Strange grinding noise on half load

Hi guys,

I recently bought a Clio III RS Cup after my Corsa OPC Nurburgring Edition got stolen... Absolutely love the car, but I'm cracking my head on this weird ticking/grinding sound it makes.

https://soundcloud.com/jimpaul-hertroijs/clio-iii-rs-grinding (34 second audio clip)

It happens from 3.500 RPM and higher, and only on half-ish load. When off the throttle or full on it, the sound is gone instantly. I cannot generate it when being stationary. When commuting and hardly reaching 3k rpm, you never hear it.

The car has a new (or revised) gearbox and also features insane gearbox-whine when off throttle. While I cannot understand Renault thinks this is okay, I believe this is normal on this type of Clio, right?

It steers better than the Corsa and I like the N/A engine a lot more than the 1.6 Turbo the OPC/VXR had, but this sound keeps me from having fun in the car. Accelerating mid corner with half load drives me insane. Any ideas on what it might be?
 
Has gearbox been out for repair, any crunching etc?

Sounds like a grumbling bearing... Is it in every gear? With clutch depressed etc? You get a lot of engine noise typically but I wouldn't say gearbox wine is common.
 
Gearbox has been repaired/replaced right before I bought it. It has no crunching and selects all the gears very nicely. I don't know if all Clio RS's have the whine (whine is maybe not the right word, some call it 'wind noise' and I believe the real term is gear backlash) but I thought it's a common thing on these cars (and it does this in every gear when you lift off in a higher than 2000 rpm, and disappears when you engage the clutch of get on the power again)

The crumbling bearing however… Can’t get my head around it. Yesterday I had the sound constantly when driving on the highway with 120 kph (3500 rpm) and I noticed it disappeared when I steered left and got a bit worst when I steered right (not even a turn, just changing lanes on a motorway). I have it in every gear. It also disappears when engaging the clutch, lifting off or going on full load again. It's only there on halfish load between 3000 and 5000, maybe 6 rpm (not sure because when I reach 6k or higher that's usually not on halfish load haha)

I’m thinking it might be the ‘first’ bearing on the long driveshaft (not sure what the English word for that is). Not sure though…
 
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My clio also has that "backlash" when i press clutch down in high revs i get sort of brrrrrrr and when i change gear and lift clutch up it disappears instantly..
 
Driveshaft or diff bearings would be my suggestion... If gearbox has just been done it's probably not a coincidence?
 
Since it's very 'exhaust flow' dependend (it only happens with the right amount of RMP and load) I'm thinking it might be a broken catalyc convcerter... still not sure though. Will lift it up somewhere in the coming days
 
Gearbox has been repaired/replaced right before I bought it. It has no crunching and selects all the gears very nicely. I don't know if all Clio RS's have the whine (whine is maybe not the right word, some call it 'wind noise' and I believe the real term is gear backlash) but I thought it's a common thing on these cars (and it does this in every gear when you lift off in a higher than 2000 rpm, and disappears when you engage the clutch of get on the power again)

The crumbling bearing however… Can’t get my head around it. Yesterday I had the sound constantly when driving on the highway with 120 kph (3500 rpm) and I noticed it disappeared when I steered left and got a bit worst when I steered right (not even a turn, just changing lanes on a motorway). I have it in every gear. It also disappears when engaging the clutch, lifting off or going on full load again. It's only there on halfish load between 3000 and 5000, maybe 6 rpm (not sure because when I reach 6k or higher that's usually not on halfish load haha)

I’m thinking it might be the ‘first’ bearing on the long driveshaft (not sure what the English word for that is). Not sure though…

If it stops when you put your clutch in the clutch might not be being engaged properly, check if your brake fluid is low. Driveshaft will still be turning with clutch in so if it was the problem it would likely still make noise. If they had the gearbox taken out but didn't put new clutch in that is more likely.

My clio also has that "backlash" when i press clutch down in high revs i get sort of brrrrrrr and when i change gear and lift clutch up it disappears instantly..

The brrr sound could be leak somewhere along exhaust. I had multiple cracks around silencer that only made a whine noise at 2900-3100rpm, and was particularly noticeable when RPM dropped as clutch was pushed in.
 
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If it stops when you put your clutch in the clutch might not be being engaged properly, check if your brake fluid is low. Driveshaft will still be turning with clutch in so if it was the problem it would likely still make noise. If they had the gearbox taken out but didn't put new clutch in that is more likely.



The brrr sound could be leak somewhere along exhaust. I had multiple cracks around silencer that only made a whine noise at 2900-3100rpm, and was particularly noticeable when RPM dropped as clutch was pushed in.

Okay, i have to check my exhaust system..
 
I finally found out what the noise in the opening post was.

Had it in the dealership last monday and they did their best to fix it. Tightened up the intake system, the airconditioning pipes... they couldn't find it. After some more research they found out it was an engine mount bracket that started rattling at 3500 rpm. They replaced the damn thing and now my Clio is completely rattle-free! Luckily no bad bearings in the gearbox afterall.

So much more fun to drive now :smile: