A while back, I reset my CEL and when I turned on the car, there was a whining sound that I had never heard before. It came from underneath the car. What is it?

 

It was me... whining about how unspecific that question was.

 

check your belts

 

plz remove tampon before posting these kinda responses

 

WTF!!?! Ditto! Insulting me doesn't do jack $hit.

 

Was kind of a low blow. But damn funny.

 

if you have a stethescope, even better. Listen to various spots in the engine.

I have a feeling that if this whining sounds electrical in nature, it's your alternator's voltage regulator. A lot of 97+ Maximas have had problems with alternators.

 

Umm, I have a '95. I put the car in nuetral and turned it off and the squeaking continued. If it's the front wheel bearing, how do I replace it?

 

I assume you were still in motion? Or where you parked? Please be more specific... Some intakes make a metalic hollow sucking noise... If you want to check your outer hub bearing you can try this trick... seriously...

Jack up your car so the suspected tire is off the ground. grab a hold of the top of the wheel and shake to and from you... so you are pushing the top of the wheel towards the other side of the car and back towards your body... If the bearing is bad the wheel (still attached to the car) will wobble. if the whole car kind of moves a little bit then its fine. While its up in the air, check your cv joint boots for leaks.

 

I hope I'm not the only one who read this and is thinking it, so I'll go ahead and say it. Were you still in motion when you put it in neutral and turned the car off? Do you realize that you lose power steering, and only have a small reserve of brake boost without the engine running? There is a much safer way to check your wheel bearings, as SLC I30t posted. Can you be more specific about the sound? Since it continues in neutral (still in motion?), does it continue when brakes are applied? Wheel bearings usually don't when brakes are applied because the braking action actually "loads" the bearings (that's my experience with them, anyone let me know if you've experienced different). Without being more specific, there are way too many variables for someone to diagnose accurately over the internet. I'd also recommend Albertt's suggestion of a hose or stethoscope (you can pick up an automotive stethoscope with a probe at auto stores for cheap. They're extremely valuable in cases like this). Let us know more detail and we can help you out a lot better.

Dave

 

I hope you didn't think I was trying to get him to pull the car off of the jack. its just a quick tug/push sequence. the only reason I didn't suggest the motion brake thing is because he is also having brake issues.

 

Yes I was in motion. I know that I lose power steering. I did it on a straight away.

 

alternator and/or belts