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Slight whine from inside the cabin

3889 Views 7 Replies 5 Participants Last post by  one_slow_tsx
Hey everyone, I'm new to this thread. So last night I stopped to get the mail and turned the car off and then when I got back in I noticed a slight whining sound coming from the passenger side of the engine bay, or at least I think it is. I then turned the car off and back on to see if it would return, and sure enough it did. The car had been running fine and I hadn't noticed any noise for the 20 minutes or so previous.

This afternoon I turned the car back on to see if it would happen again and sure enough (garage kept about 35 F outside) driving to the store and back. I'm not sure what it is, and I've done a good amount of research around for this issue. People seem to think its the drive belt, or one of the pulleys, but I'd love to get your feedback. I took a video of it hoping to get this figured out. Its a very slight sound but you should be able to pick it up.

Car has just over 101k, I changed the oil and filter about 2k miles ago, mixture of highway and city driving, only hear it at idle or low speeds, not sure if it goes away at high speeds or I just can't hear it.

Video Link with sound:

Thanks everyone, I try to take great care of my care and this has me worried.
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Is your PS fluid topped off?

When the car is up to temp does it still whine?
The PS level is about 1/3 up from the Lower Level point. I'll go to auto zone tomorrow and pick up some more fluid to top it off and see how that works.

The whine still appears when the car is warmed up and after driving for 15+, it seems to follow the RPM of the car, as when the car is cold its a high idle and its louder and as it warms up the idle lowers, thus the whine follows with it.

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Issue fixed. This morning I was driving and all of a sudden while sitting at a stop light about 6 minutes into my drive I got a message on the dash saying, check charging system with the battery logo, I kept driving and then it appeared again only this time with the seat belt light and air bag light on. More lights continued to come on, until I hit a stop light when my dash started fading with the lights then the dials died as thought the power was out. I was able to get the car up to speed and while getting up to speed the cluster came to life and everything was fine. I kill the radio, heat, heated seat and even the headlights and was able to take it into the dealership.

They told me it was the alternator and also that my drive belt didn't need it but should be replaced as it will need it soon anyway. I had them fix those and $800 later, no more whine and I have full power!! Only down side was they said they topped the fluids but yet my PS fluid is still where it was last night and they said I should get it drained and replaced as its dark. I figured I'll save the $150 and do it myself in a few weekends. Thanks tottenham12712 for the advice.
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Issue fixed. Thanks tottenham12712 for the advice.
No problem, My next guess would have been a failing accessory. But usually its the PS pump that makes that noise. Glad you got it resolved.
My alternator is making the same whine noise. My mechanic confirmed it's the alternator. I'm at 90k, I've had a sub and amp since 9k miles, I know that puts strain on the alternator too so the rest of you may be good past 100k.
Hmmm... Wondering if what i thought was a tranny whine is actually an alernator whine? Would be better for sure. I'll have to get out the multimeter. I did just replace a leaky PS pump so that fluid drip could have caused me alternator problems.
Leaky pump or loss of fluid after a few weeks is caused by leaking rack n pinion. I learned from topping it off about twice before the pump blew a seal. Punctured a pin hole size into the tie rod boot and found that the seals in the rack was leaking. Replaced both for $500 including alignment and problem fixed.
Also the tsx does have a whine from the tranny. My moms 07 corolla has the whine too.
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