hi,

been experiencing this weird noise for a while now, but cant diagnose what it could be or where.

it sounds like a grinding noise, or similar to inserting a disc into the cd player and waiting for it to load.

Occurs when:

-going down a dip and accelerating. will also occur when going over strips that connect to each other such as going up/down bridge connections
-it will also happen sometimes when just cruising along, sometimes comes on for a few seconds, sometimes for a minute or two.

sound can be heard inside and outside the car

dont think its suspension because tried going over speed humps, dips, etc, and the sound will not recreate itself and there is no loss of steering feel etc.

checked engine and rev the car in neutral, but cannot recreate sound, so dont think its an engine related issue.

checked power steering fluid - all fine.

any ideas? im thinking wheel bearings? brake pads (not likely cos its not a squeal from the shimmers)?

any help will be appreciated. thanks.