dbc2n

Thanks in advance for any responses!

Ride: 1995 Ford Mustang V6

I have a noise coming from my rear end (possibly) that appears at about 40mph and gets louder the faster I go. To me, it can only be discribed as sounding like the noise that mud tires make whining on the pavement. Maybe thats just me, but it's definately a whining noise. However, if i hang a right turn curve, the noise disappears as soon as i get into the curve.

I worked at a local transmission shop for two years and recently had the owner test drive the vehicle. He claims that it could either be a wheel bearing or the carrier bearing holding the differential, but he is definately leaning more towards the noise coming from the differential.

So, I have jacked the vehicle up and given both rear wheels a good shake. The passenger side wheel has no play in it whatsoever, no in/out play, and no up/down play. Does not make any noises when I spin it and it spins freely.

The drivers sider wheel does have play in it. No up/down play but definately some in/out play. Not much but definately noticeable to me. Why is it not tight like the other side?

I have the differential cover off, and have replaced my drivers side wheel bearing hoping to get lucky. Of course, I still have in/out play.

Where should I go from here? How can I inspect my carrier bearings? I have already removed the cap holding the carrier bearing on the drivers side but what should I look for? There was no metal in the differential and the fluid looked very clean, almost new looking, and it has never been changed in the 5 years that I have owned the car.

As a side note, about a month or two ago, the drivers side rear wheel (The same wheel in question now) ate up a set of break pads and threw em out into the road. (New breaks all the way around just a few months before this happened so i know it didn't happen just because the pads were old and worn)The whining noise that I described above was also present at the time this happened, only now it is much louder and must be fixed before she becomes road worthy again. I can only imagine that whatever this whining noise is, it is the cause of my excessive brake pad wear, and in/out play of the axle on the drivers side.

HELP ME PLEASE!!!
Any suggestions or guesses as to what this may be?