E36 Scrape/Squealing sound when coasting in gear

[xgeetx]

Hey guys, I'm having a really terrible sound coming out of my car and I'm hoping to get some info on what it could be. I've looked around on various sound threads, but this situation specifically hasn't been covered (at least not that I could find). The sound is a high pitched squeak/scrape oscillating noise that speeds up with higher speed. I can't really tell if it's the front or the back... or somewhere in between. With windows up it sounds like the back, but with windows down I can't honestly tell. The sound only happens when I'm in gear AND coasting.  I hear it most strongly in 3rd gear and reverse. At interstate speeds I don't hear it all. When I hear the sound it will go away if I either hit the gas pedal (disappears instantly), or push the clutch in.

A couple possibilities according to the forums:
- Something on the drive shaft?
- Throw out bearing?
- Other clutch issues
- E-brake scraping?

Does anything I said above rule out certain things and hint towards others?

Thanks for any help you can provide!

 

EDIT: It's a 1998 328i with ~180k miles on it. To my knowledge the clutch has never been replaced.

[xgeetx]

Will do! I'm sure having the whole car up will help do the exhaust too, since the issue on her car is in the middle of the pipe

[xgeetx]

Hey jc,

 

I tried working with those jacks today, and it was the first time the car almost fell Luckily I wasn't under it, since I was in the process of jacking it up... is there a strategy around putting the car on 4 jacks? We were doing my girlfriend's mazda, so maybe we just didn't have the jacks in a good place -- when you have the first jacks in place and you start jacking up the other side, what stops the car from making the other jacks start to tilt?

 

I think part of it may be us not having the jacks in the right place, so maybe when I do it on my e36 and have them in the designated spots, it won't be as much an issue.

[jc43089]

I always lift one end at a time, not side to side, such as get the front up on the 3ton stands at a short setting, then go to the back and get it up on the 6 ton, then go back to the front and lift it to a higher setting, I have 4 wooden ramps that are really helpful, without them it is hard to get the jack under the dif or front subframe unless you have a nice low profile jack.  I would recommend as much bevel on the leading edge of the steps as you can get, mine take a little practice to drive up the "steps".

 

And ALWAYS try to shake the car around when it is on the stands to be sure it is stable before going underneath.

 

 

Here is a side shot to show how they are constructed, the top board is 2' the second is 3' and the bottom is 4'.  On 2 of them I added a block at the front edge as a stop.  The great thing is that unless your car is really low even if you drove off of the front it wouldn't hurt anything.

 

 

And they all stack up nicely when you aren't using them.

 

[B C]

Along with what has been said, I will usually stack up a wheel or two under the car in a place that wont interfere with my work if im going to be underneath it. I will also have the jack in position on the lifting point (not supporting the weight of the car at all) ready to be lifted as an extra precaution incase a helper or someone nearby needs to come to the rescue. 

The biggest mistake I tend to make involves the rear wheels on the ground, car in gear, and me loosening the driveshaft, axles, or any other powertrain component which then propels the car forward making it want to come off the jack stands.

 

 

dont do that. 
 

[xgeetx]

Luckily I do have a low profile jack, but because of that the range isn't the best. Can I get some extra range out of the jack by jacking up, for example, the front, putting on stands... then place the floor jack on some pieces of wood and jacking it farther, adjusting the jack stands again.

 

Also, never jacked up the rear on my car. Should I put the floor jack under the rear differential?

[jc43089]

The rear dif works perfect, I lift on the front subframe and the rear dif, I always lift the front first because the rear has more clearance.  I would be careful with using wood under the jack.  What kind of jack do you have?

[xgeetx]

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BMPFI6I/ref=oh_details_o08_s02_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 is the jack that i have.

 

Is there anything that would be safe to put the jack on to get a little extra height out of it?

[Earl]

That looks like it should give you plenty of height.

[industrialsized]

i'm just going to give my self a warning post and cut out the middle man

[B C]

i'm just going to give my self a warning post and cut out the middle man

Rofl. Im guessing you were about to post something offensive. Such as the N-word or nudes?

[industrialsized]

umm, yes... exactly what i was going to say.

 

Like the prostitute says: 'It's not the work. It's the stairs.'