whining noise while driving
 

today while i was on the highway trying to pass a car my truck started making a wierd noise when it downshifted. it sounded like a loud whining noise. and the heavier my foot was on the throttle the louder the noise was. if i took my foot off the gas and coasted the noise went away. when i stopped at the toll and started accelrating it made the noise all the way until i started coasting again. the same as before, the faster the i went and the higher the rpms went the louder the noise. when i finally got where i was going i put the truck into park. i reved up the engine and it didn't make the noise. it sounded like normal. to me that means that the issue is not comming from the engine or any of the accessories such as the alternator or P/S. i checked the fluids- oil good- trans fluid nice and pink. i hope its not the transmission.... anyone know what it could be? any similuar experiences? any other checks i could preform to narrow the issue down? whats the best way to handle this- i would hate to just drop it off at the dealer and say start fixing things.

vehicle stats:
2001 F-250 4x4 V10, ext cab, 122,000 miles.

thank you much! (in advance)

-chris

Are you married? My wife yells instead of whining.

(just kidding)

Sounds like you've eliminated the engine and transmission. That leaves the trasfer case, differential, carrier bearing, axle assembly, tires and perhaps brakes as the cause.

Turbo?

Gunner15a

No turbo on V-10.

No turbo on a V-10. Rears going bad are known to whine. Had one that when you got on the gas and put torque to it it would whine. As soon as you took your foot off it would go away.

hm... i think it might be the transmission. it sounds like a whine more than a grind or anything. at first it sounded to me more like the power steering because it almost has a hydraulic sound to it, but than it can't be that because it only makes the noise while i am in drive and only when i have my foot on the gas. this is weird. if it was the rear end- what do you think it is? ring and pinion- the bearings at the end of the axle?

the more i think about it the more i think its something in the transmission. i just drove through the parking lot at work slowly and while driving shifted it into neutral. the second i did that the noise went away. i have tranny fluid, and it isn't burnt. about a year ago i got the tranny flushed, so it has less than 10k miles on it. grrrr! i think this means i have to bring my truck to the transmission shop.

No harm in taking it to the shop to have it checked, I by no means am a tranny or rear end expert. Just a backyard mechanic going on real world experience. Very well could be the tranny pump or even the torque converter, they sometimes whine if they are on their way out. If it is in the rear I would probably say ring and pinion as alot of times the whining only occurs with them when you load them up (apply torque). Good luck, hope it is nothing major.

Sounds more like the rear pinion bearing to me. I would pull the rear diff cover off and see what it looks like in there. I am guessing, but I think you would find some metal in the gear oil. What happens is the bearing starts to go out, gets loose and when it is under a load it binds (making noise), when you let off the gas or put it neutral it relaxes and floats (making no noise). Could possibly be a U joint, check the rear shaft also. I just changed mine from a noise at highway speeds, wanted to deafen me in the cab.

Let us know what you find

Toyman

lay under the rear and pull out the filler nut..that has a magnet on the one side..pull it out and check it for metal..

Does the whine change with the gear the tranny is in? If the whine stays the same then it points more to the diff. Diffs can whine under load and no whine on coast.

The wheels etc are probably out of the pic since you said the whine goes away when you coast and the whine changes with engine speed.

Reving the engine in neutral probably eliminates the engine and accessories.

If the whine goes up as the RPMs rise and then drops when it shifts to the next gear and then rises again etc, then it is probably in the tranny. Wild guess is the pump or perhaps the clutches are slipping. I AM NOT a tranny expert so don't trust me.

Tranny fluid should be red not pink.

Good Luck,

Jim Henderson

thanks guys for the advice! I ended up dropping the truck off at my local aamco. (they rebuilt my fathers transmission a year ago and are about a mile from where i work) They called me today and told me that they also believe it to be a tranny issue. they stated that it is either the pump or the torque converter but that they have to pull the thing apart to find out exactly what it is. The guy also mentioned that because i noticed the problem quickly that i probably saved the transmission from a complete rebuild. He will be giving me a call tomorrow morning with the estimate, and i will let you know how it goes.

the good thing is when i bought the truck i bought an aftermarket warranty, so they should be covering a good portion of it. however the transmission guy told me they want to replace my tranny with a junk yard tranny, so if it comes to the point where i need a rebuild that means i will have to pay the difference.

Good luck with it and let us know what it turns out to be.

Why would a transmission shop want to replace your trans with one from junk yard? That doesn't sound good to me. Why can't they fix the trans from your truck.

Toyman

for me sounds like rear end