Weird noises coming from somewhere around differential on 2008 Rogue

Nissan Rogue forum - Includes Nissan Qashqai and Nissan Dualis as well.
sergebass
Posts: 3
Joined: Sun Oct 02, 2016 2:12 pm
Car: Nissan Rogue 2008 SL AWD

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Hi all,

My 2008 Nissan Rogue (SL AWD) makes noises that are emitted from the rear of the vehicle (I have googled a lot and browsed quite a few topic here and came to conclusion that this may have something to do with the differential, but I'm not quite sure). I've listened to other people's soundclips and mine do not quite sound the same.

Here's a sample:
https://soundcloud.com/sergebass/nissan ... tial-noise

These sounds started being heard several months ago and were pretty rare and faint at first. However they got progressively louder and more noticeable (even from the outside) as time got by. I brought the car to a local shop specializing in transmission repairs and the mechanic was not quite sure about the source/reason of the noise. He did show me a Nissan bulletin that was related to wrong sounds at low speeds when doing turns and suggested that maybe an electronic component doing the coupling of the rear axle was at fault and probably needed a firmware update.

The issue is that in my cases these noises do not happen during turns. As you can hear in the clip, there is a weaker burst of them when starting the engine and the next time you hear it is when I switch from Parking into Reverse (or Drive, doesn't really matter), even well before the wheels start rolling in any direction. I don't get these sounds while turning but I do get them while accelerating (especially when going uphill), even when going totally straight. It even feels like any time a regular (non-CVT) transmission would do gear shifting, I get something that feels like a sort of slipping (a rear clutch?). At first I was afraid that CVT was somehow damaged but these noises definitely come from the rear area (I recorded the clip while my phone was located exactly under the differential).

Do you have any ideas as to what is the culprit here and what could have led to the issue?

I read several forums about importance of tire size/wear matching to avoid extra load on the AWD trains but this car sees wheels rotated twice a year (seasonal changes in Canada) and all tires are actually the same age.

I'll appreciate any feedback on this as even if I have to go to a dealer about this problem, I'd be more prepared.
(I don't have much trust for dealerships by default).

Thanks in advance,
Sergii in Ottawa, Canada


sergebass
Posts: 3
Joined: Sun Oct 02, 2016 2:12 pm
Car: Nissan Rogue 2008 SL AWD

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Just a couple of other observations:

1. When the car has driven a little (transmission is not cold), the sounds during the engine start/switching to drive from parking seem to disappear (I don't really hear anything suspicious) but they still stay during harder accelerations (although maybe a bit less loud). When the car spends a night in a garage, all the start-up noises come back the next day again.

2. The AWD light never comes on during any of these events (if it's a factor/indication).

Thanks,
Sergii

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ImStricken06
Posts: 5052
Joined: Wed Dec 07, 2011 8:45 am
Car: 2008 Rogue(sold)
2013 Santa Fe
2016 Sorento
Location: Within Range
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It could be the clutch pack syl, but I doubt it. Sounds like a strange exhaust rattle. Go around and spray every exhaust hanger.

sergebass
Posts: 3
Joined: Sun Oct 02, 2016 2:12 pm
Car: Nissan Rogue 2008 SL AWD

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Thanks for the suggestion, ImStricken06,

I've seen people mentioning the exhaust hangers as the cause of rattle in other forum posts but it somehow feels like a grinding noise to me more than a rattle...
(especially since I can hear them while going on the highway, when doing easy acceleration uphill, so RPMs do not change that drastically)

I wonder why does this noise come in short bursts and then stop? Aren't loose hangers supposed to rattle all the time?

I'll check the hangers anyway, just in case. Could it be that there are multiple issues with this car?

As for the clutch: do these AWD models have two clutches? (I initially suspected something about CVT but as far as I can tell, the CVT module is located at the front while the sound is coming somewhere from the differential area)

Sergii

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harryg
Posts: 247
Joined: Thu Apr 30, 2009 7:52 am
Car: 2009 Nissan Rogue SL AWD
Location: Canada Eh!

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Could it be an exhaust shield. The one's on my 09 Rogue have broken the welds. The one in the center of the body was touching the exhaust pipe and making a weird grinding noise. Then I noticed one further up near the cat also had a broken weld, and finally one in the rear around the differential (there's one below and above) and these too were making weird noises.

During the inspection of the exhaust shields I also noticed that the chrome tail pipe cover had a few small pebbles in it that were making a rattling noise. If you look at it from behind you will see that it is slipped on. With the car off grab the chrome tip and see if it rattles.

Good Luck

worldbikr
Posts: 87
Joined: Fri Sep 21, 2007 6:55 pm
Car: na
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I've had a noise for some time when turning. Thought it may have been parking brake related cause I towed it once with Front wheel silly and left break on. Just recently the rear has been binding. Just read something from mechanic about a pinion nut coming loose and gears start grinding. My rogue has 334 k minutes and it may been and if the road for this car.

worldbikr
Posts: 87
Joined: Fri Sep 21, 2007 6:55 pm
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More accurately something catches not grinds and rear of car bucks.

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VStar650CL
Technical Expert
Posts: 8292
Joined: Thu Nov 12, 2020 1:25 pm
Car: 2013 Nissan Altima 2.5 SL
2004 Nissan Altima 2.5 S

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For @worldbikr, I got your PM but apparently you have incoming PM's disabled. To answer your question, with that mileage it's entirely possible the cooler is crudded up. The OE cooler kit for the gen1 has no thermal control, so a problem with it can only be from reduced flow. Pulling the hoses and back-flushing the cooler would be a good idea, as would changing the paper filter under the beehive. It's also possible the inline thermostat embedded in the coolant line out of the beehive is stuck open. The 'stat's purpose is fast warmup of the fluid, but if it sticks open then the beehive gets hot outflow from the cylinder head at all times.

worldbikr
Posts: 87
Joined: Fri Sep 21, 2007 6:55 pm
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Thanks.

worldbikr
Posts: 87
Joined: Fri Sep 21, 2007 6:55 pm
Car: na
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Determined the grinding/ bucking from rear was bad diy. I underfilled rear diff. Working fine now.


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