4 Common Car Noises

If you own a car, it probably makes noises you can't identify, but would love to fix. Car noises are annoying and sometime are a warning sign, like the calm before a storm. I have picked 4 car noises I believe to be the most common noises customers complain about. Sometime noises are hard to identify because noises travel throughout the vehicle and it is hard to pinpoint where it's coming from, but with a trained ear and some insight on car noises, we should be able to figure out what is causing the noise in your car and what you can do to fix it.

If your car is making a clicking noise when turning, it is likely you have an outer CV joint (constant velocity joint) that has failed because of a torn boot or old age, most likely because of a torn boot. Without going in to too much detail about what a CV joint is, I will just give you a basic idea of its function and why it might have failed.

A CV joint is a ball bearing set at the inner and outer ends of an axle, there is a rubber boot that covers the entire joint and protects it from dirt, debris, and miosture, but at the same time, it holds in the grease that lubricates the ball bearings. Through time the boot becomes brittle and dry, eventually it will split open and allow the elements to enter the protected joint and mix with the grease, once the elements mix with the grease, the damage begins, and it only a matter of time before the CV joint starts to make a clicking noise when turning.

The clicking noise when turning will start as a faint click noise; gradually it will become extremely loud and will become very noticeable. The only repair for this condition is to replace the axle assembly or replace the outer CV joint. My professional opinion is to replace the entire axle assembly, it doesn't make much sense to mix old parts with new parts, and usually you will find that replacing the entire axle assembly is cheaper than just replacing the outer joint, if you can even find just the outer joint sold separately.

Water pump noises are very difficult to diagnose because usually they are buried in the motor and the noise will resonate through the engine making it difficult to identify. The water pump on your engine has a pulley, pump fins, a casting, and a bearing set. When a water pump fails, the noise is usually caused by damage to the bearings. (See my article on "what is a bearing") The video here on this page is a great example of what a noisy water pump sounds like.

If you suspect your water pump is the culprit for the noise in your car, try to locate the water pump on the engine, if you can see the casting of the water pump and it's accessible, you can try to pinpoint the noise by holding a long screwdriver on the casting and putting the other end of the screwdriver against you ear, if the bearing is bad you will hear noise through the screwdriver. (See my video on "Diagnosing a wheel bearing," it's the same procedure.)

The only fix for a noisy water pump is to replace it. Some water pumps can cost a lot of money to replace because they are located under the timing belt cover, generally water pumps are bolted to the engine block, and it take some time removing engine parts to get to it, you end up paying several hundreds of dollars to replace a $50 part because of its location.

Engine belts can create a loud high pitched squeak or squeal that will drive you and your neighbors crazy. Some engine belts only squeak when you go through a large puddle or if there is heavy moisture in the air, and others squeak constantly. If you engine belts squeak when going through puddles or during high moisture days, you probably only need to have your engine belts adjusted, if your belts squeak constantly, it may be caused by a dry, cracked, or loose belt that needs to be replaced.

Some folks like to use a spray called belt dressing to stop the engine belt squeal or squeak; this is a great diagnosing tool and a temporary fix but I don't recommending it as a permanent fix. Using the belt dressing can help diagnose which belt is causing the extremely annoying noise. If you have belt dressing, this is what you do, when the engine is running, just spray it on each belt to see which belt starts to quiet down. Inspect your engine belts for cracks, damage, and tension, replace, or adjust as needed.

A heat shield noise is a type of rattle you hear while your car is idling or at a specific RPM. Heat shields are place along the exhaust system of your car to deflect heat away from the floor of your vehicle and other heat sensitive components like fuel tanks, wiring and brake lines, as the exhaust system ages, sometime the heat shields start to rust at the hold down points and become loose. If this is your problem, the engine vibrations will cause an awful noise as your sitting at a stop light or as your car is warming up at idle in the driveway, it will sound like rocks vibrating on a cookie sheet.

Heat shields can become damaged due to road debris, snow banks, automotive lifts, and just plain ole old age. In some cases, a damaged heat shield can be removed temporarily without causing any repercussions, but it's best to replace them as soon as possible. An automotive exhaust system can become extremely hot, sometime in excess of a 1000deg, if you are running your engine at high RPM's for long periods, like driving on the highway.

There are a lot more car noises than what is outlined here in this article and it would take a lot more time to explain everyone of them, so I only covered the noises my customers complain about the most. Just remember, noise could be a warning sign, so if you have a noise in your car that you are unsure of, bring it to your trustworthy mechanic to have it checked out before it cost you even more money.

Car noises are inevitable, even new cars have noises that need to be fixed. Here's a little tip that not too many people know about. When buying a new car, if possible, find out what day it came off the assembly line; watch out for cars built the day before a holiday, or on a Friday afternoon.

It may sound funny, but humans are building these vehicles, and you know what happens at 5 o'clock on Friday or at closing time the day before a holiday, we rush our work so we can head home to relax or prepare for the holiday. It not a fact I found in a documentary or anything, it's just my experience, if we had a new car with a lot of little problems, it seem like they were always built on these days.

If you have a noise in your car and you can't seem to figure it out, ask me about it in the comment box below and I will answer your question asap, if you think the article could benefit someone you know, please share it on Facebook or Twitter, just click the buttons at the top of the page, thank you, I really appreciate it.