After replacing my timing belt, I'm getting a noticable engine whine at 1000 rpm. It seems to be coming from the top and front of the engine. It's the worst at startup when the engine is cold. At idle (700 rpm) and at highway speeds (1500-3000 rpm) the engine is smooth with no whine. Anybody have any ideas what could be causing this?
TIA
C5YA
I had this problem once when I did a '96 Pathfinder. Drove me nust for a while. In my case it turned out to be a accessory bracket (alt?) that I forgot to tighten and was vibrating.
Improper timing belt tension?
That was my first thought, but I was very careful and took my time to make sure the tension was correct. Seems odd that it only happens at
1000 rpm.
You over tightened the belt. Only fix is to take it -all- back apart to re-adjust the tensioner.
Most people think they need to be tighter than they really need to be and as the engine warms up this noise ussually get's louder, especially aluminum block engines. These being cast can make noise cold and warm though.
I got my timing belt changed and it whined as well. I took it back, complained and they loosened it up and it still whined. They claimed it was as loose as they felt comfortable with. Although, they admit that they use the 90 deg. twist method, not the complicated procedure in the service manual. This was from a shop that regularly does VG30 timing belts.
So in other words a little whine is normal?
I don't know. It didn't whine with the original timing belt. Maybe the aftermarket belts whine a little. I think Nissan needs to simplify the tensioning method so that more people do it correctly.
-Rob
The VG30 in my 99.5 PF whined at around 1500 when it only had 40K miles on it. I never thought too much about it.
They did. The new ones use a chain.
Did you see them do this or did they just tell you they "loosened in up". It's -totally- redoing the job to readjust the belt.
No, they don't whine after I change them...
It's not complicated, you let the spring on the tensioner set the tension and then tighten the nut that locks it down. The mistake people make is they "help" the spring because they think it needs to be tighter than it really needs to be. It's a cogged belt and doesn't rely on tension to keep it from slipping like a V belt does. If you think these are complicated to adjust, you ought to see what doing it on a 944 porche is like!
Whine-not ?
hahah
I just finished taking it apart and re-adjusting the tension. I loosened it up a bit and no more whine. Thanks for you help on this one.
C5Ya
No problem, I knew that was what happened as I did it myself years ago. It's a bitch to go back in there but you'll never make that mistake again!
I believe they did as I drove by the shop and the saw the guy working on it.
That is not how you do it according to the service manual. There are many steps involved including the use of a spring scale.
Done thousands that way and none whine! :-) Why do you think they have a spring on the tensioner? The FSM can overcomplcate tasks that aren't that complex.
The OP used the FSM procedure and ended up going back in and "fudging" it by hand to get it right. I'm just saying if you did what I suggested, he wouldn't have had to do it twice. Feel free to ignore my advice, it's only based on 20+ years of experience doing this for a living 40 hours a week.
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