chazzb

My 2016 Citigo took a whack on the rear right wheel (don't ask) and although the damage wasn't extensive the car did develop a low frequency rumble. The standard modes of diagnosis didn't really show up a wheel bearing failure. I lifted the wheel off the ground and spun it but it felt smooth. Not the kind of roughness you'd expect from a failed bearing, and no side-to-side or front to back play. The one thing I did notice was that the frequency changed with speed (good sign of a failed bearing) and that it was louder when turning one direction and quieter when turning the other direction which was a good indicator of the bearing being worse under more load and, obviously, quieter under less load. The fix is relatively simple. The bearing comes as a complete hub unit which is held on to the axle by a single central nut. The OEM bearing I took off my car is manufactured by FAG which was coincidentally pleasing because I'd chosen an FAG aftermarket part from Autodoc to put on. This is the kit I used. To fix it, you just raise the car, take the wheel off, and then remove the brake drum (handbrake off!). The bearing unit has a cover plate that you need to tap off with a flat head screwdriver and hammer. Thereafter, there's just one 12 point nut that can be removed with the right sized socket and a long breaker bar. The kit also came with a new nut and cover plate. The whole bearing hub unit will just slide off by hand. No puller required. Fitting is just the reversal of that. The nut torque is 70Nm + 30 degrees. I only got to about 25 degrees before the nut totally bottomed out, so it was fairly tight by then. The new cover plate was a bit awkward at first, but a few taps with a nylon hammer soon got it into position. Hopefully this helps with diagnosis and repair of a failed (or failing) rear bearing on a Citigo.

It definitely looks fine - no oscillation at all. The belt and everything about the alternator, tensioner, AC compressor, etc. looks and sounds totally fine. The noise sounds like it's coming from the other (left) side of the engine as you sit in the car (right side when standing in front of the car looking into the engine bay). I just can't get it to make the noise when the car is stationary. I'm wondering if it could be a CV joint, brake hub squeak, clutch...

That was my first thought. It doesn't happen at all when the engine is idling in neutral, and the alternator belt is tight. Revving has no effect either. I'm not ruling it out, but it's odd that it will only happen when engaging the clutch and driving the car. It 100% doesn't happen on cold idle or revving in neutral when is when I might expect a loose alternator belt to squeak.

My 2016 Citigo has developed an odd chirping noise from the front left of the engine bay. I think it is gearbox related. Here's what happens: On engine cold start in neutral it happens for about 0.5 seconds then is silent. Revving the engine doesn't cause it (sounds smooth, just serviced) and nor does putting the clutch in and out. On pull-away it makes a chirping sound. It does this for about the first minute or so of driving, and sometimes again at around 1500 revs when going along. After about 5 minutes it totally disappears. The car drives totally fine. I'm thinking it absolutely has something to do with the clutch. My son has recently learned to drive in it and there have been a few clutch burning pull-aways, especially when practicing hill starts. I'm wondering if the chirping is a slipping clutch that disappears when it warms up? This might also explain the chirping at 1500 revs. Does anyone have any ideas?