Need help diagnosing a strange sound

I’m having a strange noise while driving that I’m having trouble diagnosing. It’s been happening for almost a year. It was subtle at first but has gotten more pronounced in the last week.
I thought it was driveshaft related but replacing carrier bearing didn’t help and I did not find any play in u-joints.
The noise is a whomp, whomp sound which speeds up with acceleration. However, it stops when I apply the brakes. I suspected front wheel bearing, but can’t detect any play. I can hear/fell the vibration in the driver seat but I am not certain of the location. Recently, it sounds like it's coming from the rear more than in front of the driver seat.
Any suggestion would be appreciated before I take it to a shop or start throwing parts at it.

 

Whomp whomp sound
Increases with RPM
Stops with braking

Could be a bad wheel bearing still. Could also be a stuck piston in the caliper, that’s rubbing until you tap the brakes.

Have you checked the pads for uneven wear that could suggest one of the two pistons may be wearing uneven? You should be able to see the pad wear with the front wheel on and the wheels kicked full-lock left and right.

 

I haven't checked the front pads in a couple weeks, but I didn't notice any uneven wear on either side. The driver side wheel has more resistance than the passenger side when spinning with both wheels off the ground.

I'm going to edit my post above, but I paid closer attention just now when driving to the office. It's hard to pinpoint where the sound is coming from, but now I'm thinking rear. I applied the parking brake 1 or 2 clicks and it went away. There is also a creaking sound when coming to a stop at 5-10 mph which is definitely in the rear. Is there a way to check rear wheel bearings for play? I don't have any gear oil leaking in the rear, and I'm going to check my rear brakes to make sure everything looks good there. I replaced shoes and wheel cylinders last July (2024), and rear diff fluid back in February of this year.

 

If it’s now from the back, I personally would jack the whole rear up and spin the wheels.

Last resort to really tell, if one is being safe and cautious, chock front wheels good, jack up rear and put in drive.

edit….just run across this thread from years back, same whomp whomp description….also, video posted NSFW

https://www.tundras.com/threads/rear-wheel-annoying-sound.130138/

 

Thats how I diagnosed my bad rear bearings, in the cinders, a little weird sitting still and seeing the speedo at 55

 

I found bad third member on first gen Tacoma by attaching GoPro with magnet to axle assy and record. This was after changing wheel bearings, PB blaster in carrier bearing, and moving tires around.

 

Was that the correct thread link?

 

It was but truncated to something else and hopefully this one sticks

https://www.tundras.com/threads/rear-wheel-annoying-sound.130138/

 

Holy crap, I can't believe I forgot about Brock. Sucks his truck got totalled not long after that in an accident. That guy was a hoot. Some folks were speculating he was our beloved handy model, but he doesn't look nor sound quite right.

 

After watching that video I’m suspecting more and more it might be a rear wheel bearing. Fuck stick! I’ll have to jack up the rear and try and confirm tomorrow. Thanks everyone for chiming in and I’ll try and confirm. I’d take a video but it might be hard to hear over the exhaust leak. Ugh!

 

Well I finally got to look more into my noise/vibration issue. I found that I screwed up on my rear brakes the parking brake cable was routed incorrectly and my star adjuster wasn’t working. I got that fixed so brakes should be ruled out.
I also found a decent bit of play in my wheel hub. I’m gonna try and upload a video and get opinions.

https://youtube.com/shorts/Zrt81Kh_Pjg?si=1-YDrmEXbxuHVh8S

 

@shifty` can I get your take? Am I correct that the rear axle hub shouldn’t have play like that?

 

Kimosabe - I believe you found your problem. Axle bearing failed - it should not have that much play.

 

Shit. That’s what I was afraid of. Do you know if there is risk of a catastrophic failure with the bearing? I have to drive more than normal for work next week and can’t work on it for a bit. I mostly want to know if I need to worry about getting stranded.

 

I agree with Bryan on this one. Sorry bro!