Passat Chirp

The fact that it only occurs when you're moving would tend to indicate that it involves a part that only moves when the car is moving; i.e. drivetrain. CV joint?

-- Mike Smith

Any correlation to brakes? Does the noise stop when the brakes are applied? Occur only when the brakes are applied?

Mike,

We are on the same track. I have noticed that it also happens only when the car is in gear (putting in the clutch or putting the car in neutral keeps the noise from happening). Soooooooo... I'm figuring it must be transmission related. But where and what is a big mystery.

D> > My 1999 Passat has recently developed a minor chirp. It is only heard upon

No correllation to brakes. Just when decellerating when car is in gear. Must be transmission related, but have no idea what or where.

Don, I had a head-scratcher like this a couple years ago. Strange squealing/howling noise from the front end, either only while decelerating or more pronounced while decelerating, it varied from day to day. Turns out it was a detached sway-bar link, that would only contact the driveshaft while decelerating. Rubbing against the driveshaft made it ring like a tuning fork, made the weirdest noise you ever heard.

The point of this is that deceleration can change the geometry of the front suspension enough to bring parts into contact which won't be in contact at any other time -- including when you're probing around trying to find the problem. Worn suspension bushings or tie-rod ends can contribute. My suggestion is to look for parts that come into contact only when the suspension or steering are under load -- turning, braking, accelerating. The clue might be spotting an unusual area of wear, which is what led me to the problem in my case -- I spotted the wear on the driveshaft before I spotted that the sway-bar link was unattached at one end.

Brian,

Finally got a chance to look underneath and couldn't find any unusual wear. I think you've got me on the right track though, so I'm gonna keep looking.