Hey, well, new prob...
So, my AC compressor is shot, and to avoid further damage while i wait for my compressor to come in, i have not been running internal fans. With the windows down, fans off, radio off, i noticed a sound kinda like a rattling. When i am moving about 5mph with clutch in and slowly release the clutch it is the loudest. Is it the throw out bearing on the clutch? Need ECU reset? Transmission going bad? Transmission fluid? What???

 

Just unplug the compressor relay and use your fans.

What's it sound like stopped in neutral with the clutch out and then in. Rev it a bit, do the same thing again.

Only when moving?

It's got nothing to do with your ECU, that's fer sure.

-RMB

 

it only makes the noise while rolling in 1st and less so in 2nd (but not reverse or any other gears that i can tell)

stopped, with the clutch in or out (in neutral), when revving, the noise is not there.

if it means anything, i replaced my starter this weekend, i did not notice the noise before, but certainly cant guarantee that this just started. i am wondering if the starter needs to be lubricated since it spins with the transmission when rolling. but i am not sure that this is where it is coming from.

it is not a pinging, almost a grinding noise, like dropping marbles on a piece of wood, it is fairly quiet.

i am quite sure the ac compressor has nothing to do with this.

 

btw, it makes the noise with the clutch in or out while in motion, but more pronounced when the clutch is engaged

i am not sure how to check the level of the tranny fluid, i have seen lots of posts on how to change it tho

 

ok, well, here is a bit of an update, i checked the tranny fluid levels and all is fine there, so it is unlikely that it is bad bearings. does anyone have any brilliant ideas for me?

 

It's hard to say, but the noise you describe sounds similar to the throwout bearing. But the bearing usually makes noise in neutral with the clutch out as well.

How many miles on the clutch?

It shouldn't be the starter. The starter does not spin with the transmission. If it did, you would have fried it in the first few miles.

 

the best i can describe it is that it sounds like a twig is stuck in the front driver side tire and that each time the tire spins around, the twig hits the wheel well. i cant tell if it does it or not with the clutch disengaged, but it is definitly very noticable when i engage the clutch

 

please?

 

i have the IDENTICAL problem, if i let the clutch out with any gas right when it engages it makes a couple popping noises, if i do it with some gas cant hear as much cuz of exhaust, but u can somewhat feel the lil pops.

 

well, mine is constant, it does not go away, in first gear i can hear it as i accelerate. Then, it is less intrusive in 2nd and unnoticable in 3rd.

 

as is mine, i just meant when im takin off with a lil gas my exhaust is real loud and i dont hear it, but its always there.

 

well, it seems like something i would have noticed before and the only thing i have changed since i noticed it is the starter.

i thought that even though the starter motor is not on, the starter gear rides on the flywheel. if the starter is noisy, why couldnt this be the prob?

 

After you accelerate through third gear, you mentioned you can't hear it. If you slow down and stop, does the noise start again as you accelerate through the gears. If so, it's not going to be your starter. There's no way the starter will be able to spin that fast for very long with causing major problems.

 

i am not following your logic

 

If the problem ONLY occurs on the first time you accelerate after you start the car, it could be the starter. If the problem occurs repeatedly, such as driving in stop and go traffic, and you still hear the noise, it's very slim odds that the problem is related to the starter, it just wouldn't survive long at all under those conditions.

 

well, it does not go away under any circumstance, but i am still not convinced it is not the starter, but certainly am not convinced it is

 

Well, I'm out of ideas. Good luck with it and please keep us posted on what you find.

 

well, i finally got a chance to go out and listen under the car

the noise is DEFINITLY coming from the transmission case even at idle

so i dont know what that means

 

I still lean towards the throwout bearing.

 

it happens with the clutch in and out, in gear and not

 

ok, new development, i took the starter out all together and started the car while rolling back.

without any starter in the car, it still made the noise, so i guess the starter is fine...

i guess i gotta make an appointment at the shop...

 

Now I'd put money down on the throwout bearing. I'd start looking for a clutch.

 

Typically a throw-out bearing will only make noise when you have pressure on it, i.e. when you press on the pedal.

From your last description of the noise coming from the tranny with the engine running in neutral with the clutch out, I would guess that it is the transmission input shaft bearing.

 

I'm wondering if this is valve tap. I heard a BMW e46 M3 that did this and it varied with engine speed.

 

ok, so driving to work today, usual rattle, but after i got off the highway, and was sitting at a light, i tried to put it in first... wouldnt budge. i didnt think anything of it, i double clutched and tried again, nothing... finally i got it into 1st. same problem pulling it out of 1st and into 2nd, 3rd through 5th were fine. after about 10 shifts, 1st gear cleared up and now it feels fine again, but rattle is still there.

this scared the SH*T out of me though, i thought i was totally stuck and i forgot my cell today too... anyway, what can you guys infer from this?