New Guy with Ping or Rattle? (in my car)

[NoEinstein]

Brand new to this forum. Must say, I like it far better than the other two (without mention!!) that I have been a member of. Certainly not as much flaming going on...enough said...

2005
325i
E46
M54
Auto
40000 miles

I can't tell if I have a "ping" or a rattle.

Under acceleration going up hills, when I have a something to bounce the sound off of like trees or road wall, I hear a slight ping or rattle coming from under the car -- located maybe about 1/2 way between front and rear of the car.

I use only Chevron or Shell Premium gas.

Have had the car into the dealer at least 4 times with this issue. They have performed their equivalent of a seafoaming, erased all adaptations, and upgraded the software for the transmission.

They tell me its the gas but I only use premium of a good quality. I use this in all my cars including My Porsche which runs perfectly on premium Shell and Chevron fuel.

I'm sort of moving away from the idea that it may be an engine ping and thinking that it may be some rattle close to the drive train that I am only hearing under load in a 'confined' area.

Any suggestions.

Thx...

[k3nd0]

Has a tech been able to reproduce the noise that you're hearing? Rattles, pings and ticks and things can be a huge headache for techs. My only suggestion would be to rack the car and start pulling and pushing on components looking for anything loose. Bushings, bolts, etc.