How to Diagnose a Faulty Driveshaft Center Support Bearing

How to troubleshoot a faulty driveshaft hanger bearing. So in this particular video I will be using my 1997 BMW 540i as an example, but this diagnosis can be applied to other vehicles with a similar driveshaft setup. Other manufacturers which use hanger bearings and is not limited to is Toyota, Dodge, Mitsubishi, Cadillac, GMC, Chevrolet, Mercedes, etc. A driveshaft hanger bearing, also known as a center support bearing serves the purpose as the name states. In short, it supports the driveshaft. It not only keeps the driveshaft neatly tucked away within the underbody of the vehicle, but it also helps achieve the correctly angles for the universal or constant velocity joints, this vehicle has both in the driveshaft. If the angles are incorrect, this will cause excessive wear on the joints, possible vibrations, and lead to premature failure. The exterior will have a steel frame, next is a rubber damper which keep the driveshaft somewhat floating dealing with the movement from the body, suspension, or drivetrain. And finally the center used a bearing which allows the driveshaft to rotate freely and smoothy. They can fail in a couple different ways, either the rubber eventually cracks which will cause vibrations or in a worst case scenario clunking if it’s badly worn. This can be noticeable at certain speeds or when starting off from a stop in drive or reverse. Besides the rubber being somewhat worn, the bearing was also coming to the end of it’s life too. You can hear some clicking clicking on camera hopefully and you can see it also turned fairly easy. A new bearing should be somewhat stiff when turning. The other way it can fail is the bearing can eventually wear out. A worn bearing will create a clicking or growling noise, depending on how bad it’s worn. A faulty bearing typically starts out as a clicking, eventually growing to a growling sound which can sometimes be felt through the body of the vehicle and the noise will increase with speed as the driveshaft turns faster. Mine wasn’t overly expensive, I didn’t buy one directly from BMW but instead the manufacturer who produces them for BMW. #BMW #BMW5series #autorepair

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