Strange idle noise coming from driver's side--VIDEO!

[smills1840]

Hey guys. I have a strange noise coming from my driver's side of my engine. I think it's either the crank pulley/harmonic dampener, or from the camshafts. It's really bad at idle, but ALMOST goes away when I give it some throttle.

I don't think it's the Lower Timing Cover. It sounds like a bad bearing or something. The noise is hard to describe, so I took a video. It's kind of hard to hear it over the normal engine noise, but if you listen at the very end of the video it's pretty loud.

Another quick question: How tight should my valve cover bolts be? They weren't very tight, but I'm not sure if they are supposed to be or not.

Here's the video:

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Thanks guys!

 

[born2tune]

its seems that one of your belts are contacting/rubbing something, or something fell on a belt getting caught and rubbing against your belt/s.

your valve cover bolts should be tightened relatively loose: 2.2 ftlbs or (x12)= 26.4 inlbs.

 

[smills1840]

I thought the same thing about the belts rubbing, but there isn't any wear on any of the belts.

 

[KYNDL7]

ewww nice, check your timing belt tension er, my made a similar bearing noise when it went out and it also sounds like a the belt is rubbing. Is there visible wear on the belt anywhere yet?

 

[Lou98GSX]

take one belt off at a time to see if the noise goes away . after you have all the belts off and the noise is still there then go and check in the timing belt area .

 

[Bouche Dag]

Something is rubbing on your timing cover. My car did the same thing.

Is it cracked, missing bolts/washers? Is your crank pulley separating? In my case, the culprit was the timing cover was cracked.

 

[KYNDL7]

Check for rubbing on the case at the a/c tension pully and harmonic balancer, they tend to rub at these places commonly.

You can also press down on the timing belt between the cams nice and hard, if you can get it to move a cam or make a clicking noise the tb tensioner could be bad.

 

[smills1840]

I really can't see anything rubbing on the cover. There is a small crack in the lower cover, but it's not affecting anything. It's where the top and bottom covers meet.

 

[born2tune]

I thought the same thing about the belts rubbing, but there isn't any wear on any of the belts.

its not about checking for "friction" on the front or back of the belt necessarily, it may be on the walls/sides of the belt.

 

[smills1840]

its not about checking for "friction" on the front or back of the belt necessarily, it may be on the walls/sides of the belt.

Would it be obvious? Wouldn't there be fraying or cracking or something? I'm not saying that's not the problem, I just can't verify that it is.

 

[90-gsx-awd]

do u still have ## power stearing pump might be the bracket mine did same thing

 

[smills1840]

do u still have ## power stearing pump might be the bracket mine did same thing

Yes, the car is 100% bone stock.

 

[smills1840]

check for rubbing thats what it soulds like to me

I checked everywhere for rubbing. Unless there's something I'm not seeing, I don't think it's rubbing on anything.

 

[thirsty]

G'day.
My guess is water pump bearing. If you are VERY CAREFUL, while the engine is running, place the tip of a LONG screwdriver on the water pump housing and place your ear tightly on the handle end.
It will transmit the direct noise without the extra stuff going on. Test Power steering pump and the alternator.
The one with the most noise is the culprit.
Cheers
Ross
PS BE CAREFUL!!!!!
I accept no responsibility for your actions if you travel this path....

 

[smills1840]

I'm still having this problem, and it's driving me crazy! I really think it's either a pulley going bad, or something internal.

 

[Abe'sGST]

it 's hard to tell even with the video. Like mentioned already, start taking belt off one at a time and see if it helps. My guess is that its something in the timing area which would mean you have to take the cover off and take a look.

 

[okm12346]

Sounds like a water bump bearing gone bad or the ac pump bearing. Start taking one belt at the time and run the engine after that.

 

[mik3ripp3r]

defiantely sounds like a pully or belt rubbing....

Im no expert, but were his cam pulleys pulling together when his rpms went up? If so is this normal? or was it just because the camera was moving around? ... and they seemed off centered from each other also....If Im wrong it wouldnt be the first time ever .... just an observation..

 

[Bouche Dag]

My crack in my cover was also very small. I figured it wouldn't cause any noise. Sure enough that was my issue.

Just as another member said, take one belt off at a time and take the lower timing cover off and start it up to see if the noise is gone.

 

[smills1840]

This is getting to the point where I don't want to drive the car anymore..it's louder than me exhaust and my engine. All I hear is this stupid grinding noise and I cannot find it to save my life. I'm also spraying oil all over my bay from somewhere and I can't figure that out either.

 

[monroeh]

Smills did you ever find out what was causing the noise. Mine is making the exact same noise. I'm going to probe with my stethoscope in the morning.

 

[smills1840]

I think I have narrowed it down to this pulley:

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What is this pulley called, and how would I go about changing it?

 

[born2tune]

I think I have narrowed it down to this pulley:

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What is this pulley called, and how would I go about changing it?

the a/c compressor belt tensioner. I did all this just for you!!!

 

[smills1840]

For some reason, I don't recognize that bracket. I'm not looking at my car right now, but that setup doesn't ring a bell. I really appreciate that picture though! I'll look harder tomorrow.

Also, is it possible this is coming from the clutch/pressure plate/flywheel area? When I was on the ground in front of my car checking my downpipe, the sound was pretty damn loud. It's also really hard to pinpoint this, because when I use a ghetto stethoscope (a metal pipe) the sound comes from anything I listen to.

 

[smills1840]

I'm gonna start pulling belts off today. I'll let you guys know what I find