Clio Whine

[nuster100]

Was driving home last night and my clio has developed a whine from what sounds like a belt.

It matches the engine revs.

I had a look under the bonnet and the whine is comming from the back of the engine.

its a 1.2 1999 clio for your info.

Would be grateful for any help, how worried do i need to be?

Jay

[James]

Im no mechanic, I wouldnt panic, sounds like it could be the fan belt? If it comes form the rear then maybe a loose exhaust or flow pipe?

[jont]

Alternator belt slipping in the wet weather? Usually a fairly high pitched squealing noise. Most cars allow the alternator to be moved on a bracket to tighten the belt up if it is this. Should be a 5 minute job to sort out.

Jon

[nuster100]

The belt ls at the top rear of the engine.

I don't think its the alternator belt, as the alternator is alot lower and the noise is wrong for it to be the fan belt.

Jay

[jont]

Possible belts in an engine:
Alternator (also called fan belt)
Air con (if fitted)
Cam belt
Power steering belt?
Interior heater fan (I think some of the old 205s had this instead of directly driven motor)
I can't think of any others. If it's the cambelt then I'm surprised you haven't noticed your engine dying. I guess it could be for the power steering pump - although sometimes the same belt goes round the alternator and the power steering.

Sounds like you need a friendly mechanic to take a look - we could spend all day guessing. Have you got AA/RAC membership? might be worth a call.

Jon

[nuster100]

Yeah, I will call a few friends later. Its sat in the work car park atm.

I haven't noticed a drop in performance, but my gut is saying cam belt.

Power steering is easy to rule out as I dont have it.

I can see the alternator belt, and the noise isnt coming from that.

Jay

[TripleS]

Yeah, I will call a few friends later. Its sat in the work car park atm.

I haven't noticed a drop in performance, but my gut is saying cam belt.

Power steering is easy to rule out as I dont have it.

I can see the alternator belt, and the noise isnt coming from that.

Jay

Check it soon Jay - if a cam belt breaks there can be considerable engine damage with some cars, but I don't know if this is a particular problem with your car. I hope it is nothing serious.

Best wishes all,
Dave.

[nuster100]

Spoken to a mechanic friend, he says that he thinks its a bearing, so will get it checked PDQ.

Jay

[billgates e30]

it won't be the cam belt........if it had been slipping hten then engine would have killed itself straight away

get your mate to have a look

[TripleS]

Even if it's just a failing bearing it could lead to some further damage if not dealt with pretty soon.

BTW, can cam belts slip, or do they maintain normal functioning until they break, or can they stretch sufficiently to jump a tooth or two and throw the timing out? If the timing gets seriously adrift I suppose that could do as much damage as having a belt break completely.

Yesterday on PistonHeads I was reading a topic about dragsters in which some startling information emerged. It was stated that in a Top Fuel dragster engine there can be as much as 20 degrees of twist between the two ends of the crankshaft when it's on full song.

....and the camshaft has its cams ground out of position along the length to change the valve timing to account for this!

Best wishes all,
Dave.

[Darren]

Whine in the rear: I would be looking at wheel bearings. Exhaust (airflow/pipes generate interesting noises).

Whine from the front: Fan belt, or as I've had in the past....a corrugated pipe in the air conditioning, compared to a straight one! Air flow caused a low pitch whistle in the pipe, took 4 different mechanics to find it.

My experience of cam belts going usually means putting a new engine in due to half of the drive shaft and cams going through the block. Cam belts don't normally slip and if they do, the timing is so bad the engine pretty much destroys itself during the process anyway. They just go in general, but I'm sure there are exceptions to the rule.

Just thoughts.
Darren

[Porker]

BTW, can cam belts slip, or do they maintain normal functioning until they break, or can they stretch sufficiently to jump a tooth or two and throw the timing out? If the timing gets seriously adrift I suppose that could do as much damage as having a belt break completely.
Dave.

Unless there's something else going on, they will work normally until they break. They don't stretch noticeably - one of the reasons they are now more commonly used than chains - but other problems can cause them to give issues. Some cars, for example, use the cambelt to drive the water pump, and if the pump seizes that can prove expensive...

I wholeheartedly agree with earlier posters who have suggested getting someone who really knows what they are looking at to check the car over. The whining may be something or nothing, but if you're not sure *get it checked*.

P.

[TripleS]

Whine in the rear: I would be looking at wheel bearings.
Darren

I don't think so Darren, not with the car stopped and heads under the bonnet listening to the engine.

Best wishes all,
Dave - in smartarse mode again!

[Darren]

Fair comment...I didn't read the whole thread.