Rani Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Okay, here's the facts..........2002 Mustang coupe, V6, Auto-transmission..... Started developing a whine about the pitch and frequency that you'd hear in a movie from a remote controlled airplane; It's louder in the cabin, almost impossible to hear if you open a window listening for it, and seems definitely towards the front; Changes pitch when the transmission shifts and engine revolutions increase but it's probably important to note that the transmission is shifting perfectly, no fluid leakage (didn't lose a drop between oil changes), no slipping, jerking, etc. No other symptom that might mean transmission failure; Originally it only happened while driving, never when stopped or starting, now it's starting to be there when stopped and this morning when I was stopped I threw it into Park just to check and it continued; Worse and louder when cold, and disappears almost entirely after about 1/2 hour of driving; I had a friend of a friend who's a mechanic drive it yesterday and he said transmission, but in my experience, transmission noises don't get better as you drive, and I have no clue whether he's a decent mechanic or not. Nor do I find an unidentified "whine" as any one of the symptoms of transmission or torque converter failure, etc. I do have an appointment on Saturday with my mechanic, but I'm freaking out. It's "my baby" you know? Ideas, suggestions, help? Anybody who's mechanically inclined have any clue whatsoever what it could be? 'Rani Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mushrat Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 sounds like a bearing is going on something. anything with a pulley connected to a belt could be the problem. Could also be a water pump headed south. The sound will change as the rpm's change of course. Id stick my head (carefully) into the engine while its making that sound and see if you can isolate it to a particular area or part. If its the water pump it may not even leak until it goes catastrophically. Heck, could even be the tensioner pully, but a whine that changes pitch really sounds like a bearing. My advice is worth what you paid for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
littlec Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 (edited) Transmission, mine was doing something similar for a week then I noticed fluid leaking (but didn't before, even when I looked). Try adding transmission fluid and see if it goes away, it could always been something else but I dropped my truck off at the shop and it was low. Your fluid level could simply be lower than it should. Edited February 23, 2012 by littlec Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skoozle Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 What Mushy said all seems reasonable. The fact that it changes pitch with the rpm of the engine isolates it to parts that rotate in direct relation to the speed of the engine. the transmission's sole purpose in life is to spin at different speeds than the engine. If it is anything related to the transmission it would have to be the input shaft bearing before the gears of the transmission change the speed of rotation. Could also be a timing belt/chain. Good luck! I just spent $400 changing 2 sensors on my car. Tried to change them myself but they were burried so far in the engine, I would have had to take the windshield wiper motors off to access a sensor on the bottom of the engine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rani Posted February 23, 2012 Author Share Posted February 23, 2012 [quote name='littlec' timestamp='1330016129' post='540194'] Transmission, mine was doing something similar for a week then I noticed fluid leaking (but didn't before, even when I looked). Try adding transmission fluid and see if it goes away, it could always been something else but I dropped my truck off at the shop and it was low. Your fluid level could simply be lower than it should. [/quote] When it started the first thing I did was take it for a standard oil change-fluid fill-up since it was getting about due anyway. They noted that the transmission fluid didn't need topping off at all since the last oil change. My appointment on Saturday is to have a module installed for the ABS system that's been working off and on, but I called and they're prepared to do a transmission service just in case. Since Mustangs are rear wheel drive, the transmission is basically right under my center dash, and for some reason the noise seems located more in front drivers side. Roll down a window to listen and you won't be hardly able to hear it at all which makes it kind of seem like it's echoing back from the engine compartment through the dash into the cabin. I have had a car with a transmission go out before and it didn't get any quieter when you opened the window - in fact you could hear it louder. I did look up input shaft bearings and can't find any reference to them on automatic transmission, but plenty of pictures and videos on how to change them on manual transmissions. I just want to know what the bloody thing is, AND how much it's going to cost me, you know. I feel like the old joke when you hear a noise and ask a mechanic what it is and he says, "sounds like about $300". 'Rani Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChicagoRSX Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 To me it sounds like a torque converter. Part of the trans. Just my .02. I was a mechanic for 8 years, but trying to diagnose a sound you can't here is like trying to study a photo for measurements. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mustang67n Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 +1 to chicago on toque converter. And being that the noise disappears after about 30 minutes makes me think that once the fluids warm up (and expand) the noise goes away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bawhee Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Im with ante on this one, my dad had about the same issue the past few weeks when it was really cold, it has disappeared completely now that it has been warming up a little... are you going through extremely cold weather at the moment? Cos honestly temperature changes can have a huge impact on materials if they are big enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rani Posted February 25, 2012 Author Share Posted February 25, 2012 .........and the winner is ............. Low on power steering fluid..... And to think I thought checking that was included when they checked the fluids at a Jiffy Lube oil change. Silly me. 'Rani Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChicagoRSX Posted February 25, 2012 Share Posted February 25, 2012 ...wasn't your steering wheel binding/getting hard to turn? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rani Posted February 25, 2012 Author Share Posted February 25, 2012 [quote name='ChicagoRSX' timestamp='1330194367' post='540445'] ...wasn't your steering wheel binding/getting hard to turn? [/quote] Not other than this morning it seemed very slightly "heavy" when turning. Nothing that would have stood out if I weren't paying very close attention to the every nuance trying to get a handle on the problem. Jeff, best mechanic on earth period listened for about 10 seconds and said "that's your power steering". Took an hour to check out the entire car and charged me not a dime. Great shop for anyone in LA/OC. 'Rani Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mustang67n Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 OHHHHH Power Steering never even crossed my mind. but the "high pitched whining" you mentioned should have been a dead give away! I lose. lol glad you got it all sorted, 'Rani Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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