I did some searches and it sounds like the bearing/hub on the drivers side is bad. It makes a noise similar to my old truck when the 4WD was not engaged properly; like teeth between gears not aligned. It is worse turning right, and I am plan on getting the car i air tomorrow to check the play on the wheel and give it a spin. The tie rods are new, brakes are new. I may have a bad power steering pump, but i would hear than on the passenger side in this car. Also, the ball joints are original. Lastly, the other symptom is a vibration through the gas pedal when driving... Any thoughts? Its a 2000 SLE.

I checked both sides and the wheels have no play up/down or left/right. They both spin freely with no grinding or vibration in the coil springs. I also did not hear anything from the CV joints on either side. The remaining symptoms are the whirling/teeth noise, worse when turning right, the vibration in the gas peddle, and now the engine is actually turning the wheels when in neutral, which i did not expect. Is that common? Any help would be great.

As a test, remove take tension off of the serpentine belt pulley and slide the belt off. Start car and see if you can duplicate the noise again. But only run it for a few seconds because you will no longer have alternator or water pump.

Mike, thanks. I was able to deduce its not anything related to the engine. The sound is much louder when i drift right, but is gone when i drift left. Its directly related to the wheel speed. I also coasted at 45mph, with the trans in neutral, and the sound is the same. When i accelerate or brake, it is also louder. I hate to say this, but i still get this funny feeling its the hub or CV joints..... I will try to take the accessory belt of tonight and let you know what happens.

ive replaced dozens of bearing units and i dont remember one (on a gm) that had any movement. they just get a loud grinding noise. the tires get a similar noise though i usually try to rotate the tires and see if the noise moves. now if it was a dodge truck it would be different with the wheel falling off.

Certainly sounds like the driver'* side wheel bearing could be the problem.

Could be a wheel bearing for sure, could also be your tires, do you see any uneven wear on the edges like choppyness or feather edging? This can also cause a similar noise as a wheel bearing.

I recently replaced my passenger side bearing. As a previous poster pointed out, don't expect to feel any wobble/play in the bad bearing. I have best heard the noise described as a "propeller" sound. If you turn or drift to the left and the sound gets worse, it is likely the passenger side bearing.

I drove it some more last night, but I will try to check switching the tires tonight, just to be sure. When i end up getting the hub off, is there anyway to check that the teeth between the hub and CV shaft are OK? That'* my only concern really, otherwise this should be easy. Thanks for everyone'* two cents.

Ohh, and the tire appeared to have even wear, but i will be sure to check carefully when i switch it over for the test.