danbrazda

Obnoxious whining sound I've been dealing with for some time now. Pulled the AC belt and it still makes the sound. Pulled the serpentine belt and started it up and it doesn't make the sound so obviously that narrows things down.

When I spin each of the accessory pulleys with the belt off nothing makes the sound but when I start the car with the serpentine off it does make the sound. I'm guessing alternator and am thinking of pulling it and having it tested but is there a better troubleshooting sequence short of guessing like I'm doing?

Z28/2002

iTrader: (27)

Power steerinng pump might be going bad

Fb0dy0nly

iTrader: (10)

power steering usually only whines when you turn the wheel unless its extremely bad and then well, it should be obvious...

danbrazda

The whining sound doesn't seem to be effected by the turning of the wheel. The pitch stays the same through the entire range of left to right wheel turn.

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

What makes you think that the alternator is a more likely than the water pump? I'm just curious if maybe you think the noise is closer to the alternator region, or if some other reason (say charging operation) has you thinking that the alternator might not be "right".

Too bad you don't have a spare laying around to toss on, just to see. Alternator is an easier swap than a water pump, so I guess it makes sense to start there if you really can't narrow down the noise.

danbrazda

The sound is VERY difficult to pinpoint although it seems to come from the drivers side rather than the passenger side. Haven't had any charging issues nor have I had any overheating issues so it's a tossup really.

Car runs great, idles great. Whining sound has been going on for the last 6K miles or so. Hasn't gotten better, hasn't gotten worse. Just annoying as hell.

zx2ner25

well, when you figure it out, let us know... I just bought a 2002 t/a last night, and its making that whining noise... gets louder when i rev

danbrazda

Will do. Going out of town for a bit but hope to have the mystery solved by next weekend. Place your bets.

NC98Z

iTrader: (1)

Could it be the belt itself? Might be worth going by Advance Auto and picking up a Gatorback belt. Before I did that I might would get a can of white lithium grease with the extention little red straw and shoot alittle on the bearing of each pully. That will usually quiet something down so you can find the noisy bitch.

danbrazda

I put brand new belts on as well as belt grip and it didn't seem to help. Had gator belts on there originally when the problem first started and switched to regular NAPA belts and there wasn't any difference.

I'd love it if it was just a whiney pulley that could be fixed with a little lube. I tried squirting some multi-purpose 3 in 1 lube into the moving portions of the various pulleys and it didn't help. Haven't tried White Lithium grease but I will now.

danbrazda

Mine is the same. The only variable that influences the pitch of the whine is revs. If you figure it out before I do please let me know.

anthony.fatica

iTrader: (10)

My 2000 SS is making that same noise. I noticed it started when I took an aggressive turn, then it went away, came back a few days later with another aggressive turn, and now it just happens randomly (it doesnt make the sound just in the turns, it is constantly whining and increase with revs even while at a light)...Could it be the steering fluid? My level is good but it does look kind of dark...

LS1Vince

HOLY ****! thats exactly what happened to me today! its been whining, SLIGHTLY for the past few months, wasent annoying, i kind of laughed at the whine, but today i took an aggressive turn and BAM, LOUD, and when i rev'd it just got louder :/ any solutions yet?

2002RedTA

I had a similar problem with a whining sound that only happened when the car was at operating temperature and the engine was revved up. The noise did not change when I turned the steering wheel. PS fluid was flushed several times levels were perfect. It did it every time the car got up to operating temperature. I did not have the infamous power steering cooler issue where coolant was leaking into the fluid and did not have PS fluid leaking from the car. I measured the temp of the PS fluid and it was 220 degrees. After trying several things to pinpoint the problem, I did the PS cooler delete but left the cooler attached. The sound completely went away! The fluid temp had dropped by over 70 degrees. I have since added the transmission oil cooler others discuss here. I realize this is probably just an early warning sign of the PS pump failing but if it keeps me from having to replace the pump right now (especially after there are so many horror stories of others trying to get a decent pump to replace it). The pump feels strong in terms of good steering. Just thought this may help someone else. This was on a 2002 Trans Am with 157k miles.