2007 Toyota Camry 2.5L - Roaring Noise in the Engine Bay
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General Information:
The customer came in with a complaint that there is a grinding/roaring noise in the engine bay. There is no drivability issue, just a terrible noise that they want gone.
First thoughts:
Roaring noises can come from everywhere, but let’s hope it’s not because it’s low on oil.
Diagnostics:
The first thing to do is to check the oil and coolant. They were both full, which is good. Now it’s time to crank it up and listen if there is a roaring noise.
After cranking up the car, I confirmed that there is a roaring noise in the engine bay. It sounds like the noise is coming from a component in the drive belt system. The drive belt runs:
Alternator
Water Pump
A/C Compressor
Power Steering Pump
Some other components on the drive belt are crankshaft pulley, idler pulleys, and tensioner.
Each one of these components need to be tested to hear if there is a noise in them.
How do we test each component?
There are several ways to test each component, but I will only show you the ones I used for this car.
The first thing I did was remove the belts from the car. This car is equipped with two belts. One for the power steering pump only. One for the water pump, alternator, and compressor. Each belt has its on tensioner, and I believe only one had an idler pulley. (I can’t remember as I’m writing this article.)
After I removed the belts, I spun and shook(to feel the play of the pulley and the shaft that goes into the component) each pulley that the drive belt runs on to hear any loud or roaring noise. Of course, you can not freely spin the crankshaft (at least I hope you can not). I check that in the next step.
I spun and shook each pulley and could not positively verify which pulley was making the noise. The alternator had some noise when I spun it, but it wasn’t too loud. The water pump had play in the pulley which was a concern to me.
The next thing I did was crank the car up FOR A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME!!! Around 10 to 15 seconds*
*Do not let your car run without the drive belt for long time, it could potentially damage the engine. Just let a professional do it.
This test allowed me to make sure the noise was not coming from within the engine or the crankshaft pulley.
My next step was to put one belt on at a time to isolate which pulley or set of pulleys was making the roaring noise. I found that when I put on the belt that contained the water pump, alternator, and A/C compressor, the noise came back.
My last step is what got me the answer I needed.
With both belts on, I grabbed a automotive stethoscope and cranked the car up. I placed the stethoscope on each component and listen to which one was making the roaring noise the loudest.*
*Let a trained professional do this. Placing the stethoscope in the wrong place could really mess the car up and mess you up.
Each component is going to make some noise during this test because of the natural noise from the engine and also sound traveling from the bad pulley. A trained ear is key.
I found that it was the water pump that was indeed making the roaring noise.
Before I installed the new water pump, I checked the play in the pulley. The was no play in the new pulley, so I bolted it up and everything sounded great. No roaring noise.
Any time you replace a water pump, it’s also great to make sure it is not leaking.
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