help needed...noise from belts!?

[tdineil]

hi everyone, my audi is making a noise like a metalic rattle, it seems to be coming from the belts between the radiator and the block, cant pinpoint which one but it sounds quite severe(has been coming for a while, only used to make it on cold mornings and was much quieter). it only happens on idle, if i touch the throttle it goes, only needs about 500rpm and it runs smooth. i have no idea if its a loose belt tensioner/mounting or what, but i really could do with yoiur advice. it has not lost any power and there is no slipping noise when i floor it, i think it is just the fan belt but cant be sure.

cheers

neil

 

[james0808]

Its hard to diagnose a fault from a description of a noise,you could try spraying some WD40 into the power steering pump,alternator and all the other bits the belt goes round one at a time to see if it stops the noise.
Could be worn bearings.

 

[tdineil]

thanks james, i just went out to try the car again, it had a hint of the noise but nothing more than normal diesel startup noise, anyway i sprayed some wd40 around the area so i hope for the best, i think im gonna take it to my friendly back st gararge if it comes back, which will probably be mid commuting rush hour traffic tomorrow if im unlucky! from this ive guessed it is nothing more than a belt/fan issue as it has gone away for now but any more thourghts are very welcome as i could be talking cr@p!

 

[bonerp]

neil
sounds like problem i had when tensioner pulley went. mine did same thing at tickover then suddenly let go (80 miles from home!) destroying the teeth on the power steering belt and alternator belt went too. Had that fixed under garage warranty that bought the car from, then a few weeks later the alternator pulley went too!
If youve not got a warranty, treat yourself to one from warranty direct!!!
The garage who repaired it (and not sure I believe them) said the tensioner pulley replacement cost £900. Personally I think thats bull.
Paul

 

[tdineil]

thanks paul, just checked our warranty direct but they cant do mine as it is over 100k. sounds like it could be worse than i thought, tell me, did the noise come and go or was it there for good, and how long after you noticed it did it blow, i know all cars are different and i cant use yours as a timescale to go by but i would find it useful.. cheers, and can i ask was it a loud fast ticking/clicking Noise? as that is the best way to decribe what i have.

thanks

neil

 

[bonerp]

the noise was constant at tickover then went when reved.

I bought the car in Oct and it went in Nov. The garage who remapped my car noticed it - tbh I just thought it was a noisy diesel!!! They thought it was the water pump - lets just say the noise has gone now the tensioner has been replaced! The tensioner itself is plastic - stupid or what eh??!??! The bearing mustve been worn though as it just seized up in the end.
the tensioner is at the front of the engine but would guess you'd have to remove the rads to get to it as theres not much room!!
The noise didnt suddenly get worse when it went - it just went!
I noticed when the alternator was getting worse tho and it was noisy when it was warm - not cold! I took it in before that went too!
Good luck
P

 

[tdineil]

cheers for all your help paul, i think i will drop it in on the way to work and see what they find, i will mention what you have said to give em a clue. i will let you know how it goes.

thanks again

neil

 

[scottyjohn]

Hey just a thought, I had the same problem and when idling if you turned the steering, it made a squeak like the power steering belt was slipping. I initially thought it was the tensioner as it was jumping around really violently when it was idling. So I changed the wheel and damper assembly and the problem didnt go away. Turned out it was the actual alternator pulley wheel, which has a one way free wheel mechanism on it and apprently these tend to seize, causing the problem you describe. If you can see the tensioner jumping around causing the belt to wobble, chances are its the same prob as mine. You have to take the front bumper off and undo the front and pull it forward to get access to the pulley. Problem is its a special tool to remove the pulley wheel from the alternator, but you can borrow it from a garage or buy it from draper tools. I think its about £30 for the tool and about £65 for the pulley wheel. And a pain in the *** getting the front end off! Hope this helps!

 

[bonerp]

Scottyjohn,
So when you replaced the power steering pulley/tensioner, how much did that all cost?? Was that a straightforward replacement? Theres not much room in there, is there?!
Just wondering as Ive had both the tensioner, pulley, alternator pulley and alternator replaced now (the pulley on the alternator didnt fix the problem and ultimately had to replace the lot).

Unless its down the the amount of labour involved, the garage reckon the p/s pulley etc cost about £900!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Paul

 

[tdineil]

hi everyone, just an update, i took the car in to my friendly garage, they rebuilt the alternator and replaced the knackered tensioner (i saw it and it looked completly mashed) anyway i have the car back and there is still a noise, it happens on tickover as before but it sounds like a reverb coming from somewhere around the same area, it comes in waves and sometimes its not there, but its very noticable, they noticed it when they had the front end off but they could locate it. any ideas?

cheers guys

 

[scottyjohn]

Hi
For me the most work was removing the front bumper and pulling the front panel forward as there is little chance of being able to do anything as its so tight there.
So did they replace the tensioner which looks like the shock absorber? I did that first also and felt it made a slight difference but in hindsight it was probably the belts jumping around which had wrecked the tensioner so popping a new one on calmed it down slightly. I still had the problem though and then thanks tro online forums changed the alternator wheel and hey presto. So are your belts jumping a fair bit at the front and does it squeak when you turn the steering whilst stationary?

 

[scottyjohn]

Sorry Bonerp its was the alternator Pulley not the power steering. Also tdineil, did they replace the front wheel of the alternator when they rebuilt it?

 

[tdineil]

not sure if they did, should they have?

 

[bonerp]

they replaced the whole alternator on mine after replacing the wheel as that didnt fix the problem on its own - something more terminal was wrong with it

 

[samuelt]

just going through this myself!!! so far my garage has replaced the stearing PUMP,tensioner and belt. the bill was rather expensive but my warrenty paid most of the labour and the pump.
changing the tensioner made a difference but the noise you describe was still there!!! seems worst at near or on full lock when driving away from standstill in first!!!


I now belive it is the alternator pully as there is lots on other forums about this failing!! (whish i seed them first!!) i got quoted £61 for audi for the part and not suprisingly they keep them in stock! I now plan to get this changed A.SA.P. If it is possible to get the pully off without taking the alternator of it should not be to expensive to get done.

 

[samuelt]

tdineil the pully does not come with the alternator so check with them.