Hi all. I'm new here, so I hope this is allowed...

We've had a 58 plate Roomster now for around 8 or 9 years and it's always... always always always, made a weird scrubbing sound when driving. It gets higher pitched as speed increases and is at it's worst around 45-50mph. It sounds like a wheel bearing but there's no play in the wheels and a mechanic has confirmed the wheel bearings are ok. It sometimes goes away when new tyres are fitted but it always comes back. I've had the tracking done, no difference (although it was miles out). I also wondered if it could be the transmission (it's auto), but if I shift to Neutral the noise doesn't change. So perhaps not?

Any ideas? It's driving me mad. I can usually diagnose and often fix faults with cars myself, but I'm at a loss with this one.

Not sure on the roomster but on the octavia the rear swing arm bushes can fail/go soft and cause a weird bearing like noise as the rear end is out of alignment and the noise is tyres scrubbing as you drive. There are concentric bolts for the rear alignment to adjust camber and toe etc. Are the rear tyres wearing evenly? If the bushes have failed or worn the rear end may be out and tyres will wear unevenly. I would maybe get a four wheel alignment done and have the rear end bushes checked.

Alasdair