93 dodge caravan noises

Hello everyone I have a 93 dodge caravan that had many problems all of which I have repaired except for two things.

  1. At idle there is a intermittent rattle that is very loud coming from the passengers side engine area that gets worse when the AC is on and when the steering wheel is maxed out in both directions (probably cause of load). One guy told me it was the harmonic balancer and another told me it was the AC compressor clutch bearings. This noise goes away when the rpms are increased and I am at a loss

  1. This noise is coming from the front driver's side wheel and only is heard when applying the brake. I looked at the wheel and it was totally black (wheels are white) and very hot so hot that the wheel smoked like a train when I was washing the black goo off with a water hose (may be normal since i had just driven across town). It kinda feels like a loose wheel bearing or a bad tie rod but the black gunk kinda threw me off.

Thanks everyone for taking the time to help me!!

Reply to
joiner33
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For #1, have you checked the water pump? When mine went bad, it sounded like a rattle more than a bearing noise. Turning on the A/C or turning the steering all the way to one direction, would put more tension on the serpentine belt and make the noise stronger. This will only be the case if you have the 3.3L engine.

-KM

Reply to
kmatheson

Yes I do have a 3.3L V6 and you are right it sounds more like a rattle than a bearing. What would I be looking for on the water pump loose bolts? Is it hard to replace?

Reply to
joiner33

You do not mention the mileage of the van, but my money is on the belt tensioner.

Mine did not ratle, but it made a high-pitch noise that drove me crazy! I hate rattles, squeels, noises, etc.

With the engine off, use a wrench to release the tension on the belt, and then use your hand to spin the pulley on the tensioner. If it rattles or sqeeks, etc, then you have more than likely found the problem. These tend to go in the 160,000 to 185,000 km range. If yours is original, then relacing it as a preventive meaintenance item is a fair bet since if it goes you WILL be stranded.

I got the same thing at one point. In my case, the rotors were worn out, and the brake pads had worn out as well. So what happened was that the cylendar in the caliper "popped out" and jambed in place, forcing the pads hard into the rotor. I think mine was on the passenger side, but it can happen on either side.

I was noticing extra power was required for acceleration. About 20 min after it happened, I had to stop at a store. When I got out, there was actually smoke coming from the wheel!

When I went to touch the wheel, it was EXTREMELY hot!

Fortunately, this all happened about 200 yards from my favourite mechanical shop! :)

Good news was no accident, no stranded, no tow required.

The solutions was a total from brake job. Remanufactured calipers, 2 new rotors, and new pads. In addition, I needed 2 new rear wheel cylendars which just happened to be leaking! (Glad I found that little surprize!)

Total bill for everything - parts, labour, shop charges AND taxes - about $550 CDN$ using first quality parts.

Check your brakes my man! You do NOT want to drive like this for any length of time. It is not worth your life (or someone elses!)

hth

Reply to
NewMan

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