussein

mine's been doing that for the last few winters.... just appears to be annoying

cheers