One of the carrier bearings on the driveshaft of my 2011 Acura TL SH-AWD has been making a subtle whistling noise lately. The vehicle is still under warranty for 4,000 miles, so I'll be getting it replaced, but in the meantime I'm wondering if a bad carrier bearing can affect performance and/or if it poses a safety issue that should be resolved sooner rather than later.

 

If it is an actual bearing failure or bearing wear issue, I would not be too concerned. If it was the bracket, severe driveshaft damage can occur due to mis-alignment.

How do you know it is a driveshaft bearing, and not something contacting the driveshaft?