i get this humming noise that echo's through the whole car and i can also feel it under my feet. it is worst at about 40 mph and gets a little quieter when at highway speeds. i was thinking wheel bearing but i noticed i can move the inner cv and their is a considerable amount of play in and out and side to side. both cv's are like this but the driver side is worse. thes is on a 90 legacy awd. i checked my other legacy and their is also play but not as much. now when i grab the cv on the other legacy it's warm to the touch, but on this one it is pretty hot. is it normal for the trans to have this play.

Is the play in the cv axle joint or in the axle stub?

it's not the cv shaft. if i grab the shaft at the very end right where it goes into the trans their is alot of play in all directions. it would have to be something loose in the trans. i'm not 100% sure this is where the noise is, it could be a wheel bearing but after i seen this i started thinking it was coming from the trans. i checked my other soob and that has a little play to so i didn't know if this was normal or not. the inner cv was also very hot to the touch, is this normal.

Pull the person out from under your car ya ran over.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

j/k

Check your exhaust system and the hangers. It may be as simple as a heat shield.

 

Always tell us how many miles are on the car whenever you list a problem (yes thats a hint). You may have a worn CV joint that is starting to seize.

 

 

nipper

210,000 miles

Is there any clicking noises on hard turns at slow speed? At that mileage, the Cv's had had a very long life.

 

nipper

no clicking or anything like that

If it's not the cv joint, the bearing caps may be loose allowing play in the transmission.

i had it to the garage and they think the noise is a wheel bearing but i showed them the looseness in the cv and they thought that it was a little excessive.

 

whats involved in fixing the bearing caps

Just turning and tightening them. It's not too hard. But the real issue is how did they get loose in the first place.....this may point to a bearing issue.