2wd Front end noise and hub question

I just bought a 2000 2 door with 2WD. It has begun to make a high pitched noise at speed in the front end that is unrelated to engine speed. It is definitely coming from the front, not the rear. I did a search of the OEM Forum and did not find anything for rear wheel drive, I have owned a 95, 98 and 97 all with 4WD, so I know it is not serpentine belt squeal, and I checked the all the accessory bearings (water pump, idler pulley, alternator, power steering, AC bearings) with a stethoscope and they are all OK. The fan is not rubbing against the fan shroud. The noise is only after the truck gets over 45 MPH. If I jerk the wheel it will alter the noise. My gut tells me it is a wheel bearing, but my experience with wheel bearings is that they make a lower pitched growling noise. This is a high pitched sound. It can't be a transfer case chain, it's 2WD. If it is the hub, can someone provide me with a NAPA part number for the right one that works on the 2000 2WD ? NAPA doesn't specify a separate hub between 2WD and 4WD, just whether it has a cast iron rotor. Help please.

Forgot to say that, at speed, if I shift into neutral and race the engine, or let it idle, it will not affect the pitch of the noise. The noise is constant no matter the RPM.

Does using the brake a little change the noise at all?

Sounds very similar to the noise I got from my 97 2wd when it needed wheel bearings.

The hub is the same for 2 and 4wd, the stub shaft goes through the bearing just like the axle shaft would.

@Ecomike: No, braking has no effect. DPO had rebuilt the brakes on all four wheels prior to the sale. Looks like I'm doing hubs next weekend.

Only odd noise I ever found that might be it was the fuel pump when the gas tank had less than 1/3 of a tank of fuel on our 89, 2 WD rig. I thought it was a wheel bearing till I filled the gas tank and the noise was gone till time to gas up again.

On another note, I have slight wheel bearing like low pitch roar, but only at 2/3 to 3/3 WOT, from 10 to 30 MPH, and it is not detectable ( can not hear it) at any other speed on my 87 4WD. Output shaft bushing is tight on the TC and all the u-Joints and wheel bearings have checked.

Gas tank is full, so it is not the pump, and the sound is definitely coming from the front. It kinda sounds like the noise made by the brake caliper feelers that let you know the brake pads are getting thin. Since the DPO just installed new brakes, it may be possible that he installed them wrong. The truck has gone 188K miles, and I don't know when, if ever, the wheel bearings and u-joints were replaced. So I have them ordered from NAPA and will do those this weekend. Will let you all know if that cured it.

If they installed the anti-rattle clips one of three possible wrong ways (don't ask, LOL), it can cause uneven wear and noise.

Ecomike:
Kudos on doing an XJ diesel conversion. Several years ago I toyed with the idea of retro fitting a diesel into a '98 XJ, but the numbers didn't work. I also looked at buying one of the Canadian XJ to diesel conversions (they transplanted used diesel engines from wrecked box trucks). Couldn't justify the expense. Interesting that Jeep is coming out with a clean diesel version of the new Cherokee design. "Bout time they did that. Surprised Daimler didn't do it in prior years. Do you have a web site on your conversion?

Sand-Dog said:

Gas tank is full, so it is not the pump, and the sound is definitely coming from the front. It kinda sounds like the noise made by the brake caliper feelers that let you know the brake pads are getting thin. Since the DPO just installed new brakes, it may be possible that he installed them wrong. The truck has gone 188K miles, and I don't know when, if ever, the wheel bearings and u-joints were replaced. So I have them ordered from NAPA and will do those this weekend. Will let you all know if that cured it.

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thats exactly what I thought mine was.

Got pads and rotors done, which it needed anyways, still was making the noise.

Had the wheel bearing sitting around, had done the drivers side but not the passenger, still can't believe how bad that bearing was that I was driving on. Had so much play in it, I could pretty much move the tire around while it was on the ground.

Sand-Dog said:

Ecomike:
Kudos on doing an XJ diesel conversion. Several years ago I toyed with the idea of retro fitting a diesel into a '98 XJ, but the numbers didn't work. I also looked at buying one of the Canadian XJ to diesel conversions (they transplanted used diesel engines from wrecked box trucks). Couldn't justify the expense. Interesting that Jeep is coming out with a clean diesel version of the new Cherokee design. "Bout time they did that. Surprised Daimler didn't do it in prior years. Do you have a web site on your conversion?

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No I don't. I did not start the conversion, I bought it not knowing exactly what the real story was, I was not aware it was a conversion, and it was a real mess. Took a good long time to make it reliable. Years!!!! Lots of stuff was shoddy on the retro fit. Lots of stuff broke while fixing broke or wrong stuff. The used vehicle wholesaler I bought it through knew nothing about it. It was a custom black box when I bought it. Took me 9 months to find what engine it had so I could buy an oil filter, LOL!

Done a ton of stuff to it since!!!!

Just wanted to put a follow-up post on this thread. Turned out the right front disc brake dust cover shield was rubbing against the brake rotor. The DPO had told me before I bought it he had just replaced the front brakes. Hmmm. Apparently the wrong rotor was installed on the right front. It trashed the rotor, pads and dust shield. Replaced shield, rotor, pads and hub. Problem solved.

I usually just remove the dust shields and get rid of them

IslanderOffRoad said:

I usually just remove the dust shields and get rid of them

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I did that recently on my DANA 30 when we discovered we forgot to install one, after completing the U-joint replacement.