Walka

hey guys. i have an engine noise i think you guys might be able to diagnose. first of all, its the vg engine. its coming from my drivebelt area. i am getting a kind of "whurring" noise. and it flutters. almost sounds like a locomotive chugging.
the engine is revving fine. no stutters, hesitations, etc. i changed my belts about 4 months ago, but i dressed them anyways and checked the deflection.. all fine. im thinking its some kind of uneven movement causing the fluttering noise. maybe a bearing or something in a pulley? my old man seems to think its the water pump.

here's the sound clip of the engine noise at idle. please give it a quick listen. its in mp3 format and around 400k.

Engine Noise

i recorded it with my digital camera. so audio quality is not that good. hopefully you guys get the picture.

as i said before.. this noise is coming from my drivebelt area. it reminds me of a chugging like a locomotive. it started making the noise on sunday. the sound appears during idle and acceleration. as i accelerate, the noise becomes more rapid. at normal speeds, it is almost inaudible inside of the cabin.

please give me your opinions guys. i really appreciate it. thanks.

walka

MrGone

iTrader: (30)

cant download

David89Max

i couldnt download it either

Walka

it figures... my school account is temporarily down.

90GXE->SE

I heard can't help ya out though , thats a noise i havnt heard before
Did u try giving it some cough syrup maybe that will help

DARHAW-MAX

Dude, you have a train going on there. Wow, I have not heard that sound before. But hey, thanks for the sound. Actually hearing it is better than trying to decipher a description.

harveysp

I dont know for sure what the problem is but it sound like something grinding. If it was me i would troubleshoot the problem by taking off the belt and spinning all parts that the belt spins manually to see what is causing the noise. It could be your old man is right, i had an old buick once that did about the same thing and it was the water pump.

steve
'93SE

crazy4maxima

iTrader: (5)

damn just like that


fix that asap.. when did you notice the problem occur

Walka

i know man... scary

it started late sunday/early monday.

the engine runs fine, no hesitation, no stutters.. starts fine. just sounds like a train! this is my last week of work, so after this, 100% of my free time will go into my car.

thanks everyone for the suggestions, keep em coming please!!!!!!!

walka

burtreynolds

Its hard to say because we can't see (hear) what part of the engine its coming from. Good suggestions above, I would also check the power steering as it may be that system or a PS fluid leak causing problems with other moving parts. Let us know when you figure it out.

Walka

as mentioned before, its coming from the drivebelt area. there are no visual signs of anything wrong. also no leaks or anything.

thanks again everyone!

walka

MrGone

iTrader: (30)

My best guess is its the water pump. Mine sounded like a 80's Mercedes Diesel, took it off and it makes a nice grinding/rubbing noise.

I think my bearings were rusted, also water would leak threw the vent hole (assuming that is a vent hole).


If you do it yourself, you might consider adding a Under Drive Pulley at the same time

you could always try running the engine with out that belt connected, just for a few seconds to see if it is the problem.

Walka

hey guys. today i spent my lunch break with my VG. it was a lovely picnic. i was able to toast our sandwiches on the engine block while we sipped freshly brewed ice tea.

seriously though, i went out there on break and took a real close look at my engine while running. it looks like there is one pulley that isn't spinning like the others. i watched the rim of each pulley, and it seems like this one isnt rotating all that straight.

when i got home from work, before shutting off the car, i watched this pulley a little more. besides slight uneven rotation, there are small, quick, and quiet sqeals coming from this pulley. the squeal occurs in no recognizable pattern. when i got inside, i checked out the manual, and this pulley is indeed the water pump pulley.

mrgone, you suggested running the engine without the belt, to see if the noise still occurs. removing that belt will disable the water pump and the power steering. is this safe to do? the second belt connects to the AC compressor, and that is safe to remove too, right? the alternator belt must be connected.. just want to be sure before i go breaking anything.

mmm, underdrive pulley.

so assuming that this pulley is the culprit.. what do you guys suggest i do? is the pump itself shot, or is there a problem with the pulley? i realize there is probably no way of knowing without pulling it apart.. but ill entertain some suggestions. thanks as always guys.

walka

harveysp

I would take the water pump off, take it apart and see if i can diagnose the problem. however it's probably crap, the cheap DIY way is to call the local junkyard and see if you can pull another pump for cheep. good luck.
steve
'93 SE pretty much stock b/c i'm poor!

MrGone

iTrader: (30)

Well Walka, I'm going to say yes, it should be ok to take off the PS and Water pump belt, along with the AC. You dont technically need the altenator, but it will drain your battery if you run it too long, so why cause more problems

I'd feel better if Matt or Jeff or anyone who knows what their talking about could confirm this, I'd hate to give you bad info, and I dont know from experience with the Max (I do from the Mustang though )

you could try spinning the water pump shaft and what not to see how much play it might have. My bad water pump doesnt have any play in the shaft, which is normal I believe, however it makes a grinding/rubbing noise when I spin it, and it doesnt spin smoothly.

As for the Junk yard thing, I've got a fully functional extra water pump in my garage, but I bought a new one, its one of those things that you might as well do it right the first time.


on a side note, I dont really like the new water pump I bought, its a GMB, however it has some casting flash in it, and the fins are cast and alot thicker than the steel stock water pump's. I am thinking about returning it for the remanufactured unit, or possiably just putting my 165k unit on it (lol, I havent thought it threw yet). I'm kind of a stickler for perfection and knowing what that GMB looks like is kind of un-nerving.

-MrGone

DARHAW-MAX

If it is indeed the water pump, just get a new or remanufactured one. Getting one from the junk yard is a time bomb IMO. And hey, while you are there, do the timing belt and drive belts also. That way, you will have at least another 100K of good miles without any worries from that area.

mtcookson

iTrader: (2)

that kind of sound like my input shaft bearing when it died but since it's coming from the pulley area and you are noticing a problem with the pulley it is more than likely the water pump as they said. mine also died on my gxe. it started squealing and making noises and eventually locked up. once it did that something broke and anti-freeze went everywhere. they are only like, 23 bucks at autozone including the gasket. i have a writeup here http://www.nissanx.com/f0rums/thread...d=37&styleid=2

more than likely it is doing something like mine was and the fins that move the water are somehow starting to touch the aluminum of the pump like this (the shiny looking aluminum is from those blade things digging into it)

MrGone

iTrader: (30)

VG = different water pump than the SE.

See, I like those fins much better, mine are alot thicker, and not as long.

mtcookson

iTrader: (2)

you mean ve?

he has a vg.

i don't understand your post

MrGone

iTrader: (30)

oops, lol, yeah, I meant VE.

I didnt know if they were the same or not, but now I know that the VE and VG have different water pumps.

sorry.

mtcookson

iTrader: (2)

that's ok. doesn't the ve water pump also stick out a little bit further?

pkfinn

Sounds like the water pump is bad if you can see the pulley wobbling. I had one go bad on my 87 (same pump). The bearings went bad from overtightening the belt. The pulley was wobbling and contacting the t-belt cover, and it was leaking coolant.

As others have said, get a NEW pump, don't even think about a junkyard pump. It's too much work to have to redo it if the junkyard pump dies prematurely or leaks. And the timing belt would be a good idea if it's anywhere near due to be changed. It's not that expensive, and you'll have just about everything opened up to change the water pump. The drive belts are easier to change. If they look okay, I would reuse them to save some money. Just don't overtighten them. Start a little on the loose side - you can always tighten them a little if they squeal.

Walka

well, belts were changed earlier this summer. the timing belt was done about 20,000 miles ago, along with the water pump.

i think i am safe with my belts unless you guys tell me otherwise. as far as the pump goes... no way would i get a used one. certain parts you just dont mess around with.

thanks for all the help guys

walka

pkfinn

Yeah, your belts should be fine, just try not to get coolant on the timing belt, just rinse it off good with water if you do.

Also, you may want to change the thermostat while you're in there.

RMAX54

Sounds like the water pump bearing has failed, and the pump impeller is pushed in and is grinding on something. Same thing happened to an older Buick I once owned, and the sound is very similar.

I agree on getting a new water pump. Order one from Courtesy Nissan. The parts too bid a pain in the rear to change to use a substandard part.

subs1000w

i would replace the timing belt when your in there its only like 25$ and very time consuming to do im surprised the pump wasnt changed when they put the new timing belt on usually that standered prosedure considering the labor time and cost

Walka

the pump was changed with the timing belt. actually it was the other way around. i needed a new pump, and they did the timing belt too. this was about 20,000 miles ago.

walka

subs1000w

oh i must have skipped over that part sorry